2025: A Year of Global Impact
Our 2025 Collaborators: The Baker Institute collaborated with leading organizations and institutions to expand access to hearing healthcare and professional training, including the Stanford University Department of Otolaryngology, Project C.U.R.E., Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy, University of Nairobi Hospital, Hear the World Foundation, and others.
Families Served Since Founding: 328
Professionals Trained: 650+
Global Reach: California, Hawai‘i, Kenya, Mexico, Peru, Guatemala, Brazil, Jordan, Zimbabwe, Bhutan, India, Zambia, and beyond.
How Your Support Changed Lives This Year
Families who participated in Listen to Me!® conferences reported the following outcomes:
- 96%
- Achieved full-time hearing technology use
- 96%
- 92%
- Used daily listening strategies to build communication
- 92%
- 89%
- Became confident advocates in school and medical systems
- 89%
- 86%
- Incorporated language-building interactions
- 86%
- 80%
- Took concrete steps to improve outcomes after training
- 80%
2025 Program Highlights
Expanded Tele-Therapy Capacity
More families across Hawai‘i, California, and remote communities worldwide gained access to expert listening and spoken language specialists—closing geographic gaps and reducing waitlists.
Professional Training & Mentorship
Our Train-the-Trainer model continues to build local expertise in Hawai‘i, Kenya, and Latin America, reducing long-term reliance on mainland and international specialists.
Community Engagement & Conferences
We hosted multi-day, in-person programs at Stanford University, across the Hawai‘i Islands, and in Nakuru, Kenya, bringing families and professionals together for immersive learning experiences. We also delivered virtual training programs for providers in Brazil, El Salvador, Guatemala, India, Jordan, Kenya, Mexico, Peru, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Infrastructure Development in Kenya
In partnership with Project C.U.R.E. and Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy, we funded three large containers of medical equipment —prioritizing hearing healthcare—to strengthen diagnostic, surgical, and intervention capacity in Kenya. These shipments will support the development of newborn hearing screening, expanded audiology services, and a dedicated cochlear implant surgical center.
Cochlear Implant Access in Kenya
To date, the Baker Institute has funded cochlear implantation for 16 young children in Kenya (ages 0–3) who were profoundly deaf—eight in 2024 and eight more in 2025—providing life-changing access to sound during the most critical window for language development.
Documentary Premiere & Awareness
We premiered our documentary highlighting the Baker Institute’s work and global impact, sharing the stories of children, families, and professionals across our programs. Screenings brought together supporters and new audiences, helping to expand awareness and engagement as we prepare to submit the film to festivals in the coming year.
