WW Wellness Impact Award | WW USA
Healthy living is a human right. It’s a core WW belief, but not all communities have access to the resources they need to make it a reality. To help fight systemic injustice faced by marginalized groups, the WW Wellness Impact Award empowers organizations that are breaking down wellness barriers in communities of color.
The “Why” Behind the Award
Through the second-annual WW Wellness Impact Award, we’re amplifying community-led organizations dedicated to improving the health of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) women. Five winning groups will receive a $15,000 grant and more.
Research shows that women in BIPOC communities face staggeringly worse health outcomes than their white counterparts. For example, women of color have disproportionately higher rates of—and are more likely to die from—diabetes, obesity, heart disease, hypertension, and certain forms of cancer.
These statistics can feel defeating and hard to overcome. Community-led organizations give BIPOC women the tools and the agency to change their health narrative. To learn more, read our report on the state of Black women and wellness.
Congratulations To Our 2022 Winners!
These winning organizations work diligently to improve the health of BIPOC women in impactful ways. As a Wellness Impact Award winner, each will receive a $15,000 grant and more.
Sista Afya Community Care
builds sustainable mental wellness communities by providing affordable, relevant, and culturally centered care and education for Black women.
“At Sista Afya Community Care, we truly believe that accessible mental wellness care is life-changing and the liberation Black women need to be their full, healed, authentic selves.”
—Camesha Jones, founder and executive director
Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center
provides healing spaces for Native American women and families, helping them sustain healthy behaviors through cultural teachings, physical wellness opportunities, and necessary resources. They also partner with local hospitals to provide moccasins for newborns.
“For the past 30 years, MIWRC has adhered to the philosophy that we create intentional and transformative change by impacting families, neighborhoods, communities, society, and public policy. The founders of MIWRC emphasized a woman’s relationship with creation, her family, tribal nation, community, and culture. We continue to incorporate this holistic, culturally sensitive approach to our work.”
—Marisa Miakonda Cummings, president
Ch8sing Waterfalls
encourages Black and Brown women to embrace the healing magic of nature as they don’t always feel safe or accepted outdoors, or can’t afford the necessary gear to safely hike or participate in outdoor activities. Ch8sing Waterfalls is diversifying outdoor spaces by organizing and leading safe hikes for these communities.
“Ch8sing Waterfalls is empowering healing, forging diversity, and changing the narrative while increasing Brown faces in green spaces, one adventure at a time.”
—Deborah McGlawn, founder
Sapna NYC
transforms the health and lives of South Asian immigrant women by expanding their economic opportunities, creating social networks, and building a collective voice for change.
"We recognize that physical health, mental health, and women’s empowerment are all linked, and so, with our holistic services, women can receive domestic violence support, mental health counseling, ESOL classes, food assistance, and more all in the same place from staff who speak their language and understand the cultural context they live in."
—Diya Basu-Sen, executive director
Congratulations to all our impactful winners, and keep an eye out for next year’s submission guidelines!
Hike Clerb, Inc.
equips Black, Indigenous, and women of color with the tools, resources, and experiences they need to collectively heal from a lack of representation in nature.
“Since our inception, we have guided over 800 women out on the trails; have motivated women to get outside with us in Los Angeles, New York, and Toronto; have welcomed school-aged girls, femmes, and, non-binary youth into nature through our BIO (Building Inclusivity Outdoors) program; inspired a historically excluded community to connect with nature all over the world; and have created a bridge for everyday recreationalists to seasoned outdoorists.”
—Evelynn Escobar, founder
Thank you to all of our finalists:
No, WW members and non-WW members are eligible to apply.
Yes! We’d love for you to apply again. For context, WW Good will select a different focus area for the WW Wellness Impact Award each year. So if you meet the eligibility criteria in a subsequent award year, you will be eligible to apply regardless of previous application status.
After all applications are submitted, WW Good evaluates all applications based on the criteria listed on the website and selects 10 finalists. The 10 finalists will then participate in final round interviews, as well as member voting (described below). Five award winners will be selected, with one winner selected based on WW member votes and four based off of the finalist interviews.
No! If your organization is a 501c3, fiscally sponsored organization, or mutual aid organization with no political or religious affiliations located within the US, we encourage you to apply.
The $15,000 grant can be used toward program, operating and/or marketing costs. The funds may not be used for lobbying or political purposes.
Once we’ve narrowed the applications down to our 10 incredible finalists, we want to make sure they each get as much exposure as possible, which is why we include the voting period. By publicizing this process, the goal is to get the names and work of these organizations in front of our millions of members, including ambassadors. Last year, we found that voting inspired the WW network to engage with each finalist, learn about their incredible work, and even become supporters of each organization!
Applications for the next award will be open in the first few months of 2023.