OUR ORGANIZATION
OUR STORY
Fuel the World was cofounded by Janani, Aanya, and Viraja—three students united by a shared mission to combat food insecurity through culturally relevant and nutritious meals.
For Viraja, the drive came from personal health struggles with anemia and witnessing her family’s challenges with diabetes. She wanted to ensure communities facing hunger received not just food, but also the education to improve their health.
Janani was motivated by a deep passion for community engagement and storytelling. She saw how vital it was to elevate the voices of those impacted by food insecurity, ensuring that aid was not just accessible, but also dignified and culturally aligned.
Aanya, with her expertise in finance and public policy, sought to create a sustainable, scalable organization. She focused on building a solid financial foundation that could support long-term impact.
What united them was a realization: food aid often fails to meet the real needs of communities. Meals are frequently low in nutrition, unfamiliar in taste, or lacking cultural relevance. But what if food relief could be nutrient-rich, locally accepted, and empowering?
THE PROBLEM
More than 828 million people globally face hunger—but hunger is just the beginning. In many underserved communities, food aid is nutrient-poor, culturally disconnected, and fails to address the long-term consequences of poor nutrition.
This has led to a global rise in generational malnutrition, where children inherit not just poverty, but the long-term health consequences of poor diets—like anemia, diabetes, and heart disease. In communities of color and low-income areas, these conditions are disproportionately prevalent, yet nutrition education and preventive tools are often out of reach.
Without access to healthy, familiar food and the knowledge to make informed choices, individuals are trapped in cycles of illness and inequality that stretch across generations.
THE SOLUTION
Fuel the World empowers youth and families to break these cycles through two core initiatives:
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NourishNet delivers fortified, culturally relevant food aid tailored to the nutritional and cultural needs of underserved communities. By prioritizing dignity and health, NourishNet reimagines food aid as a tool for healing and empowerment—not dependency.
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Our nutrition literacy workshops teach youth and families how to read food labels, understand common deficiencies, and build healthier habits using accessible, affordable ingredients. These workshops are free, community-based, and led by trained youth leaders.
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What began as a local effort has since grown into a global network. Today, Fuel the World has served over 1,700 people, reached 90,000 online, engaged 200+ volunteers, and expanded to 22 chapters across the world. By centering culture, nutrition, and agency, Fuel the World ensures that the communities most impacted by hunger aren’t just recipients of aid—they’re leaders in designing the solution.
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Fuel the World is a fiscally sponsored project under the Hack Foundation, that maintains 501(c)(3) status and has the Tax ID (EIN) 81-2908499.
Please use the button above to donate directly to Fuel the World!