Keep the We Day Momentum Going All Year Long

We Day — the North American event that inspires and facilitates young people to give back locally and globally — is happening for the 7th time in Canada and the U.S. this fall and throughout the spring of 2015.

Since its inaugural event in Toronto spearheaded by Free the Children founders Craig and Marc Kielburger, We Day has grown from a local grassroots youth rally to a series of high-powered celebrity-endorsed international celebrations of young people doing good in the world. And it’s been successful for good reason.

Research consistently points to the fact that Millenials want to be more engaged in the causes they care about. They often give back by doing, taking action on causes they deem meaningful. And We Day gives them the tools — and incentive — to do so.

How We Day Works

To participate in We Day, students must take action on a local or global cause by way of We Act, a year-long service learning program. Classroom materials facilitate learning, goal setting and the development of actionable ideas. We Act also provides existing campaigns participants can choose to join, or they can select their own cause.

In Vancouver, for example, students at Capilano University, the post-secondary education partner for We Day Vancouver, opted to support Take a Hike, a full-time alternative education program that works with at-risk youth.

CapU’s We Do Team (also known as the Empower Rangers) has held school-wide events including a pub night, a hike and a pie-throw to raise money and awareness for Take a Hike.

A year’s worth of action earns participants a ticket to attend a well-deserved celebration: a star-studded event with a variety of speakers and performers who each serve to illustrate that doing good can be achieved in a wide variety of ways.

Charity All Year Long

But after the buzz of We Day dies down, the action doesn’t need to end. Doing good is something that can — and should — happen all year, every year. And the fact is, making charity a regular part of your life is easy, creative, fun and social.

Here are some ideas to keep the momentum going in your everyday life. You can also start a Giving Group to get your friends involved in fundraising with you for your cause.

Congrats to all the young people who have worked hard to earn their way to We Day. We look forward to seeing the positive impact your work has on the world this year and into the future.

Want to build charity into your daily life? Set up your Chimp account now and get started!