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10/04/2026 |

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Empress Shōken Fund announces 2026 funding decisions

The Joint Commission of theEmpress Shōken Fund (ESF) has announced a new distribution of funds, totalling 430,884 Swiss francs, which will support 15 projects run by 15 National Red Cross or Red Crescent Societies. The Commission is administered by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).The projects chosen cover a variety of issues, including disaster preparedness, first aid and rescue, health, social welfare and youth engagement.The countries where the projects are being implemented are Botswana, Chile, Congo, Costa Rica, Denmark, Egypt, Guatemala, Iceland, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR), Latvia, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Sao Tome and Principe, and Tanzania.The ESF received 68 applications last year for the 105th distribution of income, the highest number ever, reflecting growing demand for innovation across the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.In 2025, the ESF continued strengthening its pipeline of innovation initiatives by reinforcing the rigour of its application, review and learning processes. This resulted in clearer selection criteria, structured experimentation and learning expectations, and stronger peer-to-peer support for applicants, including mentors from theSolferino Academy network, some of whom are past ESF grantees.As a result, the quality of applications continued to improve, with proposals demonstrating greater clarity, stronger learning intent and more deliberate approaches to replication. This positive trend confirms the value of the ESF’s focus on innovation, experimentation and learning. It also highlights the ongoing need to support National Societies as they test and scale new approaches to increase humanitarian impact.The first ESF grant was awarded in 1921 to help five European National Societies fight the spread of tuberculosis. Since then, more than 17million Swiss francs have been allocated to 175 National Societies for a total of 795 initiatives. The grants are announced every year on 11April, the anniversary of the death of Her Majesty Empress Shōken, known for her charity work and for being one of the founders of the Japanese Red Cross Society.2026 grantsDisaster preparedness and early warningCosta Rica: Resilient Indigenous TerritoriesIndigenous communities often face delays in emergency response due to their geographic isolation and limited access to services. This initiative strengthens local preparedness by training and equipping Indigenous volunteers as first responders, combining modern emergency practices with traditional knowledge. Its culturally grounded, community-led model improves response times while offering a replicable approach for other remote and marginalized communities.Sao Tome and Principe: Aqua-AlertCoastal communities face increasing risks from flooding, erosion and climate-related hazards but have limited early warning capacity. Aqua-Alert introduces enhanced digital monitoring and early warning systems to improve anticipation and response. By combining local data collection with accessible communication tools, it strengthens community resilience and offers a scalable model for small island contexts.Indonesia: AldebaranMany hazard-prone communities lack continuous access to preparedness information. Aldebaran addresses this gap through an AI-powered platform paired with youth-led “agents of change” who provide ongoing localized support. By combining technology with human engagement, it ensures accessible, real-time guidance and builds a sustainable, youth-driven preparedness ecosystem.Botswana: Circular Solutions for ResiliencePoor waste management contributes to environmental degradation and increased flood risks in vulnerable areas. This initiative establishes a recycling hub that transforms automotive waste into usable products, reducing environmental hazards while creating income opportunities. Its circular economy approach links climate resilience and livelihoods in a model that can be replicated in similar contexts.First aid and rescueLatvia: First Aid for Every ChildChildren often lack access to appropriate first-aid education despite being key actors in emergencies. This initiative develops an accessible, child-friendly training system tailored to different age groups. By making first-aid learning engaging and inclusive, it builds life-saving skills early and creates a foundation for long-term community resilience.Egypt: The Creative RescuerTraditional disaster preparedness approaches often fail to engage young people effectively. This initiative introduces creative, experiential learning methods to make preparedness more engaging and practical. By testing alternative education formats, it aims to improve retention and behaviour change, offering strong potential for adaptation across other National Societies.Health and well-beingDenmark: Y2Y-VOICESYouth perspectives are often underrepresented in mental health discussions and programming. Y2Y-VOICES addresses this gap through a peer-to-peer learning and mentoring model where young volunteers co-create advocacy campaigns. By combining storytelling, communication skills and psychosocial support, it empowers young people to shape mental health narratives while strengthening their own well-being and connectedness.Chile: Caring for CaregiversVolunteers face increasing psychosocial pressure, and this and the lack of structured support systems leads to burnout and attrition. This initiative pilots a preventive psychosocial support model across multiple branches, including peer support spaces, self-care training and psychological first aid. By institutionalizing volunteer care, it strengthens both individual well-being and overall organizational resilience.Social welfare and inclusionIceland: Project SamfléttaRefugee women often face isolation and barriers to accessing services and employment. Project Samflétta addresses this through an adaptive support model combining practical assistance, skills development and improved service navigation. Its iterative approach allows for continuous learning and adjustment, supporting long-term inclusion and empowerment.North Macedonia: House of OpportunitiesPeople experiencing homelessness and extreme poverty often struggle to navigate fragmented support systems. This initiative creates a multifunctional service hub that brings together essential services in one place, supported by a simplified mapping approach. By improving access and coordination, it offers a practical, replicable model for inclusive service delivery.Youth engagement and climate/environmental actionPakistan: YOUR-CAPUrban youth are often under-engaged in climate resilience efforts despite being key agents of change. YOUR-CAP supports youth teams in designing and testing local climate solutions through training, mentoring and small grants. With the addition of a Youth Wellness Corner, it provides light psychosocial support, recognizing the link between climate action and well-being.Lao PDR: Youth Engagement & Leadership StrengtheningYouth engagement is often informal and lacks continuity. This initiative builds a structured pathway from recruitment to leadership through orientations, camps, clubs and small grants. By systematizing youth engagement, it creates a sustainable model for long-term volunteer development.Tanzania: Youth-Led Climate Resilience Innovation LabsCommunities need locally adapted, low-cost climate solutions. This initiative establishes youth-led innovation labs where young people co-create and test practical adaptation measures with communities. By linking innovation and preparedness, it strengthens both local resilience and youth leadership.Guatemala: Blue GuardiansWhile water ecosystems are under increasing pressure, youth engagement in environmental action remains limited. Blue Guardians establishes a Youth Water Observatory and supports youth-led monitoring, clean-ups, reforestation and awareness campaigns. Its built-in learning design compares approaches to identify the most effective models for scale.Congo: J-INNOVCommunities affected by recurrent crises often lack access to affordable and repairable tools. J‑INNOV establishes humanitarian fab labs to train youth innovators and develop locally produced solutions. By combining innovation, skills development and micro-enterprise incubation, it creates sustainable, locally driven responses to recurring challenges.The Joint Commission of the Empress Shōken Fund warmly congratulates all the 2026 ESF grantees and looks forward to learning with them as they bring these initiatives to life across the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

31/10/2024 |

Article

Inspiring people: By the time you finish this article, you’ll be ready to change the world

They come from all over. They are old, they are young, and they share one thing in common: they are all changing the lives of people around them. A volunteer in Ghana with an entrepreneurial spirit. A teacher helping disabled children break the barriers that hold them back. A medical doctor giving the gift of sight to people without access to health care. A woman who brings live saving medical care to migrants in the Sonoran Desert, and a man who has dedicated his life to expanding humanitarian services in Niger. All these people also share one other common bond: They are all winners of IFRC’s most prestigious prize, the Henry Davison Award, named after the organization’s founder. Here are their stories.Warning: This article may motivate you to start a project, get involved in a local organisation, or volunteer at your local Red Cross or Red Crescent branch. Dr Uraiwan Tinnungwattana: A woman with a visionFor many around the world, basic eye care is something that can be taken for granted. But for many others, even the most basic eye care is completely out of reach. They cannot afford an eye exam, or a pair of glasses, let alone more elaborate treatments.Enter Dr Uraiwan Tinnungwattana, anophthalmologist with the Thai Red Cross Medical Services Unit with a vision: to bring eye care to thousands of people living in marginalised communities around Thailand and neighbouring countries.Dr Tinnungwattana has been at the forefront of Thai Red Cross efforts to increase accessibility to eye care at the community level with tools such as the mobile, eye-surgical unit, which travels to remote areasd to bring better vision services to children and others.During the last 29 years, she has performed no-cost eye surgeries to over 285,000 people in Thailand who would otherwise not have been able to afford or access that care. She has restored sight to more than 75,000 vulnerable patients.“I’m so glad that I can see again,” said one woman as she recovered from a recent eye surgery at a mobile Thai eye-care clinic. “I feel like I have been reborn.”Dr Tinnungwattana also helped oversee the transformation of a donated trailer into a mobile eye surgery clinic, as well as the acquisition of a fully-equipped optical trailer that can manufacture eyeglasses on-site and has helped the Thai Red Cross distribute over 96,500 free pairs or eyeglasses to students. Meanwhile, the “better vision services for school children” initiative has now screened over 7.86 million children since 1997.Abudi Razak: Inspiring youth with an entrepreneurial spiritClimate change is impacting everyone in Ghana, says Abuki Razak, but it’s having very particular effect on young Ghanians. “The northern part of Ghana is facing drought, the southern part of Ghana is facing floods,” says Razak, a volunteer and national youth president for the Ghana Red Cross. “These unpredictable weather conditions have prevented farmers from having adequate crop yields.”Many young people who rely on agriculture, or related businesses, are unemployed. “Climate change is disrupting their means of getting income,” he adds. “And meanwhile, there is a high cost of living in West Africa.”In response, Razak’s has been motivating young people to take matters into their own hands, getting them involved in project that he describes as “climate-preneurship”. In one recent initiative, be brought other young people together tobuild a solar powered harvesting machine that uses solar power to roll across fields, pick ground nuts and sort them.“We are doing this specifically for women farmers because they are the people that are facing a lot of the negative impact of this climate crisis,” he says.In a world where opportunity does not always come through institutional challenges, young people are using new technology, their own creativity and inventiveness to find solutions.“I try as much as I can to get people into the spirit that something can be done,” says Razak, who also serves as president of West Coast Red Cross youth (includes Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Liberia). As part of that role, he has trained more than 200 young leaders around issues of gender and minority issues and he has worked to encourage women into active leadership in his National Society. His latest initiative enlists young peoplein West Coast countries to raise awareness about non-communicable diseases such as high blood pressure (a big killer in western Africa).Standing tall: A teacher breaking down barriers“My disability is my short stature,”says Gülhan Ince, teacher and leader within the Turkish Red Crescent’s Without Barriers initiative. “Like all disabled individuals, I have faced many challenges. Going through my adolescence was very difficult. However, I succeeded in fighting against these challenges.”Now, as aa president and regional representative for Without Barriers, shefacilitates engagement of volunteers with disabilities in projects that improves lives and alleviates suffering within their communities.“Having experienced many difficulties as a disabled person I try to help my disabled siblings as much as I can,” she adds. “When a disability unit was established at the Turkish Red Crescent, I volunteered and now our work is ongoing.”The devastating earthquake that shookTürkiye on 6 February, 2023 brought the critical importance of this work to the fore. Many died, were injured and thousands now live with permanent, physical disabilities.“With the unity of our state and our people, we thankfully overcame these tough days. Disabled children and individuals must first be accepted by society. We need to start working on this with our youngest children.”“We strive to demonstrate that physical characteristics are not important and that when given opportunities, they can achieve great things. Many of our children have succeeded in these efforts.“A few of our students have proven their success by going to university. Seeing this progress in our children makes us, as families and the Red Crescent team, very happy and motivates us to work even harder.”Rosa Guadalupe Gonzales Bucio: Humanity on wheelsIn communities on the southern side of Nogales, a city that straddles the US Mexican border in the northern Mexican state of Sonora, Rosa Guadalupe Gonzales Bucioto is well known to many.Health personnel, local authorities, consular representatives, social organizations, local merchants – everyone knows this determined, red-clad woman who drives an all-terrain vehicle through the streets and remote dirt paths in and around Nogales.It’s here that she drives the Mexican Red Cross all-terrain vehicle, providing life-saving humanitarian aid to people who have travelled across the desert, often in desperate need of water, first-aid, food or a safe place to rest.“Lupita,” as she is affectionately known, is an emergency medical technician, the focal point of the Mexican Red Cross's humanitarian aid for vulnerable migrants on the Mexican side of Nogales, a city that straddles the United States and Mexican border.For many migrants, Mexico is the last step in the journey that people from all over the world undertake to reach the United States. In 2023 alone, there were more than 2.4 million attempts to cross the border between the two countries, which the United Nations called the world's deadliest land migration route.In 2023, at least 686 migrants lost their lives on this route and almost half of them did so trying to cross arid landscapes such as the Sonoran Desert, the one Lupita drives through every day. This is what motivates her to keep driving and saving lives. “Their stories continue to move me as they did on the !rst day,” she says.Ali Bandiaré: Nurturing humanity in NigerLocated in the heart of the Sahel — the arid band or terrain that stretches across the African continent south of the Sahara Desert — the country of Niger is coping with some of the world’s most complex and extreme humanitarian challenges.On the one hand, there’s drought and extreme heat and, on the other, there are severe flash floods. A key crossroads for people migrating from various parts of southern Africa, Niger is also dealing with instability caused by armed violence in large area of the country. Due to ongoing insecurity, meanwhile, international relief efforts cannot access many communities.These are some of the reasons why the long-standing dedication of Ali Bandiaré has been so critical to improving the humanitarian situation in Niger. Animated by deeply held humanitarian principles, Bandiaré has played an essential role in developing and expanding the reach of the Niger Red Cross, a trusted, local humanitarian organisation that is uniquely able to bring services in Niger’s most vulnerable communities.In 1983, the organization had only one building and less than 300,000 CFA francs (about 500 USD) in its accounts. Under Bandiaré's leadership, the Nigerien Red Cross expanded significantly, establishing headquarters in all eight regions and more than half of the country’s 74 departments. His focus on humanitarian diplomacy, advocacy, and regular field missions has helped address the needs of the most vulnerable, particularly during food insecurity crises and climate-change challenges. His ability to bring in and work with partners has allowed the Niger Red Cross to cover a wide range of initiatives, from emergency response to long-term development projects. Thanks to his efforts, Niger is far more able to address the impacts of climate change, migration and displacement caused by armed violence, demonstrating proactive measures in disaster management and resilience building.

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