Every baby deserves the healthiest possible start in life. For small and vulnerable newborns, a mother's own milk is one of the most effective interventions to reduce the risk of infection, necrotizing enterocolitis, and death while supporting healthy growth and brain development. Yet many mothers face significant barriers to providing breast milk during their baby's hospitalization, including separation from their infant, limited lactation support, and a lack of access to electric breast pumps. As a result, many infants miss the opportunity to receive their own mother's milk during this critical period.

In partnership with Ethiopian neonatologists, Brown Global AIM launched Project Milk to strengthen lactation support for small and vulnerable newborns in two neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Abebech Gobena Maternal and Child Health Hospital and Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital. Through the generosity of mothers and families across the United States, we are collecting donations of gently used electric breast pumps and related lactation supplies to support this effort. Project Milk helps mothers provide their own milk to their hospitalized infants by supplying electric breast pumps, establishing dedicated pumping stations, training healthcare providers and mothers on breast pump use and safe breast milk expression and storage, and providing breastfeeding counseling and ongoing lactation support. By strengthening breastfeeding support where it is needed most, Project Milk aims to improve neonatal outcomes and give more vulnerable newborns the healthiest possible start in life.