Alumni Survey Reflects RU Leaders Are ‘Multipliers of Knowledge’

Rise Up Leaders and alumni from our past three cohorts in Mexico.

In 2024, Rise Up launched our first annual alumni survey as a continuation of the organization’s strategic Learning Agenda. Through our Learning Agenda, we conduct focused research on priority topics surfaced through a recent external evaluation and learn directly from our global network of leaders. The 2024 alumni survey offered unique insights into the long-term impact of Rise Up’s programming on individual leadership development and local, nonprofit organizations.

From our founding, we have remained committed to centering leaders’ voices and experiences, recognizing that their perspectives are critical to strengthening our Leadership and Advocacy training curriculum and its global reach.

The survey demonstrated Rise Up’s expansive scope, with 230 responses representing cohorts of leaders from 2009-2023 from all our focus countries (India, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, and the U.S.). The survey responses confirmed that Rise Up’s influence extends beyond grant funding, creating lasting impact on leaders’ organizations through knowledge sharing and capacity building across local, in-country organizations and communities. Training emerged as the most valued program component, with 53% of Rise Up Leaders ranking it above all other offerings, and an overwhelming 80% of respondents actively shared their learnings with colleagues and community members, focusing particularly on advocacy planning, proposal development, and collaborative leadership skills. This knowledge sharing translated into tangible organizational growth, with 71% of participants reporting increased local organizational capacity through enhanced advocacy capabilities or overall organizational strengthening. 

“Supporting the growth of individuals also supports communities and countries, because we are multipliers of knowledge,” a Rise Up Leader explained in the survey.   

It is clear from these results that Rise Up and Rise Up Leaders are actively contributing to a powerful global movement for advocacy and gender equity. We will use these findings to strengthen our training components and ensure they remain relevant and applicable to the evolving needs of Rise Up Leaders. We plan to build on our alumni survey analysis to ask deeper questions, explore new ways to support leaders’ development and growth, and facilitate sharing and collaboration among alumni working to advance gender justice around the world.

Stay tuned for more updates on Rise Up’s Learning Agenda as we iterate and improve upon our global work in meaningful ways.