Corus International

Corus International is a global family of changemakers that envisions a healthy world forever flourishing in dignity and justice.

Our mission is to urgently end poverty, suffering and injustice wherever they afflict humanity, with enduring passion, partnership and expertise.

We seek to end human suffering and injustice by working with the world’s most vulnerable people to break the cycle of poverty and lead healthy lives.

In the world’s most difficult places, we invest in individuals, families, and communities to work together to find lasting solutions to the challenges they face. We take a holistic approach, seeing poverty, health, and the environment as inextricably intertwined.

Our long history of partnerships with local communities, businesses and governments enables us to use and affirm local knowledge to create enduring change. Learning from our experiences, we bring innovative approaches and expertise to make markets work for the poor and to promote health and abundant life for all.

Committed to helping people achieve economic independence, we take a developmental approach to all of our work, including responses to humanitarian crises. We seek always to restore and improve people’s lives by giving them the tools to feed their families, rebuild their communities and improve their health.

We respond to the needs of others, regardless of race, religion, or nationality. We are driven by our core values of integrity, stewardship and organizational excellence and our desire to see a world in which everyone can live in dignity and peace.

Values

Inclusive: Diversity and differences only make us stronger.

Disruptive: By challenging convention, we innovate and maximize the good we can do in the world.

Interconnected: Complex problems require comprehensive, integrated solutions. Our array of expertise, resources, and networks makes possible the impossible.

Agile: Because the world changes rapidly, we move at the speed of change.

What It Do

Corus unites an array of nonprofit organizations and businesses, each with specialized expertise in health, economic development, impact investing, humanitarian assistance, and technology for development. Alongside communities and local partners in fragile settings, our expert teams integrate disciplines, approaches and resources to overcome poverty and suffering for those living in the world’s toughest and most difficult circumstances across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Middle East. Our traditional and nontraditional approaches bring together the multi-dimensional, holistic solutions needed to truly achieve lasting change.

Corus features global public health leader IMA World Health, international development and aid organization Lutheran World Relief, technology for development consultancy CGA Technologies, impact investing firm Ground Up Investing, and direct-trade company Farmers Market Brands.

Health

IMA World Health spearheads Corus’ health programming. In partnership with local organizations and governments, IMA World Health leads Corus in strengthening local capacities, improving access to resources and addressing the public health needs of people affected by poverty, conflict, and other hardships.

• Health systems strengthening
• Disease prevention and treatment
• Maternal and child health
• Nutrition
• WASH
• Sexual and gender-based violence
• Global health security

Rural economic development

Lutheran World Relief leads Corus’ economic and agricultural livelihoods development programming. Lutheran World Relief guides Corus and local partners in helping rural communities struggling with poverty to develop productive, resilient, and stable economies.

• Market systems analysis
• Agriculture value chain strengthening
• Livelihood diversification
• Climate smart and improved agriculture practices
• Water and land management
• Enterprise capacity building
• Rural financing

Impact investing

Ground Up Investing drives Corus’ investments in enterprises that help small-scale farmers capture more value from their crops. Through Ground Up Investing, Corus reinvests any profits beyond what goes to farmers and company growth into complementary development programming for local communities.

• Equity investments
• Technical assistance
• Organizational management training
• Complementary social services
• Marketing

Humanitarian Assistance

When a disaster hits – whether it’s a drought, earthquake or civil war – we work hand in hand with communities over months and years to help them recover and adjust to new realities, ensuring that they are prepared to withstand the next unexpected challenge. Corus draws on the decades of Lutheran World Relief’s and IMA World Health’s experience in responding to natural disasters, public health emergencies, and humanitarian crises.

• Cash transfers and vouchers
• Non-food items and material resources
• Shelter
• WASH
• Emergency health response
• Early recovery and livelihood rehabilitation
• Disaster risk reduction

Technology for Development

With the expertise of CGA Technologies, Corus harnesses the growing accessibility of smartphones and other technologies to improve the rapidity, effectiveness and cost-efficiency of our humanitarian assistance and development programming.

• Mobile banking and cash transfers
• Mobile data collection and management
• Information sharing and education via SMS
• Digital learning platforms
• Digital administrative systems
• Geospatial satellite imagery

Cross-Cutting Themes

Corus is committed to promoting gender equity, positive youth development and resilience throughout our organizations’ work. Our teams continually assess the gender constraints, youth needs, and shocks and stressors that are affecting these communities’ ability to thrive. They design programming that addresses the specific needs of women and young people and ensures communities can maintain development gains when difficult times arise.