Irene Pritzker cofounded the IDP Foundation, Inc., with her daughter, Liesel, in 2008. She was motivated when she visited Ghana that same year and saw how many local schools had barely any infrastructure or resources. Irene considered whether it would be possible to successfully provide a business loan to these schools given that they had no collateral but were serving the poorest families in Ghana.

Focusing on localization and working closely with government, the school proprietors, and an extraordinary microfinance NGO, Sinapi Aba, she launched a successful pilot program. The program continues to grow today and is no longer dependent on aid. The model has been replicated, expanding with new partners into new countries, reaching over 2,300 schools, and serving over 500,000 children.

In addition to program development, Irene actively works to mission-align the foundation's investment strategy--particularly incorporating alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals. The foundation has also made significant contributions to extraordinary developments in medical research.

As an advocate for developing sustainable and market-driven solutions that are no longer aid-dependent, Irene has frequently been invited to share the work of her philosophy behind the IDP Rising Schools Program. She has given major speeches on effective philanthropic investment and participated in numerous panels at the United Nations and other international forums, including throughout the US, Accra, Beijing, Paris, Zurich, Istanbul, Rome, and Dubai.

She has won multiple awards, including the American Association for Cancer Research Public Service Award, the Foreign Policy Association Global Philanthropy Award, and the Australian Consul-General's Outstanding Achievement Award. In 2012 the IDP Foundation, Inc., was granted special consultative status to the United Nations, which continues to this day.