From a kitchen table to 9,000 volunteers in ten years

A kitchen table in Ashburn, Virginia. That is where Shreyaa Venkat and her sister Esha launched NEST4US ten years ago. She was 13, Esha 10.

Today, at 23 and 20, they serve as CEO and COO of a global service movement powered by 9,000+ volunteers, she says, contributing $6.5+ million in volunteer value. "Our volunteers are as young as 3 & as old as 90 because we believe everyone has the power to serve," she says.

“Through my work leading NEST4US for the past ten years, I’ve learned that leadership is not simply about being the person at the front; it is about creating the infrastructure for others to step forward.”

Shreyaa Venkat

Millions worldwide lack access to basic necessities, she says, while countless people, especially youth, want to get involved in their communities but struggle to find accessible ways to do it. "Too often, service opportunities are fragmented & address SDGs individually, leaving both willing volunteers & needs disconnected," she says. NEST4US was their answer. She now describes it as one of the world's largest youth-founded nonprofits.

Five programs carry the work, advancing progress on 14+ UN SDGs through initiatives spanning large-scale service projects, food redistribution events, academic and hygiene resource provision, handmade birthday presents and intergenerational workshops.

The totals over the decade, as she reports them: 4+ million lbs of surplus food redistributed, 125,000+ kindness notes created, 90,000+ blessing bags assembled, and expanded access to critical resources for tens of thousands of people worldwide.

She has put in 8,000 hours of service herself in those ten years. "My goal is to be the change I want to see in the world," she says.