Dina Buchbinder MC/MPA 2016 co-founded Education for Sharing (E4S) a year after she graduated from Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México in 2006. She came to Harvard Kennedy School as a Gleitsman Fellow for Leadership in Social Change in 2015 to pursue her Master in Public Administration degree and to learn the best methods to grow her organization. Today, E4S operates in seven (soon to be eight) nations on three continents. E4S uses a rigorously evaluated methodology to form better citizens during childhood using the power of play. Since the organization’s inception, more than 900,000 individuals have benefited from programs including project management, sports, science, and arts for children ages 6 to 13 plus education for their caregivers and teachers. Operating in public, private, and charter schools as well as in homeless shelters and community centers, E4S has partnered with businesses including Build-A-Bear and Ford México to achieve its goals. It has also partnered with the public sector. E4S uses social and emotional learning techniques, and every session combines fun and creative games that prompt children to reflect on global challenges and civic values, including the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Quantitative and qualitative appraisals show the organization’s positive impact on issues such as the reduction of violence, an increase in civic participation, better teamwork and fairer play, and an increase in empathy.
