I agree with the ex-adcom…You could use your journey as an essay…I think the Charity is the EC, but that The Study was part of that EC.
So your essay could talk about how you Saw a need, didn’t see anyone filling that need effectively, gathered information on how to fill that need (The Study), started charity to help with need, raised money for need…and?
Have you spent/donated/done anything with the money yet?
You want to show you took action, did it in a thoughtful way (the Study) but actually got some results.
So make sure you get some results!