Mumbai Smiles

Mumbai Smiles// www.mumbaismiles.org

This nonprofit organization works with underprivileged individuals in Mumbai.  They focus on the areas of education, building awareness, health and building better livelihoods.  Their motto is 'Building Futures Through Love.' So cute!  When you visit their web site and see all of the pictures of the children, one can't help but smile.

Mumbai Smiles// www.mumbaismiles.org

Mumbai Smiles started in 2005 when Spanish journalist Jaume Sanllorente came back from a holiday trip to Mumbai.  His live was profoundly changed after experiencing the joy in the wake of poverty.  The organization has grown to great heights and is fortunate to have been able to help thousands of people.  The organization's mission is to bring basic human dignity and human rights to these impoverished people.  They hope to free Mumbai of the social injustice that is so common there.

Mumbai Smiles// www.mumbaismiles.org

Mumbai, while the largest city in India, has a wide disparity of incomes across the city.  There are some really prosperous areas and some areas where people are barely scraping enough money to get by. 
Over 50% of the population are slum-dwellers.  The slum dwellers are characterized by a group of people living under the same roof who lack access to clean water and food, durable housing, and other necessities that most people have access to.  They are known as living in urban poverty.  It's not only the fact that they don't have access to certain freedoms, but they don't have a way to get out of these impoverished conditions.  It's a huge problem and people often overlook how desperate these conditions have become in the big cities of India.

While the organization works mainly in Mumbai, it has partners in Spain, United States, India and Mexico.   They have always had a plan to change lives in the Mumbai area.  They do this by staying transparent (all of their audits are available online and their financial statements.)  They also plan trips for outsiders to be able to visit the area and see the work done in Mumbai.  They also do work by projects and make sure their projects are in line with their goals.  They are currently in the process of trying to expand their operations in the area.

Check out Mumbai Smiles and see how you can get involved and maintain the smiles in Mumbai.