Mission
To foster communities of young adults and encourage them to use their passions and education in service to communities in need.
Vision
To establish a global network of Manna Project communities where young adults live and work alongside one another in underserved communities to initiate positive change.
MPI’s Organizational Pillars
Holistic Approach
The different pieces of a community are inextricably linked, and the recognition of that allows for both a better understanding of a community’s opportunities and challenges as well as a more appropriate response; it also causes our volunteers to consider the complexities of development rather than focus on a single issue.
MPI volunteers work in a number of different programs, operate programs in such a way as to relate to multiple facets of a given community, and work in concert with other MPI volunteers who may be focusing in other areas. Some of our main areas of focus include health, education, leadership development, and economic empowerment.
Community Focus
MPI volunteers live together near the communities of focus in order to promote exposure to daily challenges, experience life in the community, and build a sense of one community.
A specific geographical focus allows us to pursue holistic development and build relationships with community members. It also lends itself to impacts that are visible and measurable, and ensures that our efforts in different programs and projects positively reinforce each other.
Volunteer Development
As a diverse but united team, MPI volunteers are able to increase their personal efforts to have a greater and more influential effect in the community and in their work.
Volunteers learn about each other’s world perspectives, lifestyles, cultures, values, passions, strengths, and experiences by working and living together. They share perspectives on service and theories of development, challenge each other to put theory into practice, and support each other throughout the process.
Our Name
The name Manna Project comes from the Biblical story of "manna." The story goes that God provided "manna," a bread-like substance, each day for the Israelites as they traveled through the desert. Only enough manna was provided for that specific day. While Manna Project is not a religious organization, we like the idea of having enough for the day at hand. With community development, especially internationally, "change" and "development" is a long on-going and often overwhelming process. We like the idea of focusing on each day and doing what we can for that specific day. Then, when taking advantage of each individual day, the sum of those days and the sum of each person's days adds up to create significant and lasting change!