Bridge to Literacy is a global movement that is designed to unite organizations with NABU towards a common goal: to eradicate illiteracy and empower children to thrive.

Bridge to Literacy is an initiative designed to unite like-minded organizations from around the world towards a common goal: to increase literacy and empower children to thrive.

Through the Bridge To Literacy program, partners work with NABU to:

Develop new ways to reach readers in their community

Build their network through peer-to-peer events with other literacy advocates.

For select innovative projects, NABU also provides microgrants to help make it easier for partners to launch and assess new projects.

Who is the Bridge to Literacy program for?

NABU works with organizations of all sizes that share a deep belief in the transformative power of literacy. Together, we harness our collective strength and expertise to develop innovative programs, initiatives, and resources that drive literacy forward.

We would love to learn about your organization and interest in advancing literacy in your community. By becoming a Bridge to Literacy partner, you can advance reading engagement in your community with the support of a network of like-minded advocates.

Shared Vision

Innovation and Networking

Access to NABU’s tools

Support

Why become a BTL partner?

Bridge To Literacy

Team up with NABU to give the gift of literacy to children! By taking the Build a Book challenge, you can help create one amazing, high-quality, culturally responsive mother tongue storybook for kids!

Tell your friends & family, post on social media, and share your love of reading!

That’s it! Fully created books are published and made available for free on the NABU.org app, which with daily use, increases literacy by 35%. Once you’ve completed and funded a book you will receive:

your profile on NABU’s digital landing page Wall of Fame

acknowledgment; (name + book on social media and newsletter)

access to exclusive offerings throughout the NABU community

Let’s change the world, one story at a time!

Did you know that around the world, 250M children are unable to read simply because they don’t have enough books in their mother tongue?

Team up with NABU to give the gift of literacy to children by creating your own personal fundraising campaign! By taking the Build a Book challenge, you can help create one amazing, high-quality, culturally responsive mother tongue storybook for kids!

Build a Book

NABU is excited to announce that applications are now open for our 2024 Spring Haitian Heritage Creative Fellowship in Miami! We are inviting storytellers of Haitian heritage and artists of Caribbean heritage to learn the creative publishing process with NABU. Our mission is to ensure inclusive, equitable literacy resources for all children. Through this Fellowship, we invite you to join us in our efforts. As an Author or Illustrator Fellow in our Miami-based Fellowship program, you will learn how published books are developed with our international Creative Team, develop your artistic abilities, and elevate your skills in writing or illustrating. We are excited to work with you in achieving our vision of helping children to read and rise to their full potential!

Welcome to NABU. We are so glad you are considering applying to become an Author or Illustrator Fellow at NABU. Our vision is a world where every child will have inclusive and equitable access to the resources they need to become literate, and we invite you to learn and create these resources alongside us.

For our 2024 Spring Creative Fellowship, we are calling on passionate and talented writers of Haitian heritage and illustrators of Caribbean heritage to help us meet the need for bilingual Haitian Creole children’s books. The Fellowship will teach the basics of children’s publishing through a 3-week Fellowship program.

This Fellowship program is based out of our NABU HP Creative Lab in Miami, with a virtual program option available for creatives of Haitian and Caribbean heritage around the globe. As a Fellow, you will be exposed to our global creative team that has trained over 150 artists around the world. We will support you to take your artistic skills to a whole new level. We can’t wait to get started working with you!

, with digital drawing experience. You will be required to provide your portfolio as part of your application, and we are looking for early career artists who want to develop their creative skills and expression. There is no language requirement for the Illustrator Fellowship.

 who are, preferably, Haitian Creole speakers and/or writers. We welcome aspiring storytellers with some writing experience, from all backgrounds. Students, teachers, parents, authors - anyone with a story to tell is welcome to apply.

A 3-week Fellowship experience to learn and develop your skills

A $500 stipend (minimum attendance requirements apply) and additional travel stipend given to those attending in-person

A creative space and state-of-the-art devices provided by HP within the NABU HP Creative Lab at the African Heritage Cultural Arts Centre in Miami, Florida

Curriculum and mentorship provided by Michael Ross, NABU Creative Director, as well as other members of NABU’s senior creative team

The opportunity to be part of a mission to create authentic books for children and families in underserved mother tongue languages, increasing literacy by preserving and sharing culture

The experience of joining a global community of creators powering NABU’s mission

The Fellowship runs for 3 weeks beginning Monday, January 15th, with a Graduation date of Thursday, February 8th.

: This is both an in-person and virtual program, with a strong preference for in-person attendance. Candidates who are based in Miami are encouraged to participate in the Fellowship in person, knowing hands-on training is highly beneficial. For Fellows participating in person, the Fellowship will take place at the NABU HP Creative Lab located inside the African Heritage Cultural Arts Center in Miami. For Fellows participating virtually, Zoom links for sessions will be provided.

There is a time commitment of 5 hours per week (two sessions per week running 2.5 hours each). This time commitment consists of two mandatory classes on Monday and Thursday mornings at 9am EST. Fellows are required to be present at every class. Missed classes without reasonable explanation will result in forfeiting your stipend and losing your Fellowship spot. 

*The Lab will be open from 9 am - 5 pm during the Fellowship for those who wish to come for Office Hours and use our HP devices for practice or receive additional support from NABU's Program Manager.

By the end of the Fellowship, you will have found your artistic voice and gained the skills required to publish world-class, high-quality children’s books.

We aim to support your artistic development and authentic discovery, as well as helping you reach beyond the limits of what you thought possible!

In addition, NABU unlocks other opportunities. We grant a number of community events and offer exposure for our Fellows to grow as they learn. And, our 

to scope more opportunities. Your options don’t end with the cohort!

Please follow the steps to complete the application. If you have any questions, please contact 

, and we will make sure to get back to you within 24 hours to help with any inquiries.

Applications are due by Thursday, December 7th, 2023, at 11.59pm EST.

, you are taking your first step to helping eradicate illiteracy by 2030 with NABU.

Creative Fellowship

No matter how old you are, where you live, or whether or not you can give, you can help solve the global literacy crisis–and you can start right now.

Get Involved

Every act of support helps us get closer to achieving our mission. 

At NABU we have plenty to do and are always looking for a helping hand. Interested in volunteering for us? Click on the link below and let's work together!

Education is a fundamental human right. HP Inc. is proud to partner with NABU in supporting local illustrators and authors to increase relevant content creation and book production, ensuring children globally have access to enriching resources and content they need in their native language. HP creates technology that makes life better for everyone, everywhere. Through our product and service portfolio of personal systems, printers and 3D printing solutions, we engineer experiences that amaze. We focus on advancing Sustainable Impact, taking bold and comprehensive steps to drive climate action, protect human rights and accelerate digital equity backed with some of the most comprehensive goals in our industry. Partnering with organizations like NABU helps us deliver on our goal to accelerate digital equity for 150 million people by 2030. Learn more at www.hp.com/sustainableimpact.

With smartphone usage set to triple over the next 5 years, NABU is committed to making children’s books accessible to every child in the world by 2030. NABU’s diverse partnerships with government, education partners, and other nonprofit organizations support our efforts eradicating illiteracy for good.

UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, is the world’s leading children’s charity, and has been since 1946.

Every day, UNICEF helps children realise their full potential by providing access to clean water, life-saving vaccines, quality education and health care. UNICEF works to ensure every child is safe and protected from harm and is always there during times of emergency.

Alongside its partners, UNICEF works with families, communities and local organisations in more than 190 countries to protect and advocate for children and young people. UNICEF does this by leveraging highly sophisticated infrastructure, economies of scale, and working in collaboration with local in-country partners to deliver for every child, no matter what.

At UNICEF Australia, we’re supporting UNICEF’s global ambition while ensuring every child in need, here in Australia and across the Asia Pacific region, is healthy, educated and safe.

Bloomberg Philanthropies works to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people by focusing on five key areas: the arts, education, the environment, government innovation, and public health.

Encompassing all of Mike Bloomberg’s giving, Bloomberg Philanthropies includes his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a pro bono consultancy that works with mayors in cities around the world.

The Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship is an entrepreneurship acceleration program designed to support promising, African EdTech ventures. Implemented in partnership with innovation hubs and EdTech accelerators across Africa, the Fellowship provides select EdTech companies with critical business and financial support, as well as insight into the science of learning, preparing them for scale, sustainability, and impact. The Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship was launched in 2019 by the Mastercard Foundation Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning and supported 12 African EdTech companies from seven countries in its first year, reaching over 800,000 learners. 

The goal of the Centre is to partner with 12 Tech Hubs to support over 400 EdTech companies and reach at least 1.8 million young people by 2025.

NABU partnered up with the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) on a special adaption of a COVID-19 Health Collection book. This book addresses the anxieties and fears that may arise among children, parents, and caregivers during the pandemic. This is collaboration came about after a study conducted by AKF in Kenya, finding that children feel that life won’t be the same. The book seeks to open up the conversation for a joint solution between parents and their children. The Aga Khan Foundation East Africa (AKF EA) mission is to assist the poorest and most marginalized in society, with a special focus on women, girls, children, and the youth so that they can achieve a level of self-reliance and improved quality of life.

Partners

NABU artists create original stories, as well as, curate, translate, adapt, and re-illustrate stories from the world's best children's book authors. Contributions from ABC Lab creators ensure a diverse and well-balanced book collection for children.

It costs NABU $2400 a year to educate a local artist within the ABC Lab.

In the lab, artists translate their artistic abilities from physical to digital. They receive:

World-class creative training from a team of directors who have worked with world-renowned artists and authors

Enhanced professional development to become a published author or illustrator

An opportunity to join NABU’s in-house creative team to develop children’s books across underserved languages and cultures

Creative skills that propel career development and increased income opportunities

When you sponsor an artist, you’ll receive updates on their journey to improve their skills and a copy of one of their completed books.

In NABU’s Authentic Book Creation (ABC) Lab, local creators are trained to write and illustrate books in mother tongue languages in regions where they do not exist, ensuring that every child has free access to the essential books that they need to learn to read.

Get Involved

Bridge To Literacy

Creative Fellowship

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Sponsor an Artist

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