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Sustainable change isn’t built in a moment; it’s built together, over time, through innovation, partnership, and resilience. At Global Brigades, this belief has guided every step of our journey. With two decades of data, collaboration, and measurable community outcomes, our Holistic Model stands as a proven framework for sustainable development.
Global Brigades unites students, professionals, and community members to strengthen health, empower families, and expand opportunities for generations to come. And after 20 years of impact and the expansion into new programs and countries, we took the opportunity to refine the model so it better reflects everything we’ve learned while clearly communicating the pillars that will move us toward our goal of 1 million empowered.
The Holistic Model’s Three Pillars
Our revised model gives us a unified way to describe the full scope of our impact. Here’s how each pillar contributes to long-term, community-driven change.
1. Health & Wellbeing
We expand access to medical, dental, and preventative care while fostering long-term wellness, education, and psycho social support. This pillar grounds everything we do. It is the first step in building trust, health access, and long-term resilience.- Always delivered with the leadership of local healthcare professionals.
- Designed to empower and infuse resources into local health systems instead of replacing
- Expands long-term access to essential care and preventative services.
GB Programs: Medical, Dental Brigades, Medical Squads, Kambia Nursing, and Community Health Workers Program (CHW)
2. Economic Empowerment
We build pathways out of poverty by promoting inclusive finance, entrepreneurship, and affordable housing, which in turn build stability that communities can sustain for generations. This pillar empowers communities to build a sustainable future on their own terms.- Creating and building the capacity of community-owned banks to ignite entrepreneurism and the recirculation of capital in a community
- Fosters microenterprises with consulting solutions to grow and improve household income. Decreases financial reliance on bad actors and loan sharks
- Strengthens families’ ability to invest in health, education, and opportunity.
- Provides tools, training, and financial investment to grow personal and community-level economic growth.
GB Programs: Eskala, Kambia Business, Empowered Business Consulting, and Legal Empowerment
3. Sustainable Infrastructure
We co-create the physical foundations every community needs — clean water, sanitation, housing, renewable energy, and resilient public spaces. This pillar ensures the impact of our work endures well beyond any single project.- Designed and implemented through collaboration between local engineers, students, and community leadership.
- Address social determinants of health to create long-lasting solutions that improve health and opportunity.
- Ensures communities gain the infrastructure necessary to support well-being for generations.
- Implemented alongside capacity building of community-led committees to maintain and perpetuate projects after completion.
- Built-in financial plans to ensure long-term maintenance.
GB Programs: Water and Public Health Brigades, Engineering Consulting, STEM Squads, Kambia Engineering, and Montemar
Why These Three Pillars Matter
Together, these pillars work in harmony to
create the kind of change that lasts.
They Emphasize
- Sustainability
- Scalability
- Local ownership
- Alignment with long-term community goals
This new version of the Holistic Model isn’t just a graphic, it’s a recommitment to who we are, how we partner, and the future we are building alongside communities around the world.
Our Holistic Model is built on the belief that real change happens when communities lead, and we invest in their long-term potential. The ingenuity of our approach lies in weaving short-term interventions with long-term, community-driven solutions that scale and strengthen livelihoods. When volunteers, local professionals, and community members unite around that shared vision, the result is a generational shift—progress that continues to grow long after our direct involvement. — Steve Atamian, Co-Founder, Global Brigades
20 Years Proven
Over the last two decades, the Holistic Model has proven itself again and again. What began as a small volunteer effort has grown into a globally recognized model for sustainable development. One that has already empowered hundreds of thousands of people with access to healthcare, clean water, financial opportunity, and improved livelihoods.
We’re steadily moving toward our 1M empowered goal, because when volunteers, donors, local staff and communities work together, we can manifest a flywheel of positive impact. From there,
It grows.
It strengthens.
And it lasts.
