RESTON, Va. — From helping Native students pursue higher education to building stronger communities and confronting hunger, poverty and health disparities, 35 organizations and changemakers are being recognized for work designed to improve lives around the world.
Public Interest Registry, the nonprofit organization behind the .ORG domain, announced the finalists for its eighth annual .ORG Impact Awards on Aug. 11. The 35 finalists were selected from more than 4,200 submissions representing 145 countries — the largest and most competitive applicant pool in the program’s history.
The awards recognize people and organizations working across seven categories: Community Building, Quality Education for All, Environmental Stewardship, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Health and Healing, Hunger and Poverty, and Rising Star, which honors leaders under 30 making a difference in their communities.
“We’re proud to announce this year’s .ORG Impact Awards finalists and excited to recognize an even broader group of changemakers through our new Honorable Mentions,” said Jon Nevett, president and CEO of Public Interest Registry.
Nevett said the finalists’ “dedication, creativity and commitment are helping build stronger communities and create positive change across the globe.”
Turning compassion into action
The finalists illustrate how positive change can take many forms.
Native Forward Scholars Fund, a finalist in the Quality Education for All category, is the largest provider of direct scholarships to Native students in the United States. Since 1969, the organization has awarded more than $350 million in scholarships to more than 22,000 Native students representing all 50 states and more than 500 tribes.
Style Her Empowered works with communities across West Africa to expand educational opportunities for girls while creating dignified employment for women. Its work includes innovative school uniforms designed to grow with students, addressing a practical barrier that can stand between children and their education.
Community Building finalist TECHO takes another approach. The youth-led organization mobilizes volunteers and residents in informal settlements across Latin America to address poverty through housing, civic engagement and community-building programs.
The Sparkle Foundation in Malawi works across education, health care, nutrition and economic opportunity, while One Village Partners collaborates with communities in Sierra Leone to strengthen local leadership, economic opportunity and long-term well-being.
These efforts share a common thread: Rather than treating people simply as recipients of assistance, many of the organizations work alongside communities to create solutions intended to endure.
Recognition that brings resources
Every finalist will receive a $2,500 donation from Public Interest Registry. Category winners will receive $10,000, while the organization selected as the 2026 .ORG of the Year will receive $50,000.
For the first time, Public Interest Registry is also introducing Honorable Mentions. Those organizations will receive $1,000 and additional recognition through the registry’s website.
The financial awards can help, but recognition also has the potential to bring something less easily measured: visibility. Public Interest Registry said winning an award can help organizations attract donations, funding, talent and partnerships while expanding their audiences.
That amplification matters for organizations whose work often happens far from the spotlight.
“Some of the most powerful change in the world starts with people who choose to show up for their communities every single day, often without recognition or fanfare,” said Karamo, the Emmy-winning television host, author and activist who will host this year’s awards ceremony.
“The .ORG Impact Awards shine a light on these incredible individuals and organizations, and I’m honored to help share their stories and celebrate the passion, purpose and impact behind their work,” he said.
The power of showing up
That idea — showing up — may be one of the most important lessons behind this year’s finalists.
Large-scale social problems can seem overwhelming when viewed as a whole. Yet the organizations being recognized demonstrate what can happen when people identify a need, gather others around it and begin doing something tangible.
“Heartitude is about recognizing that caring becomes most powerful when it turns into action,” said Bruce Petillo of Heartitude. “These organizations remind us that meaningful change doesn’t always begin with enormous resources. It begins when someone sees a need, chooses to care and invites others to help. When that spirit spreads from person to person and community to community, the impact can reach farther than anyone imagined.”
Public Interest Registry will announce the award recipients Oct. 6 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., bringing together finalists, nonprofit leaders and members of the global .ORG community.
Until then, the 35 finalists offer something valuable beyond an awards competition: examples of people choosing service over indifference and collaboration over isolation.
Their projects differ. Their communities span continents. But their work carries a message that translates almost anywhere — stronger communities are built when people care enough to act.
Source: Public Interest Registry, Aug. 11, 2026.
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