Empowering Girls: Building a just and equitable world

India is home to nearly 120 million adolescent girls, the largest of this cohort in the world.

Most of them might never reach their full potential just because they are girls.

Investing in girls can change everything!

Adolescent girls are key to a sustainable future and a pathway out of poverty. Discriminatory gender norms leave them with less parental support for schooling, time-consuming domestic chores and roles, and high risks of child marriage, adolescent motherhood, and violence.


Investing in them can:

Reduce infant and maternal mortality rates

A literate mother has more chances of surviving pregnancy and giving birth to a healthy child.

Improve female workforce participation

A female-dominant workforce can elevate the capacity of India’s GDP.

Eliminate poverty

With greater autonomy, adolescents are more likely to lead healthier and more productive lives as adults, thus breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty.

Tackle climate change

When adolescent girls are educated and supported, they can contribute to sustainable practices, advocate for environmental protection, and drive innovation towards a greener future.

We work with and for adolescent girls through a girl-led leadership program to achieve 4 key outcomes:
Addressing Gender
Inequality in Education
key2
Adolescent Health
& Well-Being
key3
Prevention of
Child Marriage
key4
Prevention of Violence
Against Women & Girls
  • Delivering life skills education
  • Giving access to digital infrastructures
  • Providing mentoring support
  • Awarding educational scholarships
  • Collectivising girls at the grassroots
  • Creating safe spaces
  • Instigating community engagement
The Girl Icon Program develops and fosters a series of self-positive behaviours that are essential for continued resilience and future leadership. Empowerment is a personal journey, as unique and diverse as the individuals themselves. Self-positive traits of independent mobility, knowledge of resources and services, awareness of gender inequity challenges, and the ability to express oneself are examples of interim outcomes that support the development of resilience, identity development, and empowerment. Milaan’s Girl Icon Program provides essential empowerment training for girls as a stepping stone, exposing girls to structural gender challenges and encouraging girls to believe in their own abilities and foster a sense of self.
University of California, Berkeley
Our Impact
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Indian States
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Adolescent Girls
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Community Members

“I have seen girls in my community get married off after they pass 8th grade because they are considered a burden to the family but this mentality is centuries old and I am fighting to change it. I have stopped three child marriages and I will continue to stop more.”

Girl Icon Alumna, Priya
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Build a Movement
of Girl Leaders

An investment of INR 3,500 or USD 45 supports
an adolescent girl for 18 months through the
Girl Icon Program.
GIVE TODAY

Build a Movement of Girl Leaders

An investment of INR 3,500 or USD 45 supports an adolescent girl for 18 months through the Girl Icon Program.

GIVE TODAY
Girl Icon Alumni Network
  • A five-year association where the Girl Icon Alumni make a valuable contribution to the growth of the Girl Icon Program, their communities, and the larger society along with mentoring new Girl Icons.
  • Mobilising girls to drive positive change by helping them grow socially and professionally.
  • Providing alumni with the right resources, opportunities, educational scholarships, and safe spaces to help them achieve their goals.
Our Commitment to SDGs
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Bela Grover (USA)

"I deeply believe in the power of education and community in challenging gender stereotypes and providing autonomy. Milaan's grassroots efforts to empower young women are inspiring and impactful. It is a privilege to be part of the team. "

Bela is a seasoned leader serving as the Chief Client Relationship Officer at Goodwin, a global law firm that advises the innovators and investors operating in some of the world’s most transformative areas. Prior to that, Prior to joining Goodwin, she spent 25 years at Deloitte working alongside diverse group of senior stakeholders to solve their most complex business challenges, including go-to-market transformations, operational excellence, as well as large-scale change. She also served as an advisor to Vidya Grants, a non-profit organization focused on education ecosystem in India.