AN IMPORTANT UPDATE FROM GIRL UP

Dear Youth Leader,

Girl Up is making important changes to the way we operate, and we wanted to share with you the reasons behind these decisions so we can move forward together as a strong, global, unified movement. 

For the past fourteen years, Girl Up has grown into a tremendous global movement creating impact fueled by the actions of more than 300,000 Girl Up leaders. Through this growth, over the past year, fundraising has gotten tougher for many organizations, and based on our current fundraising numbers, Girl Up is facing an unexpected budget shortfall. To make sure we can continue to do this important work and serve future generations of leaders like you, we need to adapt to these challenges swiftly, thoughtfully, and strategically. 

At the same time, we’ve been deep in conversation with you—our youth leaders—seeking your input to define a new vision that focuses on what Girl Up does best and makes sure our efforts reach young people more directly so that YOU can create more impact. 

We’ve been monitoring our financial situation carefully all along and we made difficult budget cuts to our operations earlier in the year to adjust our spending as early as possible. Now, at midyear, despite our best efforts, we must make deeper budget cuts.  

Therefore, Girl Up is reducing our team within our U.S.-based headquarters and cutting back on some program activities to reduce our expenses while maintaining the most important aspects of our work.   

We know that some of you may have worked closely with several of the staff members who are leaving Girl Up. We share your deep sadness as we wish them the absolute best in life and in their work. We will miss sharing work, laughter, and inspiring storytelling with these incredibly talented and compassionate people. We are profoundly grateful for their dedication and hard work. These departures do not reflect the immense contributions our colleagues have made to Girl Up’s mission.  

While we make these difficult decisions, we are leaning confidently into the priorities you expressed in past surveys to guide us so we can position the organization to effectively pursue your vision for Girl Up. Those priorities include shifting away from a U.S.-based model of operation to double-down on 1) the incredible impact of our regional teams and affiliates’ work in-country; 2) Girl Up’s ability to convene global stakeholders and youth to act together for gender justice; and 3) our continued investments directly in youth leadership to create transformative change. 

Girl Up is not going away.  On the contrary, we have spent the last few months deep in strategic planning with our global community of youth leaders, our alums and adult supporters, and our staff to bring you a stronger, bolder Girl Up. We are excited to share the resulting vision for the future with you soon. 

We have always known that the world cannot create a more just future without following our youth’s lead and, more than ever, Girl Up must rely on your critical input to build our way forward. We are actively thinking about the design of more hands-on opportunities for you all to shape Girl Up’s direction. Stay tuned for future ways you can be involved and build a more sustainable organization alongside us.  

While we are confident in our approach, we also recognize that this is a tough time. These changes are painful for everyone involved. This moment of transition requires Girl Up to focus our energy inward to take care of our people and ensure a smooth transition so we may continue to deliver our most critical work effectively. Apart from some already scheduled local convenings, we will be limiting our global program activities in the second half of the year to supporting any youth at the Summit of the Future, our Scholarships, our Project Awards, and hosting our virtual Global Leadership Summit. 

The last few years have taught us that the path to gender justice is not linear. Instead, it is a path with many trials, and it requires perseverance and adaptability. Thank you for bearing with us on this brave new journey, and we will provide updates and opportunities to be involved as soon as we can share more.  

In solidarity,

The Girl Up Team