The American Academy of Achievement is like no other organization in the world. For more than 45 years, this unique non-profit entity has sparked the imagination of students across America and around the globe by bringing them into direct personal contact with the greatest thinkers and achievers of the age. The annual International Achievement Summit has provided thousands of outstanding students with an unforgettable, life changing experience, one in which young people whose dreams will determine our collective tomorrow draw inspiration, courage and strength from those individuals who have shaped our world of today. Since 1961, these generation-spanning forums have allowed exceptional students to interact one-on-one with Nobel Prize-winners in the arts and sciences, world-renowned public servants, crusading journalists, intrepid explorers of our planet and outer space, revered humanitarians, world champion athletes, legendary figures of stage and screen, and countless others who represent the pinnacle of achievement in their respective fields. Such personal encounters with greatness can, and do, send an enormously powerful message to students raised in a world that so often seems to value the superficial and ephemeral over the monumental and enduring.

The Academy of American Poets was founded in 1934 to support American poets at all stages of their careers and to foster the appreciation of contemporary poetry. To fulfill this mission, the Academy administers a wide variety of programs, including National Poetry Month (April), the largest literary celebration in the world; online educational resources providing free poetry lesson plans for high school teachers; the Poetry Audio Archive, a collection of over 700 recordings dating back to the 1960s; and Poets.org, our award-winning website which provides a wealth of content on contemporary American poetry and receives a million unique users each month. The Academy also conducts High School Poetry Workshops for New York City students and publishes the biannual journal, American Poet. In addition, the Academy administers the most important collection of poetry awards in the United States.

Established in 1979, the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is a national, non-profit, professional association that unifyies professionals across Canada. The ACCT is a vital and integral force, representing all areas of the film and television industries. We honour outstanding achievements in Canadian film and television, heighten public awareness and increase audience attendance, viewership, and appreciation of Canadian film and television productions, preserve and promote Canada's film and television heritage, while providing wide range of industry-related professional development programs.

The mission of The Academy of Vocal Arts, founded in 1934 by Helen Corning Warden, is to provide tuition-free vocal and opera training of the highest quality, and financial support during training, to exceptionally talented and committed young singers who have the potential for international stature, and to present them in professional performances that are accessible to a wide community. Gifted singers come from throughout the world to seek the exceptional guidance and training that The Academy of Vocal Arts offers. Today, AVA is the only tuition-free institution dedicated exclusively to the study of voice.

ACAT's target group is the poorest of the previously disadvantaged rural communities – focusing on small farmers, entrepreneurs and learners. However, ACAT does not work exclusively with the poorest. ACAT operates in 17 areas of 30km radius each in the deep rural areas of KwaZulu-Natal (in 7 of the 11 Magisterial Districts). To fulfill its mission, ACAT implements the programmes of: Sustainable Agriculture (SAP); Entrepreneurial Development (EDP) and Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET). In addition to their specialized objectives, each Programme aims to provide the targeted rural families with the opportunities, passion and capacity to: become self reliant; overcome the causes of poverty within their control; become involved in groups, co-operatives and village banks.

The Accelerated Cure Project for Multiple Sclerosis is a national non-profit organization dedicated to curing Multiple Sclerosis (MS) by determining the cause of MS. We believe the route to finding the cure will most quickly come from determining the cause or causes of MS. The causes will be found by developing a logical, organized, straight-forward process based on what is known about the causes of disease in general. This process must be clearly spelled out and presented in a manner that is accessible to those involved: researchers, clinicians, and individuals with MS.

ACCES is a non-profit society providing Africans with access to education to build better lives for themselves and their society. Since 1993, ACCES has sponsored over 1,500 Kenyans to study in Kenyan universities, colleges and training colleges, set up 9 primary schools for over 1,200 children, helped reach thousands of Kenyans with information about HIV/AIDS, and established a small business training and micro-enterprise program.

ACCES Employment is a leader in connecting employers with qualified employees from diverse backgrounds. More than 15,000 job seekers are served annually at five locations across the Greater Toronto Area. At ACCES, quality customer service means we strive to meet or exceed the goals of our customers. Our customers include clients, employers, funders, and community partners. Our goal is to provide supportive and effective employment and training services to our diverse community.

Acceso International works with locally-based and Canadian affiliated organizations to provide financial support for marginalized children, youth and women so that they may study in their own country, within their own culture and in their own language. To this end, Acceso International provides bursary assistance for individuals attending pre-schools, primary schools, high schools and post-secondary level institutions. It also provides educational materials for pre-schools, day cares, schools, libraries, women’s centres, orphanages and homework centres. Acceso International's directing officers, members and volunteers engage in project management, awareness, research and fund-raising activities. The directing officers work in collaboration with locally-based organizations to determine project development, effectiveness and continuity. For bursary allocation at the secondary and post-secondary levels, individual recipients are selected based on the criteria of academic achievement, community involvement and financial need. The bursaries are designed to defray the costs of tuition, supplies, transportation and accommodation. Annual progress reports are filed for each student recipient to ensure accountability.

We provide a wide range of programs and services for immigrants and refugees living in Toronto. Working through partnerships, we help develop innovative responses to newcomer issues, and our network of trained interpreters provides quality interpretation in more than 50 languages. We also engage in community-based research and advocacy on issues related to the determinants of health and well-being of newcomers and racialized groups in Toronto.

Access California Services'role is to advocate for women and children, and to help immigrant families make the transitions to their new lives in America. Access-Cal has provided quality services in the Arab-American and Muslim-American Communities in Southern California for over ten years. Our vision is for the Arab-American and American Muslim families in California to live secure, fulfilling lives, as caring, contributing citizens; and for our immigrants to make a successful transition to life in America. By strengthening our foundation, our families, our youth, and our presence as citizens, we see our community enriching the fabric of America with its diversity and fully embracing the opportunities and responsibilities open to all.

The ACCESS Community Capital Fund is a Community Loan Fund that helps small and emerging businesses in Toronto (Ontario, Canada) to meet their need for credit by securing initial loans of up to $5000. By granting small loans to local entrepreneurs, the ACCESS Community Capital Fund is contributing to the community as a whole, helping more people to become self-sufficient through self-employment. We help promising entrepreneurs with viable business plans gain access to financing not available through other sources.

Established in 1974, Accessible Housing Society is a non-profit organization and registered charity located in Calgary, AB, with a mandate to create opportunities for safe, affordable, barrier-free housing for persons with mobility issues. The driving force behind every AHS initiative has been community need. Like the vision set out by its founders, AHS remains committed to addressing community need. We go forward with the goal of expanding the range and inventory of housing options and opportunities for the population of persons with physical disabilities and mobility issues, and with a clear purpose to address community need.

Established in 1961 and a leader in microfinance since 1973, ACCION has over 45 years of experience in the field of international economic development. ACCION's goal is to bring microfinance to enough people to have a significant impact on poverty. It has been estimated that it would cost over $250 billion to reach 500 million poor people with microfinance services- a figure well beyond the reach of donor funds. That is why ACCION is leading the effort to make microfinance financially self-sustaining. ACCION is an innovator in financial access, pioneering many of the best practices and emerging standards in the industry. We provide a full range of management services, technical assistance and training, as well as investment and governance support to help financial institutions build institutional capacity and financial strength in order to serve low-income households on a broad scale.

As a charitable organization, Acclaim Health relies on the generous support of individuals and organizations whose contributions make it possible to provide direct support to individuals in need of assistance. Community and individual investments play a vital role in many of the charitable programs and community services that Acclaim Health provides through the generosity of our 800 caring and selfless volunteers. Without this support many of these needs, may continue to go unmet. Everyday, this support makes a huge difference in the lives of these socially isolated individuals that Acclaim Health serves assisting them to live their lives to the fullest potential possible.

Since 1972 AIS has provided accomodation, information and support to people in Toronto affected by mental illness, substance use and trauma associated with homelessness. Supportive housing saves lives, adds value to communities and is essential investment for our health care system. AIS provides a secure place, that those in need can call home. AIS also provides innovative information and support services that enables tenants to live independently.

ACDEF is a not-for-profit international organisation headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the offspring of years of collective and individual thinking and consultation by a group of experienced Africans and international professionals. This group believes in the power of collective efforts in reaching regional to global targets in the area of sustainable development in Africa. With a well-established local network at all levels in Africa, ACDEF is a platform constituted of biologists, economists, development experts, environmental lawyers, conservation and development activists bonded by the common drive to overcome the daunting challenges facing Africa in reaching the UN Millennium Development Goals and tackling the current and emerging threats from climate change.

ACE Africa (Action in the Community Environment) is a non-profit organisation working in Kenya and Tanzania to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS on the lives of the millions of Orphans and Vulnerable Children living in rural communities of East Africa. ACE Africa's holistic approach involves working with Orphans and Vulnerable Children, People Living With Aids, community support groups and guardians and government sectors. ACE Africa also works with NGO partners at the community, district, national and international level. ACE Africa employs primarily local staff and works with over 2,500 community volunteers to implement its programme.

The charity, part of Infertility Network UK since February 2010, provides advice, support and information to it's members, all who have faced infertility and now have or are expecting their child or children, through pregnancy, surrogacy or adoption. We aim to offer support every step of the way, whether that is from the early anxious days of pregnancy or later as we face new challenges as the children grow older. At ACeBabes we aim to ease the feelings of pain and/or isolation when the emotional scar of infertility is brought to the surface. Members have often shared this can happen when friends and family discuss planning siblings for their children, when being judged if they share the negatives of parenting or when wishing things had just been easier. ACeBabes is also the national voice for everyone parenting after infertility and for ACeKids born through assisted conception.