Informal Settlements
Extreme Poverty Reduction
Community-Led Development
About YOD:
The founder of YOD was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. and is a longtime resident of Telluride, CO. The non-profit 501 (c ) operates with no salaries paid to U.S. workers, including the founder. Every dollar donated goes to people who need it most. YOD is Community-led, which means the community decides what works best to help themselves. Locals within the slum are paid to run programs they think will best help their community.
YOD began in 2006 on the principles of yoga and seva, i.e., serving others. Devoted to serving children living in extreme poverty, YOD has helped children and families from Los Angeles to San Francisco and Telluride, before expanding to custom programs to reduce extreme poverty in India, Indonesia, Peru, Nepal, and Tanzania. In 2012, YOD's "Yoga Diplomacy" has focused on the 825,000 residents of the Mukuru Slum in Nairobi, Kenya. We support education, food security, art, and entrepreneurship as a catalyst for job creation within and for the community. The goal - to foster a micro-economy for self-reliance through value-chain jobs.
Though politics, economics, and country leadership are critical to international development, the development sector acknowledges the effectiveness of Community-led Development. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remain at the forefront of all our programs, with perspective from the people the SDGs are intended to serve.
The "New Frontier" of development must include pandemic preparedness, off-grid energy alternatives, food security, alternative education, and micro-entrepreneurship. YOD takes a human-centered approach in programs that provide what the community needs most. Women, children, men, youth, and persons with disabilities are all included.
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Our 501(c )(3) registered name is Telluride Flights Worldwide Relief Fund, dba YOD International
Federal Tax ID# 20-8091089
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“Success is not final; failure is not fatal:
It is the courage to continue that counts.”
Winston Churchill
Locals lead in selecting the neediest families to support with school fees.YOD partners with KWES Foundation to support 20 high school students and 20 primary/middle school students from Mukuru Slum.
COMMUNITY-LED
COMPASSION & CRITICAL THINKING.
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YOD supports a 40-woman-led rural farm + 3 urban micro-farms in Mukuru and Lucky Summer Slum using vertical growing techniques for small spaces. The program empowers healthy eating and entrepreneurship selling vegetables, eggs, and foul.
COMMUNITY-LED
FOOD SECURITY.
Local artists foster common values and promote important messages on mosaic shards in central locations throughout the slum. These "Baraza's" serve as Community Productive Spaces for business, community gatherings, health services, and NGO access to the slum. Moreover, they instill pride.
COMMUNITY-LED
DIGNITY.
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