Social Change

Having had the privilege to work with hundreds of enterprise companies — many of which are part of the Fortune 1000 — we're often asked about what works best when it comes to workplace giving programs. Companies want to know how to get the greatest social and business outcomes out of their programs and we want to help. The first and last thing to remember? The goal of your giving programs must be employee engagement. This may seem obvious, but it’s worth mentioning because many programs aren’t designed with this goal in mind.

This marks the 22nd year Rebuilding Together has hosted this Super Bowl-sanctioned event – rebuilding homes and transforming communities in Super Bowl cities across the country. To date the event has impacted nearly 140 homes, engaged 5,000 volunteers and invested more than $5 million to communities in need.

The Grand Prize Winners were announced today for Keep America Beautiful’s “How Will You … End Littering?” Video Contest, which was open to students from grades 9-12.

2016 was a generous year in philanthropy. What else will 2017 bring? Here are our predictions for the coming year in philanthropy from Jamie Serino, the MicroEdge + Blackbaud Director of Marketing.

Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s leading nonprofit that envisions a country in which every community is a green, clean and beautiful place to live, will provide it’s National Youth Advisory Council members with the chance to experience Manassas National Battlefield Park in a unique way – by mapping “Trees of Significance” throughout the park.

While Clemson University recently defeated the University of Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship, football fans at Louisiana State University could also claim a championship of their own having been crowned the overall winners of the 2016 GameDay Recycling Challenge (GDRC), the national collegiate football recycling competition.

Registration for new and returning colleges and universities is coming to a close for the 2017 RecycleMania tournament, the premier collegiate recycling competition. Now in its 17th year, RecycleMania pits colleges and universities against one another to see which will claim the championship in the fight to reduce, reuse, recycle and compost the most on campus. The 2017 RecycleMania competition, managed by national nonprofit Keep America Beautiful, will kick off on Feb. 5.

Consumers Energy and five nonprofit organizations are again helping Michigan families stay warm, announcing $5 million in new contributions that will help households manage their energy bills. In all, the energy provider and nonprofit agencies are teaming up to help over 50,000 households across Michigan this winter.

Points of Light, with support from Southwest Airlines Co. and the Corporation for National and Community Service; and in partnership with nonprofits and hundreds of local volunteer action centers, will mark the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service, Jan. 16, by mobilizing more than 175,000 volunteers across the country. Calling together its community of changemakers, Points of Light encourages people to reflect on gains won during the Civil Rights Movement and to address contemporary issues facing our nation through volunteer service.