The Lotus Flower

What The Lotus Flower does

The Lotus Flower is a UK-registered charity and Limited Company by Guarantee (Charity No. 1203840, Company No. 10039687) founded in 2016 by Taban Shoresh OBE, a former child genocide survivor. Operating from London headquarters with field operations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the organization delivers community-led programmes for women and girls impacted by conflict and displacement. Its core delivery model consists of three women's centres inside displacement camps (Rwanga Community Camp, Domiz 2, Essyan) supported by 100+ local staff, plus expanded activity in the Sinjar district, collectively reaching 115,000+ cumulative beneficiaries across 30+ programmes.

The product portfolio spans five interconnected pillars: livelihoods (Sewing Sisters, Women's Business Incubator, Lotus Café, Baking Sisters, Farming Sisters, Hairdressing Sisters, Jam Sisters); education (Adult Literacy, English Language, Computer Training, Awareness Sessions); health and wellbeing (Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, Creative Therapies, Boxing Sisters, Yoga, Suicide Prevention, First Aid, Girls' Hygiene, Men and Boys' Trauma Project); climate change (Earth Sisters, School Garden, She Leads in Food Security, Tree Planting); and peacebuilding/advocacy (Peace Sisters, Human Rights, Journalism, Positive Masculinity, Supporting Survivors). The underlying technology is intentionally minimal: Squarespace for the CMS and newsletter, Donorbox for donation processing, Teemill for merchandise fulfilment, and Calendly for engagement bookings. The organization is not a technology company; delivery rests on in-person, field-based service.

Revenue is generated through three streams: individual donations and the Lotus 500 major-gift initiative; institutional and government grants from the German Federal Foreign Office, EU, BMZ, GIZ, IOM, UNHCR, and The Big Heart Foundation; and modest merchandise sales via Teemill. Operating geographies are concentrated in northern Iraq, with international advocacy and fundraising reaching global supporters. No equity, debt financing, or external investment is disclosed; the entity is fully donor-funded.

Name

The Lotus Flower

Legal name

The Lotus Flower

Website

https://thelotusflower.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Lotus Flower is a UK-registered charity founded in 2016 that delivers community-led livelihoods, education, health, climate, and peacebuilding programmes for women and girls impacted by conflict and displacement, operating three women's centres in displacement camps in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq with 100+ local staff and 115,000+ cumulative beneficiaries supported.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian and Refugee Support Services

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Refugee & Immigrant Support Services (BPAGAEAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Refugee, Migration & Displacement Support (BPAGABAH), Refugee, IDP & Migration Humanitarian Assistance (BPAGAAAH), Refugee/Migrant Health & Resettlement Health Units (HLAJAAAJ), Migrant & Refugee Legal Aid and Documentation Services (BPADAHAE)

Keywords

• Women empowerment programs
• Refugee support services
• Livelihoods training
• Psychosocial support
• Gender-based violence prevention

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Individual donors contribute to support the organization's programs and operations through the website and fundraising initiatives. The organization runs fundraising campaigns and accepts donations through its website.
2. Government and Institutional Grants: The organization receives funding from government bodies and international institutions including the German Federal Foreign Office, EU, and other international organizations to implement specific programs and projects.
3. Merchandise Sales: The organization operates an online merchandise shop through Teemill (thelotusflower.teemill.com) selling items to supporters, with Teemill processing orders, payments, and delivery.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Lotus Flower is a registered charity that delivers free, community-led humanitarian programmes to displaced women and girls in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Through three women's centres in refugee and IDP camps (Rwanga, Domiz 2, Essyan) and 100+ local staff, the organisation provides livelihoods training (sewing, baking, farming, hairdressing, cooking), formal and informal education (literacy, English, computing), mental health and psychosocial support, peacebuilding, climate adaptation, and survivor advocacy including pro-bono civil litigation with Hogan Lovells. The portfolio of programmes, branding, and merchandise are delivered directly by the charity rather than through third-party resellers.

Product overview

The Lotus Flower is a registered charity offering a portfolio of community-led programs for women and girls impacted by conflict and displacement in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The organization operates through four interconnected pillars: Lotus Local (community-led programmes), Lotus Learning (training and workshops for other organizations), and Lotus Global (international advocacy). Programs span livelihood initiatives (Sewing Sisters, Women's Business Incubator, Lotus Café, Baking Sisters, Farming Sisters, Hairdressing Sisters, Jam Sisters), education (Adult Literacy, English Language, Computer Training, Storytelling Sisters, Journalism), health and wellbeing (Mental Health Support, Creative Therapies, Boxing Sisters, Yoga, Suicide Prevention, First Aid, Girls' Hygiene), climate action (Earth Sisters, School Garden, She Leads in Food Security, Farming Sisters, Tree Planting), peacebuilding (Peace Sisters, Human Rights, Journalism, Positive Masculinity), and emergency support (Emergency Response, Community Outreach, Supporting Survivors). All programs are delivered through women's centres in refugee and IDP camps, with 100+ local staff members supporting over 115,000 women and girls.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sewing Sisters Income-generating sewing and weaving training programme for displaced women, primarily Yazidi, providing professional certification and sewing machines to graduates. Launched November 2016 at Rwanga Community Camp.
• Women's Business Incubator Financial foundation and business mentorship programme for women-led small businesses, combined with educational sessions on gender-based violence and women's legal rights.
• Lotus Café Women-run café inside Essyan Camp offering culinary training, a safe public space for women and girls, and income generation; women keep all profits.
• Baking Sisters Livelihood programme developing baking skills that has grown into a longer-term café project to build community space and foster relationships and confidence.
• Farming Sisters Livelihoods programme using a plot of land at Essyan Camp where women garden and plant seasonal vegetables using traditional farming skills passed down through generations.
• Hairdressing Sisters Hairdressing training programme providing economic and employment opportunities for displaced women, with space, equipment and training delivered with partner Gareth Smith.
• Jam Sisters Income-generating initiative supporting female Syrian refugees to become financially independent by making jams from local fruits and ingredients.
• Adult Literacy Women's adult literacy course teaching students to read and write in Arabic and Kurdish at beginner and intermediate levels with all materials provided.
• English Language Beginner and intermediate English language courses for women, lasting 1–3 months depending on student needs; offered since January 2017.
• Computer Training Computer skills courses teaching basic operations including turning computers on/off, opening files, typing skills, and using office software like Microsoft Word.
• Storytelling Sisters Photography and creative writing skills programme enabling local women to share their experiences through photos and stories, providing marketable skills and improved mental health outcomes.
• Journalism Female-led journalism programme bringing together girls from Muslim, Yezidi and Christian communities to develop media awareness and produce a magazine called Afrandin.
• Boxing Sisters Boxing and self-defence training taught by certified trainers to build strategy, relieve stress, increase confidence and physical strength.
• Peace Sisters Training programme for women and girls to become mediators, peace defenders and active community leaders, enabling them to lead peace processes and rebuild fractured communities.
• Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Programming including awareness sessions, group discussions, art therapy, community outreach and home visits covering GBV prevention, domestic violence, and women's rights.
• Creative Therapies Creative classes including music, art therapy and craft groups (knitting, accessory-making, beading, sewing) designed to foster healing and self-care.
• Men and Boys' Trauma Project Mental health support project for men and boy Syrian refugees impacted by conflict, using sharing of past ordeals, therapy, and activities including art, music and poetry.
• Girls' Hygiene Menstrual health education programme for girls aged 12–16 in IDP camps, distributing Days for Girls menstrual kits and mitigating social stigma.
• Positive Masculinity Workshops for men and boys raising awareness about eliminating gender-based violence and shifting traditional perceptions around women's roles.
• Yoga, Sports & Meditation Yoga and meditation classes teaching body-centred and mindfulness techniques to mitigate physical manifestations of trauma, along with women's fitness classes.
• Suicide Prevention Mental health support project for youths and families providing group and individual sessions with trained psychologists and activities to build self-confidence.
• Supporting Survivors Civil litigation support for women ISIS survivors working with pro-bono lawyers at Hogan Lovells since 2016 to pursue justice and compensation.
• Emergency Response Swift emergency response to crises including distribution of warm clothing, COVID-19 information, and shifted programming to remote delivery during lockdowns.
• Community Outreach Door-to-door outreach services for families unable to travel to centres, covering first aid, family planning, GBV, sexual abuse and human trafficking.
• First Aid First aid training in conjunction with local healthcare organisations including Rwanga Community Hospital, with participants receiving first aid medical bags.
• Earth Sisters Climate project that upskills women and girls on climate change and its links to gender-based violence, supported by the German Federal Foreign Office in Erbil, with 50 Earth Sisters trained in Duhok.
• She Leads in Food Security Climate-smart agriculture and income-generating initiative in Sinjar district, focusing on food security and economic status of IDPs, refugees and returnees.
• School Garden Environmental stewardship scheme at Domiz 2 camp equipping children and young people with skills to address climate change, featuring over 1,200 plants.
• Environmental Awareness and Tree Planting Awareness programmes on environmental protection and tree planting including 500 fig and blueberry trees distributed to Essyan camp families.
• Women's Centre Safe welcoming space providing various activities and training programmes, offering indirect psycho-social support for women who have experienced violence.
• Survivor Support Ad hoc support for genocide survivors including awareness training sessions on legal issues and women's rights, plus professional psychological support.
• Awareness Sessions Sessions covering prevention of gender-based violence, domestic violence, sexual abuse, exploitation, early marriage and human trafficking through group discussions and outreach.
• Holiday and Community Events Recognition of key cultural events and holidays including Ramadan Iftar meals, fostering community, friendship and cultural understanding.
• Gender-based Violence Awareness Regular awareness sessions to combat gender-based violence, sexual and domestic violence, conducted in group settings and through door-to-door community visits.
• Human Rights Programming addressing human rights violations including rape, slavery, trafficking, forced marriage and sexual violence that women and girls face in conflict.
• The Lotus Flower Merchandise Shop Online branded merchandise store operated on Teemill (thelotusflower.teemill.com), selling items to supporters worldwide; Teemill handles order processing, payment, and delivery.

Quantifiable outcome

• 115,000+ women and girls supported across programs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Asma Khan / Darjeeling ExpressflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2019In July 2019, The Lotus Flower launched the Lotus Café in Essyan Camp with support from Asma Khan, founder of Darjeeling Express. Asma Khan provided training and guidance for the women's cooking and café management program.
• Hogan LovellscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Since 2016, The Lotus Flower has worked with a team of pro-bono international lawyers at Hogan Lovells to pursue civil litigation cases for women ISIS survivors, aiming to bring Islamic State fighters to justice while delivering compensation to female Yazidi survivors.
• Girls Not BridescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Lotus Flower has partnered with Girls Not Brides and joined their global network of civil society organisations committed to eliminating child marriage. The partnership focuses on awareness and educational sessions on the impact of child marriage.
• KhaimacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe organization collaborated with Khaima on the Men and Boys' Trauma Project, implementing mental health support and therapy programs for Syrian refugee men and boys.
• Days for GirlscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDays for Girls provides menstrual kits as part of the Girls' Hygiene programme, collaborating with The Lotus Flower to distribute sustainable menstrual health solutions to girls aged 12-16 in internally-displaced camps.
• Operation Hope AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOperation Hope Australia collaborates with The Lotus Flower on the Girls' Hygiene programme to provide and promote sustainable solutions for female menstrual health.
• Rwanga Community HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Lotus Flower hosts first aid classes in conjunction with Rwanga Community Hospital, where basic first aid skills are demonstrated and practiced by participants.
• Presbyterian ChurchminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Presbyterian Church partners with The Lotus Flower on the Girls' Hygiene programme.
• DAK (Non-profit)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDAK collaborated with The Lotus Flower on the Journalism project, bringing together girls from Muslim, Yazidi, and Christian communities to develop media awareness and practices.
• Gareth Smith (Freelance Hairdresser)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLondon-based freelance hair stylist Gareth Smith partnered with The Lotus Flower to train women as hairdressers in each of their centres, enabling them to earn income through hairdressing services.
• Cathy Brown (Professional Boxer)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRetired professional British boxer and certified Cognitive Behaviour Therapist Cathy Brown helped establish the Boxing Sisters project, which teaches boxing and self-defence to women and girls.
• NAMA WomencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAMA Women is a partner in the Women's Business Incubator programme and mental health support initiatives.
• SkateistanminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational NGO working with youth, listed as a partner organization.
• PolisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner organization collaborating with The Lotus Flower.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Women Without Borders / SAVE (Sisters Against Violent Extremism): Organization working with women in conflict and post-conflict settings on radicalization prevention, peacebuilding and community resilience — comparable to The Lotus Flower's Peace Sisters, Positive Masculinity and Men and Boys' Trauma Project portfolios.
• Malala Fund: Advocacy and education nonprofit focused on girls' secondary education in conflict-affected regions; comparable in mission emphasis on displaced/conflict-affected girls and in deploying a high-profile founder narrative to drive donor engagement, though operating more in policy/advocacy than direct service delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Mercy Corps: Global humanitarian organization active in Iraq with programming on women's economic empowerment, peacebuilding and food security — comparable thematic scope to The Lotus Flower's Lotus Local / Lotus Global pillars at substantially greater scale.
• International Rescue Committee: Major refugee-response agency operating across Iraq and Kurdistan with programs in women's protection, livelihoods and education; offers the same integrated refugee-women service stack as The Lotus Flower but as part of a far larger multi-country portfolio.
• UN Women: United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women, including in humanitarian and conflict settings; overlaps with The Lotus Flower's peacebuilding, GBV-awareness and survivor-support programming in Iraq and at policy level internationally.
• CARE International: Large global humanitarian organization delivering women's economic empowerment, GBV response and food-security programming across conflict zones including Iraq; overlaps with The Lotus Flower's livelihoods, climate-food-security and gender-based-violence work at much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Women for Women International: Global nonprofit running year-long livelihoods, rights-awareness and psychosocial support programs for women survivors of conflict (including in Iraq/Kurdistan) — directly comparable model combining economic empowerment, education and wellbeing for conflict-affected women.
• Free Yezidi Foundation: Yazidi-survivor-led organization delivering humanitarian, psychosocial and documentation support to Yazidi women and girls in northern Iraq — the closest direct competitor in The Lotus Flower's core refugee/IDP service niche.
• Nadia's Initiative: Founded by Nobel laureate Nadia Murad, Nadia's Initiative advocates for survivors of sexual violence and rebuilds communities in Sinjar — directly overlapping The Lotus Flower's Yazidi-survivor and Sinjar-district programs (e.g., She Leads in Food Security) and the same ISIS-survivor beneficiary cohort.

Others

• Refuge: UK-registered charity supporting women and children experiencing domestic abuse; comparable in mission (women's safety and empowerment) and UK registration profile, but serves a domestic UK rather than conflict-affected refugee population.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-lotus-flower

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

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 The Lotus Flower