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American India Foundation
Founded2001
TypeCharitable trust
FocusEducation, Livelihood, Public Health
HeadquartersNew York
Area served
India and United States
Key people
Lata Krishnan (Co-Chair)
Harit Talwar (Co-Chair)
Nishant Pandey (CEO)
Mathew Joseph (India Country Director)
WebsiteAIF.org

The American India Foundation (AIF, founded 2001) is a nonprofit American organization working in India.[1] It is one of the largest secular, non-partisan American organizations supporting development work in India.[2].The American India Foundation is committed to improving the lives of India’s underprivileged, with a special focus on women, children, and youth. AIF does this through high impact interventions in education, health, and livelihoods, because poverty is multidimensional. AIF’s unique value proposition is its broad engagement between communities, civil society, and expertise, thereby building a lasting bridge between the United States and India. With offices in New York and California, twelve chapters across the U.S., and India operations headquartered in Delhi NCR, AIF has impacted 6.7 million lives across 26 states of India.

It also runs the the William J. Clinton Fellowship now renamed as AIF Banyan Impact Fellowship for Service to India on May 11, 2009, which sends skilled young Americans in an immersive volunteer service program training and placing young professionals to support development organizations across India for 10 months.[3][4][5]

History

Founded in 2001 at the initiative of US President Bill Clinton following a suggestion from Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, by a group of Indian-Americans responding to the Gujarat earthquake.[6] AIF has impacted the lives of 6.7 million of India’s poor by providing access to high-quality education, skilling for youth, and protecting the health of mothers and their children, while building the next generation of global leaders through service.

It has offices in New York City and California, twelve chapters across the U.S., and India operations headquartered in New Delhi.[7]

AIF's Emergency Response

In cases of major national disasters in India, AIF has been involved in relief and rehabilitation efforts. It has undertaken several campaigns for relief and rehabilitation:

  1. In 2001, after the Gujarat earthquake
  2. In 2004, after the tsunami
  3. In 2005, after the Kashmir earthquake
  4. In 2019, after the Pulwama attack[8]
  5. In 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic[9]

AIF takes a multi-phased approach to disaster relief: relief, reconstruction and rehabilitation. AIF's focus is the long-term rehabilitation of communities, and it dedicates most of its resources to this phase. In Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, AIF funded organizations in affected communities for up to three years following the earthquake so that NGO partners could identify long-term solutions to improve the lives of people affected by disaster.[10]

References

  1. ^ http://www.aif.org
  2. ^ "American India Foundation - MacArthur Foundation". macfound.org. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  3. ^ "William J. Clinton Fellowship for Service in India | UPENN CURF". www.curf.upenn.edu. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  4. ^ "William J. Clinton Fellowship for Service in India – UChicagoGRAD | The University of Chicago". grad.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  5. ^ "William J. Clinton Fellowship for Service in India: Learning about Grassroots Development and Inclusive Leadership in India | ProFellow". 2018-11-12. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  6. ^ "Clinton Presidential Center "Council on Foreign Relations, 2002"". 2007-09-28. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  7. ^ Foundation, American India. "American India Foundation and WestBridge Capital Announce Four-year Partnership". prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  8. ^ Rijiju, Kiren (2019-05-08). "India's Minister of State for Home Affairs". @kirenrijiju. Retrieved 2020-03-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ "American India Foundation Launches COVID-19 Response Effort – AIF". Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  10. ^ "AIF Emergency Response". Archived from the original on 2008-05-22. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
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