By empowering youth and maximizing opportunities for them to succeed, we empower our world.
Every young person deserves to realize their potential and focus on their well-being in a holistic way.
Scholarship & Education
Arts, Culture, & Sports
Mental Health & Spirituality
Activism & Leadership
What We Support
We focus on programming that benefits disadvantaged youth in New York City and across the globe, and maintain a special focus on uplifting youth of South Asian origin or those living in India.
Youth Well-Being Empowerment Programs
We fund a portfolio of programs that support youth well-being through after-school initiatives, introducing spirituality into education, offering sports scholarships to those who cannot afford it, providing mental health services, and encouraging activism and leadership.
Banyan College Scholarship Program
The foundation works directly with youth through our college scholarship program: Banyan Scholarship, which alleviates the financial burden that young people face as they are entering college, leaving more time to pursue their academic interests and passions.
Youth-Focused Research
We fund research on topics around youth development such as addressing gaps in knowledge, supporting marginalized communities, and social media activism. These research projects help us generate more data on which to base our future funding decisions.
Direct sponsorship of Artists and Musicians
A program slated to launch in 2024 will identify and sponsor a select number of promising young Indian artists and musicians, in many cases funding their travel to the U.S. as well as sponsoring events to support their career development and creative expression.
Our Founding Story
The foundation was launched in late 2014 with the establishment of the Banyan College Scholarship. Over the past decade, our mission and vision for the foundation has expanded and evolved alongside our research efforts into making sustainable impact.
Our work centers around mental, physical, and spiritual well-being with an emphasis on bringing arts and culture into the lives of young people. A critical element of the work involves making sure young people have a voice in decision-making and are architects of programs that can enrich their lives.
