As the national voice advancing international education, the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) strives to identify and implement measures to amplify sustainability and social responsibility efforts in our sector, and our partners do the same. We are pleased to share one of these initiatives from a CBIE2023 sponsor, guard.me.
What do pens, lip balm, and tote bags have in common? They’re all items that you likely have in abundance, can afford, or have forgotten about after attending a conference.
At CBIE2023, Dr. David Suzuki gave an impassioned speech about the wastefulness in our society. A key takeaway from his speech is that we all have the opportunity to make a positive change. That’s why guard.me did something a little different at their booth this year. In lieu of handing out single-use disposable swag that you probably already have, guard.me set out to raise money for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. The goal was to invest in local resources and raise awareness about food insecurity rather than add to the clutter in our lives with promotional items.
guard.me provided an engaging, fun and relaxing space, where conference attendees could try their hand at putting – for a purpose. For every ball sunk, a monetary donation was made on the attendees’ behalf. To help attendees visualize the impact of the donations being made, their team laid out baskets of groceries that equalled the value of a common promotional item – a hat, a backpack, or a picnic blanket.
The results were spectacular! guard.me was able to raise a total of $3,252. This donation was matched by IDP, the conference title sponsor who shares guard.me’s commitment to the student experience. Together, this brought the total to over $6,000, which was topped-up by guard.me’s CEO, Keith Segal, for a grand total of $10,000. Combined with the Greater Vancouver Food Bank’s purchasing power, this three-day fundraising effort will help buy almost $20,000 of food for this important community resource.
guard.me and CBIE are delighted by the amount raised by this new initiative and look forward to replicating this success at events in the future.
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