Building Bridges: ATD Fourth World & MANE Corporate Partnership
Countering poverty requires working across communities, organizations, and sectors. Partnerships with activists, allies, and other nonprofits is at the heart of this work. What has been a unique - and a first - experience for us has been a partnership with a global fragrance company, MANE.
How was it made possible for a nonprofit focusing on community, families and policy to build a relationship with a corporation that creates fragrances?
For ATD Fourth World, every partnership begins with a relationship.
“This partnership is a testament to our shared commitment to creating lasting, positive change. We are grateful for the opportunity to learn, grow, and contribute alongside ATD Fourth World, and we look forward to continuing this journey together.”
This relationship started with Roxane Durand, MANE Americas ESG (Environmental Social and Governance) Director and ATD Fourth World Ally, who had been supporting ATD Fourth World’s work with children and adults living in persistent poverty.
Upon creating a committee on the topic of poverty, several other MANE employees joined her in the mission of raising poverty-awareness throughout their company. If they wanted to make a sustainable impact, they agreed that they had to learn more about poverty, what it means for people to live in poverty, and then to explore solutions. Together with the ATD Fourth World team in New York, they developed an integration of experiences that would be mutually beneficial at the grassroots level, in knowledge building, and in global advocacy.
Grassroots Community Presence: Exploring Fragrances at The Story Garden
In 2025, ATD Fourth World held a special Story Garden where MANE employees invited families from the Brownsville Houses public housing in Brooklyn to explore the scent of various fragrances, to create their own, and to create drawings that could inspire or was inspired by a fragrance. Some of the people who participated in this Story Garden could imagine possibilities beyond the Story Garden, such as starting a career in an industry they had never considered.
“At the Story Garden between MANE x ATD in Brownsville, I had many impactful interactions through this workshop.
Explaining what the fragrance industry is and seeing people’s eyes open up to the many career opportunities within the industry was incredibly rewarding. It was a meaningful experience for both children and adults.”
Building Knowledge: Learning from Lived Experiences through the MAP research
Wanting to learn more about what it means to live with experiences of poverty from the perspective of those who live it, MANE invited ATD Fourth World to a “Lunch and Learn” to present the MAP (Multidimensional Aspects of Poverty) research co-designed by people across the country who shared their lived experiences of poverty and injustices. More than 90 employees joined this Poverty and Dignity Awareness online training.
At the beginning of the presentation, employees were asked what they believed were the dimensions of poverty. The words that they submitted into a “word cloud” assured the team that they had found amid the corporation, people who recognized poverty as more than a lack of income.
The second part of the presentation focused on identifying poverty-based discrimination in the workplace. At the end of the presentation, the employees were invited to share their thoughts on practical solutions to end these discriminations: their answers collected in a word cloud reflected their deep engagement and willingness to act positively.
Global Advocacy: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty at the UN
In 2024 and 2025, MANE employees participated in ATD Fourth World’s annual commemoration of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. At this event, MANE employees heard from New York activists and people from around the world who spoke about the conditions of extreme poverty, shared their expertise, and called upon the United Nations to act. They were also able to take part in a guided tour of the United Nations before the event.
In 2025, a few MANE employees were invited to read the text inscribed on the Commemorative Stone in Honor of the Victims of Extreme Poverty.
“Being part of MANE’s participation in the UN Day of Poverty was an experience I will never forget. Having the opportunity to speak about poverty in my native Arabic language made the experience especially meaningful to me.
It reminded me that our voices, our backgrounds, and our personal experiences can help bring greater awareness to issues that affect communities around the world. I was proud to represent MANE and grateful to be part of an event that encouraged compassion, understanding, and action.”
Our partnership with MANE corporation continues in 2026. We are grateful for their employee engagement at all levels and for the financial support MANE brings to ATD Fourth World USA.
About ATD Fourth World US
ATD Fourth World US is part of an international movement with over 60 years of experience fighting poverty through education, community action, and human rights advocacy.
About MANE
MANE is one of the world's leading flavor and fragrance companies, dedicated to creative innovation, sustainable practices, and community partnerships globally.
If you have been reading our newsletters and blogs and feel a deep connection to our mission, vision, and values, please consider inviting your colleagues and your corporation to take a closer look at ATD Fourth World as a corporate partner. Please connect with us to start the conversation!