In order to facilitate the transformation we seek, women and girls must be empowered in every sphere of society. We believe that once empowered, women and girls will play transformative leadership roles; and as women and girls become more equal partners with men and boys, a spirit of collaboration can better prevail in society. Toward these goals, men and boys must also be supported as their roles evolve, helping to move from systems of domination and exploitation to ones of equality and partnership.

NoVo Foundation’s contribution to this theory of change is centered on the following initiatives:

• Empowering girls and women with emphasis on increasing educational and
  economic opportunities in the developing world;
• Ending violence against girls and women;
• Advancement of Social Emotional Learning, an approach to education that bolsters
  academic achievement with positive emotional development and social
  understanding.

NoVo is committed to building the capacity of organizations with demonstrated ability for significant impact (including community building, advocacy, research and development), especially those organizations that are women led or women focused. Through partnerships with such organizations, we expect our funding to both expand the reach of our partners’ work and attract new funders.