Bayer, a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of agriculture and healthcare, announces the launch of “Nativo® – Make Them Shine,” a social impact initiative created to open new learning pathways for children in India’s farming communities. This program is rooted in a simple belief — every child, no matter where they are born, deserves the chance to discover their potential. Through immersive and experiential learning, the initiative supports rural youth in building confidence, curiosity and the skills that shape promising futures.
For over 15 years, Bayer’s flagship fungicide brand Nativo® has earned the trust of India’s growers by offering reliable, uncompromising crop protection and helping deliver “Grain Shining” across thousands of farms. With this initiative, Nativo® extends its purpose beyond crops — from enabling shining harvests to inspiring shining futures. It reflects the brand’s longstanding respect for farmers and its commitment to the wellbeing of the communities they nurture. When a grower purchases a pack of Nativo®, a portion of the proceeds will be dedicated to supporting a child’s education and fostering self-reliance. As digital innovation reshapes industries worldwide, agriculture is evolving faster than ever before. India’s rural youth are talented, eager to learn and brimming with potential, yet many lack access to diverse learning experiences that help them understand their strengths and ambitions. Make Them Shine bridges this gap by creating enriching opportunities that strengthen academic confidence and unlock creativity, critical thinking and leadership — empowering young minds to dream bigger and grow stronger. The initiative is being delivered at Protovillage in collaboration with Integreater Foundation, a grassroots organisation dedicated to enabling resilient, self-sustaining rural communities through purpose-driven learning. The two- week structured immersive program, reaching first batch of 100 rural children is designed to build both skill and character. The curriculum focuses on strengthening children from the inside out — first building emotional balance, self-awareness and empathy through connection practices and yoga, then expanding their curiosity with hands-on STEM learning in real community contexts like agriculture, ecology and entrepreneurship. Finally, leadership and confidence are shaped through sports like skateboarding, encouraging grit, creativity and self-expression.
The initiative seeks to help young learners discover their potential through hands-on learning and personal growth — going beyond academic achievement to unlock true excellence. Further, outstanding participants will be felicitated at the Protovillage Annual Festival, celebrating their growth before the community. With a strong footprint across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka, Nativo® has built deep, long-standing partnerships with rice growers. Make Them Shine further strengthens this bond by giving farmers a meaningful way to invest in their community’s future — with every purchase directly supporting a child’s learning journey.
About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. In line with its mission, “Health for all, Hunger for none,” the company’s products and services are designed to help people and the planet thrive by supporting efforts to master the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. Bayer is committed to driving sustainable development and generating a positive impact with its businesses. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. The Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2024, the Group employed around 93,000 people and had sales of 46.6 billion euros. R&D expenses amounted to 6.2 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com.
About Integreater Foundation – www.integreater.org
InteGreater was founded by Kalyan Akkippedi in 2010 with a vision to inspire and empower youth to make every rural cluster in India, an interdependent network of resilient communities, and bring back village-ness to the villages. One of the key initiatives of Integreater foundation is Graamodaya, a rural education model run at Protovillage, that empowers rural kids with the choice and capabilities to establish a life of abundance in their own villages while also equipping them with the knowledge and skills to be globally competent. Protovillage is a role-model resilient rural community being built for the villagers, by the villagers and is set up on 12.5 acres of land, in the 2nd driest district in India (Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh). Equipped with biodiverse farms, food production, weaving and natural dyeing units , a school and a skateboard park, Protovillage is a center for learning, practice, and demonstration of how any community in this region can organize itself to be resilient, socially cohesive, ecologically sustainable and economically viable.
