This past Thursday, 20,000 students gathered at Rogers Arena for one of the year’s most anticipated events: We Day 2012. It all began with Marc and Craig Kielburger, co-founders of Free the Children (FTC), “a holistic, high-impact charity and an educational partner that empowers young people to change the world.”
Free the Children has given rise to Me to We, the social enterprise that promotes “socially conscious and environmentally friendly clothes and accessories, as well as life-changing international volunteer trips” to Nicaragua, Ecuador, Ghana, Kenya, India, andChina. Half of Me to We’s annual profits are given to Free the Children to support its charity work, while the other half is reinvested to sustain the growth of the enterprise. From a business sense, Me to We’s goal is to minimize FTC’s already low administrative rate down to zero so that 100% of donations can go directly to local and international projects.
Free the Children is one of the first organizations to empower youth to make change on such a big scale. Inspired students, after attending We Day, truly believe they can make change by raising awareness and hosting fundraisers. Craig and Marc Kielburger, as social entrepreneurs, have left a legacy- a movement for change.