We started with 26 children and a borrowed blackboard.
Hopenest Foundation began in 2014 in Wada, Maharashtra, when three friends started evening classes for children who worked by day. A decade later, the method has not changed: listen first, build with the community, publish everything.
Our Mission
To make quality education, healthcare and dignified livelihoods accessible to every under-served family we can reach — measurably, and without dependency.
Our Vision
An India where a child's postcode does not decide her future, and where communities lead their own development with resources they control.
Four rules we refuse to bend
Radical Transparency
Every rupee is traceable. Audited accounts and impact data are public.
Dignity First
We build with communities, never for them. No pity, only partnership.
Evidence Led
Programmes are measured, iterated and retired when data says so.
Local Ownership
80% of our field staff are hired from the communities we serve.
Twelve years, one direction
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2014
The first classroom
Three volunteers began evening classes for 26 children under a banyan tree in Wada.
- •
2016
Health goes mobile
Our first medical camp series reached 6,000 patients across 11 villages.
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2018
Women take the lead
40 self-help groups formed; the She Earns livelihood model was born.
- •
2020
Pandemic response
3.1 lakh meals, 12,000 ration kits and oxygen support during the second wave.
- •
2023
Scaling with data
Impact dashboards launched; programmes expanded to 25 districts.
- •
2026
The next decade
Targeting 50,000 lives impacted with climate-resilient community models.
“We are not here to rescue anyone. We are here to remove the obstacles between people and the futures they have already imagined for themselves.”
Ananya Deshpande · Founder & Managing Trustee
The people accountable for every rupee
Ananya Deshpande
Founder & Managing Trustee
Former development economist; 18 years in rural livelihoods.
Imran Qureshi
Director, Programmes
Leads field operations across 25 districts and 150 projects.
Dr. Kavita Rao
Head of Health
Public health physician, architect of our mobile camp model.
Nikhil Bansal
Head of Partnerships
Builds CSR and institutional partnerships with outcome contracts.
Legal & Compliance
- Registered under the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 · Reg. No. HN/2014/1187
- Income Tax exemption under Sections 12A and 80G
- CSR-1 registration no. CSR00019845
- PAN AAATH8821K · Annual statutory audit by K. Rane & Associates
₹1,000 keeps a child in school for a full term.
88% of every rupee reaches the field. You receive an 80G tax receipt within 24 hours and a photo report from the programme you funded.