950 million+ lives directly improved worldwide by the social entrepreneurs and innovators in our community since they founded their organizations. Confidence in one's experience and sincerity has been a great positive in the work that we do, irrespective of funding cuts. Maryam Uwais Isa Wali Empowerment Initiative, NigeriaEvolving models: navigating disruption with determination Despite facing cuts in donor funding, regional instability and price sensitivity among low- income customers, our social entrepreneurs and innovators continue to advance their missions, reporting tangible increases in access to new sources of funding and services, such as clean water, food, energy, healthcare and education, as well as to jobs, diverted waste and public funding. The efforts of our community have directly improved the lives of over 950 million people worldwide since founding their organizations. Many deepened their impact by expanding into new countries or scaling through government systems, retail platforms or franchise models. Others launched complementary products and services, such as digital wallets for women entrepreneurs or maternal ’save-and-pay’ platforms, accelerating adoption of these initiatives by influencing policy and standards. Several also consolidated and strengthened their core programmes to ensure long-term viability.These evolutions often emerged from necessity as much as from vision. Our 2025 community survey reveals the tangible effects of global funding cuts and shifting political dynamics across multiple dimensions of social innovators’ work, reaching far beyond considerations of finance and collaboration. Programme rollout was affected for 70% of survey respondents, and innovation, scaling or growth plans were disrupted for 72%. As a consequence, some were forced to postpone or reduce activities while others pivoted toward market-based or blended-finance models to ensure sustainability. Overall, the community’s emphasis shifted from expansion to consolidation, strengthening what works and safeguarding core operations. Schwab Foundation 2026 Awardees and Impact Report 20

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