#15ForEveryMom: 15th Anniversary Campaign
From a bold idea to a global movement, Every Mother Counts has spent the past 15 years working to make the maternal health journey safe, respectful, and equitable for all. To celebrate our 15th anniversary, we’re reflecting on 15 years of impact, and dreaming about what the next 15 years will hold.
Introducing #15ForEveryMom!
15 Years For Every Mom
While many things have changed in the 15 years since our founding, one thing that has stayed constant is our mission: improving the maternal health journey for all. This campaign celebrates our most meaningful impact over the past 15 years, and highlights our plans to continue driving progress in the face of a changing world.
Here’s to 15 years of impact. And 15 years of progress. For every mom.
June: Policy & Advocacy
Our advocacy efforts began on Capitol Hill in 2010. Since then, through changing administrations and shifting policies, one thing has remained constant: our unwavering commitment to advancing policies that improve maternal health in the U.S.
Over these 15 years, we’ve supported meaningful legislation, helped advance meaningful policy, and partnered strategically to help improve maternal health in the U.S. In 2024 alone, we supported 9 federal bills and mobilized maternal health advocates from 40 states to call on their representatives for meaningful change.
Check out our June #15ForEveryMom email for a timeline of our dedication to these efforts.
Make Your Voice Heard
Each month, we share a Flash #15ForEveryMom – a quick and easy way to help advance maternal health in just a few minutes! Small actions can make a big impact. One of our favorites: speaking up and making your voice heard.
July: Storytelling through Film
Every Mother Counts was born after the release of the documentary No Woman, No Cry at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2010. Since then, storytelling has remained core to our mission to raise awareness about maternal health and has played a huge role in our 15 years of impact.
We believe firmly in the power of a single story to humanize, educate, and inspire change. Over the past 15 years, we have had the privilege to share powerful stories by amplifying the experiences of mothers, families, providers, and advocates to drive action – because our birth stories connect us all.
Learn more about our timeline of filmmaking in our July #15ForEveryMom email.
Watch our films.
August: Grantmaking in Latin America & the Caribbean
Every Mother Counts began making grants to organizations in Latin America & the Caribbean in 2012. Over time, we have supported many partners, from larger organizations that serve as critical referral centers for obstetric emergencies, to smaller birth centers that provide midwifery-led care.
From our first grant to Midwives for Haiti in 2012 in Haiti, to partnerships with organizations like Asociación Corazón del Agua in Guatemala, which launched the country’s first university-level professional midwifery program, and Naye Xjaw/Maya Midwifery International, which strengthens and expands the work of Indigenous midwives in the Guatemala, we have a long history of work in the region.
To date, we’ve invested $4.35M in Latin America & the Caribbean, 18% of our total global grantmaking.
Learn more about our history of grantmaking in our August #15ForEveryMom email.
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A group of midwifery students at Asociación Corazón del Agua in Guatemela City. (Janet Jarman, 2019) -
Portrait of a traditional midwife at ACAM in Guatemala. (Janet Jarman, 2019) -
A mother holding her baby at ACAM in Guatemala. (Janet Jarman, 2019) -
Portrait of Gabriela Meléndez Peláez, founder of Asociación Corazón del Agua. (Janet Jarman, 2019) -
The 2019 graduating class of midwives from Asociación Corazón del Agua after their graduation ceremony. (Janet Jarman, 2019) -
A skilled birth attendant from Midwives for Haiti provides care for a mother and her baby during a home visit in Haiti. (Clancy McCarty, 2016) -
Midwife Michelle provides care for Marcenat Dady and her children at their home near Cabestor Birth Center in Haiti. (Monique Jaques, 2017) -
Midwife Rose Merline providing newborn care at Grace Community Birth Center in Haiti. (Jean Oscar Agustin, 2025) -
A new mother breastfeeding her son while receiving postpartum care at a clinic in Haiti. (Jean Oscar Agustin, 2025) -
Jane Drichta, Executive Director of Midwives for Haiti, with Elane, a mother receiving care at Midwives for Haiti in Haiti. (Midwives for Haiti, 2024) -
A traditional midwife studying at Asociación Corazón del Agua in Guatemala. (Janet Jarman, 2017)
September: Providers
Over the past 15 years, Every Mother Counts has been guided by the belief that to achieve a world where quality, equitable, and respectful maternity care is the norm, we must invest in the providers who make this care possible.
For this reason, we focus on the perinatal workforce–the providers who care for mothers and families throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum. This month, we highlighted two essential types of providers: community-based midwives and doulas.
Learn more about our history of supporting providers in our September #15ForEveryMom email.
Learn more about midwives and doulas.
What is a midwife?
A midwife is an expert in providing quality care before, during, and after pregnancy. Midwives practice in nearly every country in the world, in both hospital and community settings. The midwifery model of care is an evidence-based, person-centered approach that treats childbirth as a natural, physiologic process.
Midwife-led care is more likely to lead to breastfeeding initiation, greater patient satisfaction, and greater sense of patient control, and less likely to result in interventions like cesarean section or episiotomy.
Learn more in our grantee partner spotlight on Foundation for Advancement of Haitian Midwives (FAHM) in Haiti.
What is a doula?
A doula is a non-clinical provider who offers emotional, physical, and informational support through pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period. Often members of the communities they serve, community-based doulas are also trained to address clients’ needs outside of the healthcare system by facilitating trusted referrals.
Research shows continuous labor support by a doula contributes to fewer c-sections, fewer negative birth experiences, and a greater likelihood of shorter labor. Doulas lower maternal health spending by decreasing the likelihood of interventions like first and repeat cesareans, epidurals, and episiotomies.
Learn more in our grantee partner spotlight on Tewa Women United in New Mexico.