We Day: The evolution of a movement

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/10/2014 (4189 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Seven years ago, before We Day became a global movement filling 14 stadiums in three countries, we stood together on a stage in front of an empty room, worried whether the first one would succeed. It was the eve of our first We Day in Toronto and we’d rarely been as nervous.

We had thousands of online registrations from students, but no guarantee they would come. The event was free, but to “earn” their ticket each participant was asked to perform an act of service for one local and one global cause of their choosing. Was this price of admission too high? There were no “real” celebrities attending — just some motivational speakers and local bands. And sure, celebrating the potential of young people to change the world sounded very cool to us — but the biggest group we’d ever assembled who shared that opinion was about 800. We had room in Toronto’s Ricoh Coliseum for 8,000. Gulp.

We had, however, unwittingly tapped into an idea young people had been waiting for.

The next day, we filled every seat. At the last minute, a local executive from CTV made We Day into a live, televised event. The exuberant young crowd cheered as loudly for the speeches as it did for the bands. Many young people told us before We Day they’d felt alone in their concern for social and environmental issues. But in a room with thousands of their peers who shared the same passion, they were part of a movement. And that movement has grown every year since.

We Day is now the coolest classroom in the world.

In 2009, we doubled our Toronto audience to 16,000 and added a second We Day in Vancouver. In 2010, we went to Montreal, and the next year Winnipeg became our fourth host city. In 2013, the first U.S. We Day was held in Seattle, and this spring we crossed the ocean to London, England.

The We Day stage has seen Nobel laureates, global leaders and some of the most beloved celebrities, athletes and musicians of our time.

This “Me to We” generation is committed to making change in their communities and world — on global issues like poverty and human rights, and local problems like homelessness, bullying and the challenges faced in aboriginal communities.

That’s why We Day is much more than just a one-day event. The year-long We Act program provides educational resources and campaigns to help students turn the day’s inspiration into sustained action.

So far through We Act, 2.3 million students from more than 7,500 schools have raised $45 million for more than 1,000 local and global causes. They’ve volunteered 14.6 million hours, collected 5.6 million pounds of food and logged 8.9 million hours of silence to draw attention to the plight of exploited children overseas.

And that’s just the beginning of this generation’s lifetime of compassionate action. A study of We Day alumni by Chicago-based Mission Measurement found 80 per cent continue their volunteering, giving on average 150 hours a year; 83 per cent donate to non-profits or charities; and 79 per cent of voting-age alumni voted in the most recent federal election — double the rate of their peers.

We Day has an impact on our classrooms, too. Eighty per cent of teachers who attended We Day felt a renewed sense of purpose as educators; 90 per cent felt better-equipped to teach about social issues; and 84 per cent found a greater atmosphere of caring and compassion in their schools.

So today, as 16,000 students from more than 450 schools across the province raise the roof of the MTS Centre — thanks to the remarkable support of the Manitoba government and business community, and the extraordinary We Day co-chairs Hartley Richardson, Mark Chipman and Bob Silver — they’ll know they’re part of a worldwide movement.

And when Manitoba sees its sons and daughters volunteering and fundraising to make their communities stronger, you’ll know it’s something you can get used to.

Last March, at We Day U.K., in England’s Wembley Arena, Prince Harry took the stage and said, “Some people don’t think it’s cool to help others. Personally, I think it’s the coolest thing in the world.” Twelve thousand young Brits cheered in agreement — so loudly we thought our eardrums would burst.

The butterflies we feel before We Day aren’t nerves any more. They’re excitement. The movement is here to stay.

 

Marc and Craig Kielburger are children’s rights activists and founders of the Free the Children charity.