AI for social good: AWS Imagine for Nonprofits 2025 conference highlights

Nonprofits are a special sector. With missions that include supporting education, fighting poverty, protecting the natural world, and promoting peace, these organizations are dedicated to making the world a better place—often with very limited resources. That’s where technology can be a game-changer. Over the past decade, nonprofits around the globe have turned to Amazon Web Services (AWS) technologies—including cloud and generative AI innovations—to streamline operations, create efficiencies, and accelerate mission impact.

On March 26, 2025, nonprofit and technology leaders gathered at AWS Imagine for Nonprofits, hosted at Amazon HQ2 in Arlington, VA, to connect with peers, share success stories, explore ideas, and discover new ways to use technology for the greater good. In this post, we will share the key announcements, highlights, and takeaways from the event.

AWS Imagine 2025 sessions: Leveraging AWS Cloud and AI in the nonprofit sector

Keynote: Dr. Jane Goodall and other nonprofit leaders

As part of the keynote, Dave Levy, vice president of worldwide public sector at AWS, interviewed the legendary Dr. Jane Goodall. The environmentalist icon praised technology’s ability to help us understand and protect the natural world. She stressed that the current state of the environment requires that we use all tools available to us to solve the problems we face.

Dr. Jane Goodall and Dave Levy at the AWS Imagine for Nonprofits conference in Arlington, Virginia on March 26, 2025

Goodall also recalled her early encounters with the people of Gombe, who were damaging chimpanzee habitats by cutting down trees to support their struggling economy. Part of her challenge was to show them how her cause was also their cause. “Helping the people you want to join your mission has to be part of your mission,” she said. “Make it make sense for them to support you.”

When asked what gives her hope, Goodall cited “the indomitable human spirit” and described her Roots & Shoots program, which has grown from 12 students in 1991 to thousands of activists in 75 countries.

As part of the keynote, I was joined on stage by Bernice Martin Lee, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Epilepsy Foundation, and Niraj Swami, senior director of conservation tech strategy and enablement at The Nature Conservancy.

Lee challenged nonprofits to think differently about financial sustainability. She then unveiled a generative AI-powered chatbot that provides real-time, reliable, and empathetic answers to patients and their families—while helping the Epilepsy Foundation turn its data into assets for long-term growth.

Bernice ‘Bee’ Martin Lee at the AWS Imagine for Nonprofits conference in Arlington, Virginia on March 26, 2025

Swami described the extra care The Nature Conservancy takes in its technology choices as an environmental nonprofit. He highlighted three pillars that guide their use of technology—people, places, and priorities—and explained how his organization differentiates itself around responsible AI and rapid experimentation.

Niraj Swami at the AWS Imagine for Nonprofits conference in Arlington, Virginia on March 26, 2025

Throughout the keynote, I had the opportunity to share examples of technology supporting nonprofit efforts, including how Watch Duty was able to help keep people safe during the recent California wildfires by providing real-time emergency information—scaling their application’s reach with AWS to support an additional 1.8 million people in just 48 hours.

Jeff Kratz at the AWS Imagine for Nonprofits conference in Arlington, Virginia on March 26, 2025

Real-world perspectives on responsible AI

Later in the day, attendees explored a variety of topics including how nonprofits can use generative AI responsibly while still accelerating innovation.

Sasha Rubel, head of AI and generative AI policy for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) at AWS, served as the moderator for a panel discussion of real-world perspectives on responsible AI. She began with the idea that there doesn’t have to be a choice between responsibility and innovation, but rather, “It’s responsibility and innovation.”

Panelists included Zeenia Irani, senior director of strategic initiatives at FINCA International, Nicholas Suplina, senior vice president for law and policy at Everytown for Gun Safety, and Nathan Chappell, senior vice president at DonorSearch AI.

Suplina described a key challenge to solving the gun violence epidemic in America: the data being used to examine the problem is out of date. “Imagine trying to solve COVID with two-year-old data,” he said. “You can’t do it.” Suplina then described an AI tool that searches, synthesizes, and summarizes public reports to produce up-to-date data and create a filterable map. This innovation, called everyshot.org, is accessible to everyone and offers a greater understanding of gun violence to researchers, policymakers, and journalists.

Panelists Irani and Chappell also shared how their organizations are using AWS-powered tools to address complex challenges. Irani described how FINCA International’s Automated Research Assistant (AuRA) helps them collect transparent, mission-aligned data in hard-to-reach communities. Chappell noted that while the nonprofit sector is facing unprecedented headwinds, tools like generative AI provide a much-needed opportunity to amplify impact and reach.

Geospatial models offer new insight into the world around us

Bruno Sanchez-Andrade Nuno of Clay – AI for Earth and Dr. Ben Strong from Earth Genome took the stage to discuss innovations in geospatial modeling. Nuno described the philanthropy funding Clay – AI for Earth received from AWS and how it helped the nonprofit become the largest completely open AI model built on satellite imagery. “Earth observation used to be mostly about defense, and access was very limited,” he said. “Now we have data and understanding available for anybody to embrace their curiosity about the world.”

Strong then described a collaborative study, Amazon Mining Watch, and how it seeks to mitigate the environmental damage done by illegal gold mining in the Amazon Rainforest. He introduced Earth Genome’s tool, Earth Index, which uses AI and satellite imagery to put useful environmental intelligence into the hands of anyone who needs it. “Because foundation models are trained on a vast trove of satellite imagery, they learn to understand and interpret nuances, discover patterns, and pull out meaningful features,” Strong said. “The model can learn what’s important for users without any explicit instruction from a scientist.”

Networking to accelerate nonprofit missions

In addition to trailblazing speakers and inspiring sessions, attendees had access to technical expertise and a chance to network, connect, and celebrate advancements in the nonprofit sector. In the Impact Lounge, attendees had the opportunity to talk with the AWS for Nonprofits team, as well as discover resources and tools to help them accomplish their goals. They could also meet 1:1 with AWS experts to ask mission-specific questions. On the lighter side, many attendees enjoyed using the generative AI photo booth to turn themselves into superheroes and sports stars, and dropping by the Amazon PartyRock lab to create their own games and apps. All in all, the 2025 AWS Imagine for Nonprofits conference offered organizations a powerful opportunity to connect, grow, and learn how to innovate faster in the age of responsible AI.

Attendees networking at the AWS Imagine for Nonprofits conference in Arlington, Virginia on March 26, 2025

Announcements

The application cycle for the 2025 AWS Imagine Grant is now open

It’s time to apply for the 2025 AWS Imagine Grant. Over the last six years, we’ve been honored to award more than $14 million in funding, AWS Cloud computing credits, and technical expertise to over 130 nonprofits. In 2025, we’re excited to announce our goal of turning that $14 million total funding into $21 million by the end of the year. This year also brings an expansion of the Imagine Grant into Canada, Australia, and New Zealand—and adds the Pathfinder category to the UK.

Applicants in the US can submit proposals here or download application guidelines here.

Many previous Imagine Grant winners shared their stories onstage at this year’s Imagine Nonprofit, including The Nature Conservancy, Earth Genome, and United Ways of California. Learn more about previous AWS Imagine Grant recipients and their projects.

AWS Imagine for Nonprofits on-demand now live

Whether you attended AWS Imagine for Nonprofits or missed it, you can dive into on-demand sessions to discover how nonprofit leaders are leveraging generative AI, revolutionizing mission experiences, and measuring impact using data-driven strategies.

Access more than 15 recorded sessions featuring nonprofit innovators.

Flipbook now available: Powering purpose in the cloud

In 2024, AWS commissioned an independent study to better understand nonprofit technology funding from the perspective of institutional funders. That research is now available in our Powering Purpose in the Cloud flipbook.

The flipbook, which explores how cloud technology can impact mission success and includes insights into funding barriers, guidance for grantees, and more, is available to download.

Looking ahead for nonprofits and AWS

Nonprofits belong at the forefront of AI technology—uncovering ways to reach more people, enact more change, and make the most of their precious resources.

If your nonprofit is ready to accelerate its AI strategy, explore the AWS Generative AI Innovation Center. Apply today for an AWS Imagine Grant to support generative AI use cases that advance your organization’s mission.

For other opportunities to connect with AWS, we have a team dedicated exclusively to serving nonprofit organizations. Contact the AWS Public Sector team today.

If you weren’t able to attend this year’s AWS Imagine conference, or you’d like to rewatch your favorite session, check out our on-demand library.

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