Youth Venture

What Youth Venture does

Youth Venture is an international youth changemaking initiative and program of Ashoka, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. Founded in 1996 by Bill Drayton alongside Ashoka's broader mission to establish the field of social entrepreneurship, the initiative supports young people in launching and leading their own social change ventures by providing tools, resources, and community. It has operated in 32 countries and reports supporting over 500,000 youth to self-actualize as changemakers.

The initiative delivers three interconnected offerings: a Tools and Resources program for venture creation, an Online Changemaker Challenge platform that supports new and pre-existing social change ideas through online communities of support and information sharing, and a Replication Program that partners with hundreds of institutions worldwide to integrate changemaking into their organizational culture. The platform architecture is centered on the online Changemaker Challenge, which functions as the primary digital touchpoint for idea submission and community formation, with distribution layered through Ashoka's global institutional network.

Youth Venture operates as a philanthropic, non-profit initiative under Ashoka rather than as a standalone commercial entity. Programs are offered free of charge to youth participants, and the organization is funded through Ashoka's donor- and grant-supported model. Its go-to-market is community-led, relying on institutional partnerships, Ashoka's brand ecosystem, and online community channels rather than direct sales. The customer segment is exclusively young people and changemakers; there are no named enterprise customers or commercial pricing tiers.

Name

Youth Venture

Legal name

Youth Venture

Website

https://youthventure.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Youth Venture is Ashoka's international youth changemaking initiative, supporting young people in launching and leading social change ventures across 32 countries through tools, online challenges, and institutional partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Development & Social Entrepreneurship Programs

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Educational Support Services (611710), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA), Youth & Young Adult Workforce Programs (Out-of-School Youth) (EDAAAOAD), Small Business & Entrepreneurship Community Education (EDAAAFAK)

Keywords

• Youth changemaking programs
• Social entrepreneurship initiatives
• Community-led social change
• Youth venture support
• Nonprofit youth services

Headquarters

HQ city

Arlington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic/Grant Funding: As a non-profit initiative of Ashoka, Youth Venture operates through philanthropic support and grants rather than commercial revenue streams. Funding supports the provision of tools, resources, and programs for youth changemakers globally.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Youth Venture is a philanthropic youth changemaking initiative under Ashoka that provides tools, resources, and online challenges to help young people launch and lead their own social change ventures. It also runs a Replication Program partnering with hundreds of institutions worldwide to integrate changemaking into their culture. Programs are delivered free of charge to youth participants through Ashoka's donor and grant-supported model.

Product overview

Youth Venture is a youth changemaking initiative/initiative that offers three interconnected programs: Tools and Resources for youth to launch social change ventures, an Online Changemaker Challenge that supports ideas for social change through online communities, and a Replication Program that partners with institutions globally to embed changemaking culture. Together, these offerings support youth in developing the confidence, ability, and support needed to become changemakers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tools and Resources

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Institutions WorldwidecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYouth Venture partners with hundreds of institutions around the world to integrate changemaking into their culture. These institutional partnerships enable employees, educators, and youth to exercise their power to create change in their daily lives, serving as a core distribution and scaling mechanism for the Youth Venture model.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Points of Light: Nonprofit focused on volunteer service and civic engagement, with strong youth programming. Comparable in changemaking/civic action mission, though more focused on adult-driven volunteering.
• Boys & Girls Club of America: Large-scale youth development nonprofit serving millions of young people across the U.S. Comparable in youth development mission and institutional partnership model, though broader in scope.
• Girl Scouts of the USA: Youth organization focused on leadership, life skills, and entrepreneurship education for girls. Comparable in youth leadership development and entrepreneurship badge programs.
• Echoing Green: Social entrepreneurship leadership organization investing in emerging leaders. Comparable in social entrepreneurship mission and Ashoka-adjacent positioning, though focused on mid-career fellows rather than youth.
• 4-H: Youth development organization with programs in STEM, agriculture, and civic engagement. Comparable in youth empowerment and leadership mission with similar institutional partnership model.
• Ashoka Young Changemakers: Sibling program under the same Ashoka parent organization, focused on young changemakers. Highly comparable in mission and beneficiary base, with tighter integration into Ashoka's broader fellow ecosystem.

Direct peers

• Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE): Nonprofit equipping young people from underserved communities with entrepreneurship skills and mindsets. Directly comparable in mission, youth focus, and venture-launch orientation.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of America: Youth mentoring nonprofit supporting young people's potential through one-to-one mentoring. Comparable as a large-scale youth development nonprofit delivering outcome-oriented services.
• Junior Achievement: Global youth-focused organization teaching entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy to K-12 students. Direct peer in youth entrepreneurship education with comparable age group, mission, and global footprint.

Emerging players

• KIPP Foundation: Public charter school network with character and leadership development as core pillars. Comparable in mission overlap (youth empowerment/leadership) and school-based delivery model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/ashoka
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ashoka
• Instagraminstagram.com/ashokaglobal/?hl=en
• Xx.com/Youth_Venture

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Youth Venture