The Foundation

TRY Foundation was created in January 2020 by Henriëtte Scheffer in order to help reduce illiteracy in developing countries. The foundation funds local NGOs that build schools for children, starting in Pakistan.

Pakistan is home to a promising cotton industry, but the country still suffers from low levels of literacy, especially among children and women. In the textile factories it was discovered early on that, despite high employment, the work was no guarantee of an education or a future. Workers remained unskilled and illiterate.

TRY Foundation was created in hopes to tackle this issue and raise awareness to the problem. We have drawn up a policy plan in which our key value is: because we want to be a learning entity ourselves, the starting points are fixed, but the content is determined along the way.

We began to raise funds by offering donors two options: a symbolic meter of red yarn for €1 or a handmade bracelet for €10. As a way to combine education and awareness – which often go hand in hand – we have created an initiative where children in the Netherlands are be taught about kids living in less privileged areas. Through educational workshops in schools, Dutch children are inspired to make the bracelets that will be given to donors, as a way to learn about the issue while contributing to the solution.

The funding of all overhead costs are to be supplemented by Henriëtte Scheffer. These costs are to be kept as low as possible and will not be paid from the donations. Donors have the guarantee that their donation will be used entirely for the education of children (excluding transaction costs).

The goal for 2020 has been to get as many meters of yarn donated as possible. Our first project requires €2,577,000, which will go toward the building and maintenance of primary and secondary schools in Pakistan. This amount will ensure that 2,400 children living around one of the leading textiles factories in Karachi receive an education over a period of 11 years. All donations are set to be spent on behalf of the target group.

However, the year 2020 proved to be a challenging one for our foundation as well as many others alike. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, trips were cancelled, workshops postponed, schools closed and much of what we had planned had to be put on hold.

Also due to COVID-19 many families have fallen back into poverty, with parents losing their jobs and children being out of school and working to contribute to their household income. The effects of the pandemic have been devastating to the progress of education in Pakistan, but have also emphasized our urgency for action. More than ever, TRY is motivated to reach more donors in order to fulfill our mission – and act quickly so that we can continue to promote literacy around the country.

For our full policy plan, please see the file below:

Policy Plan (EN)

Policy Plan (NL)