Mai Soli means never alone - a reminder that with us by our side, no girl has to stand up to the injustices of child marriage on their own
We work to change the minds of families by empowering young girls at risk for child marriage, leveraging transferable skills, mentorship, and educational support to unlock their potential
We imagine a world in which all girls are safeguarded against child marriage, because society values each girl’s life and autonomy just as much as any other child.
Our origins
At 15, Syeda entered a child marriage in Bangladesh to a man twice her age. In the United States, more that a decade later, she held her own through an abusive marriage and had children of her own.
When her daughter turned 12, Syeda’s husband started talks to get her married. Syeda stood up for her daughter, divorced, and started life over again for her and her two daughters.
When Aria, the daughter who was nearly married, embarked on achieving the education her mother never could, she knew she needed to stop this from happening ever again. In 2018, the Mai Soli Foundation was born.
Our history
When Aria created our Foundation, she worked to understand why child marriage continues to this day. Speaking with communities on the ground in Bangladesh, from politicians to teachers and parents, it was clear nobody wanted this.
But nobody could see a better path available to them.
Understanding this perspective and the financial pressure motivating the practice, Aria assembled a team and incorporated powerful concepts from across the work of academia and research to create the first prototype of the program, which has been iterated on to this day
