WE Charity

What WE Charity does

WE Charity is a Canadian-registered nonprofit organization, founded in 1995 by Craig and Marc Kielburger as Free The Children and rebranded under the unified "WE Movement" brand in 2015. The organization operates a dual platform combining domestic youth-empowerment programming with international development: WE Schools delivers free service-learning curriculum and the WE Virtual Learning Center to schools in Canada, the US, and the UK; WE Villages runs a five-pillar international development model (education, water, food, health, and economic empowerment) in Kenya, Ecuador, and India; and WE Day is a stadium-scale youth-activation event series featuring celebrity speakers and earned through community-service campaigns.

The organization is structurally interlocked with ME to WE, a legally separate but mission-aligned social enterprise that sells artisan jewelry, Fairtrade consumables, apparel, and volunteer-travel experiences through its own e-commerce storefront, retail partnerships (Fossil, Davidstea, Nordstrom, Call It Spring, Staples, Walgreens), and travel operators (The Travel Corporation, Uniworld, Audley Travel, Scott Dunn). ME to WE donates over 90% of net profits back to WE Charity, and the Track Your Impact system attaches unique product codes to specific development outcomes (e.g., clean water provision in partner communities). Technology footprint otherwise centers on the WE.org marketing site, the weschools.we.org learning portal, and Skype-based virtual event delivery via Microsoft.

Revenue mechanics combine individual, corporate, and foundation donations; ME to WE retail and travel revenue; and ad hoc government grants. WE Charity reports approximately 90% of donations flowing directly to charitable programming and 18,000 schools plus 1.5 million youth engaged through WE Schools/WE Day. The Canadian entity announced a wind-down and endowment in September 2020 following the controversy around the terminated $543 million Canada Student Service Grant, while international operations and ME to WE continue operating from headquarters in Toronto.

Name

WE Charity

Legal name

WE Charity

Website

https://we.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

WE Charity is a Canadian nonprofit that runs free service-learning programs (WE Schools) across 18,000 schools in North America and the UK and a five-pillar international development model (WE Villages) in Kenya, Ecuador, and India, sustained by donations and profits from its affiliated ME to WE social enterprise.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Youth Education and International Development Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219), Civic and Social Organizations (8134), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

After-School, Tutoring & Academic Enrichment Nonprofits (BPAGADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

International & Local Implementing NGOs (HLAJAKAD), NGO/Nonprofit Education Programs & Service Delivery (EDADALAC), International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH)

Keywords

• Youth service learning
• International development programs
• Charity social enterprise
• Education curriculum resources
• Community development initiatives

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: WE Charity receives donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations. The organization maintains high financial efficiency with approximately 90% of donations going directly to charitable programs.
2. ME to WE Social Enterprise Revenue: ME to WE generates revenue through sale of artisan products, Fairtrade consumables, apparel, and immersive volunteer travel experiences. By mandate, a minimum of 50% of net profits are donated to WE Charity, with the balance reinvested for sustainability.
3. Government Grants: WE Charity has received government funding including the controversial $543 million Canada Student Service Grant (CSSG) program, which was subsequently terminated amid controversy.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

WE Charity operates free youth service-learning programs (WE Schools, WE Teachers, WE Virtual Learning Center, WE Day events) across Canada, US, and UK, alongside a five-pillar international development model (WE Villages) in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The organization is sustained by donations, government grants, and profits from ME to WE, a B Corp-certified social enterprise that sells artisan products, apparel, and volunteer travel experiences with a minimum 50% of profits directed back to the charity.

Product overview

WE Charity operates a multi-product platform comprising domestic youth empowerment programs (WE Schools, WE Teachers, WE Virtual Learning Center) and international development initiatives (WE Villages). The organization also includes WE Day events as celebration platforms for youth service. Supporting the charity is ME to WE, a B Corp-certified social enterprise selling artisan products and experiential travel packages, with its Track Your Impact technology enabling donor transparency. WE Charity's model focuses on service-learning education in North America and the UK while implementing sustainable community development internationally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WE Schools: Service-learning programs that engage students in youth-led volunteerism to help their communities, operating in Canada, US, and UK.
• WE Villages
• WE Day
• ME to WE
• WE Virtual Learning Center

Products and services

• WE Schools Free service-learning program for educators and students in Canada, US, and UK that engages youth in volunteerism to help their communities through curricular and extra-curricular resources.
• WE Villages Holistic five-pillar international development model implemented in Africa, Asia, and Latin America that partners with communities to achieve sustainable change through education, clean water, food security, health, and economic opportunity.
• WE Day Stadium-sized youth empowerment events held globally that celebrate students who have taken action on social causes, featuring celebrity speakers and performers; tickets are earned through community service.
• WE Teachers Program providing free professional development and resources rooted in trauma-informed practice for educators to support students through service learning.
• WE Virtual Learning Center Free resource library for teachers including lesson plans, professional development tools, and curriculum resources focused on service-learning, trauma-informed practice, and well-being.
• ME to WE Social enterprise that creates socially conscious products and experiences (artisan goods, apparel, volunteer trips, summer camps, leadership programs) to support WE Charity, donating a minimum of 50% of profits to the charity.
• ME to WE Trips Immersive volunteer travel experiences to WE Charity international development projects in Kenya, Ecuador, and India, offering cultural immersion, development education, and leadership training.
• ME to WE Artisans Fair trade jewelry and accessory products handmade by women in Kenya and Ecuador, providing sustainable income and financial literacy training to support families.
• WE College WE Charity's first post-secondary institution located in Kenya's Maasai Mara region, providing scholarships for rural Kenyan students to train in tourism, nursing, clinical medicine, and entrepreneurial agriculture.

Quantifiable outcome

• Since 2007, youth involved in WE Day and WE Schools have raised $62 million for 2,500+ organizations, volunteered 19.9 million hours, and collected 7.6 million pounds of food
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

26 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Travel Corporation / TreadRight FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2019Global partnership announced on World Tourism Day 2016 to support sustainable travel experiences. The Travel Corporation's family of brands works with ME to WE to offer voluntourism opportunities integrated into cruise itineraries, including partnerships with Uniworld for Ganges River cruises.
• VHCAminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 5 June 2019ME to WE Coffee partnership with VHCA (possibly Vancouver Humane Society or similar) creating coffee products that change lives through charitable giving.
• AugeominorGTM or Marketing Partner · 26 March 2019Partnership formed in March 2019 connecting Augeo's membership programs with ME to WE's social impact products and experiences.
• Friendship SocksminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 November 2017First-ever sock collaboration announced in November 2017, creating products that support WE Charity initiatives.
• Rick Hansen FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 November 2017Partnership advocating for accessibility across Canada, combining WE Charity's youth engagement with Rick Hansen's accessibility mission.
• Winnie HarlowminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 5 April 2017Model and activist Winnie Harlow teamed up with ME to WE for the launch of a semi-precious jewelry collection supporting women's empowerment.
• The Travel CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 September 2016Partnership connecting The Travel Corporation's tourism brands with ME to WE's volunteer travel experiences, enabling passengers to participate in development projects during cruises and tours.
• FossilminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 3 March 2016Collaboration to empower women through a jewelry collection, with proceeds supporting women's empowerment programs in developing communities.
• DavidsteaminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 16 February 2016Partnership to launch a product line benefiting clean water initiatives in Kenya, with Davidstea creating specialty tea products whose proceeds support WE Charity water projects.
• Staples and ACCO BrandsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 11 August 2015Back-to-school partnership offering products that give back, with Staples and ACCO creating school supplies supporting WE Charity programs.
• College BoardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint effort to incorporate service learning into all AP courses in the United States, creating AP with WE Service program.
• MicrosoftcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership using Microsoft technology (including Skype) to enable WE Day Connect, bringing WE Day experiences to classrooms globally through virtual programming.
• RBC and City National BankminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership to empower young Americans to take control of their financial futures through WE Charity's youth programming.
• Hudson's Bay Co.minorGTM or Marketing PartnerSupport for WE Well-being initiative focusing on student and teacher mental health and self-care.
• Erika Legacy FoundationminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSuicide prevention charity supporting WE Well-being initiative for emotional wellness in schools.
• Lipton / UnilevercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership empowering 80,000 small-scale tea farmers in Kenya's Kericho County with financial literacy and entrepreneurship training. Unilever has worked with Kenyan tea growers since 1924.
• Call It SpringminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRetail partnership launching Rafiki bracelet collection to fundraise for school supplies and build classrooms in Kenya.
• FreshiiminorGTM or Marketing PartnerInitiative to build school kitchens and vegetable gardens in developing communities overseas.
• WestJetminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership enabling passionate world-changers from remote communities to attend WE Days for the first time.
• Ford of CanadaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership helping youth across Canada drive positive change through WE Create Change program.
• SiemensminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWEInnovate national contest celebrating creative social innovation among young Canadian problem solvers.
• HRH The Prince of Wales / Prince's Charities CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership creating Royal Awards celebrating young Canadian change-makers, and support for WE movement initiatives including WE Day.
• UniworldminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership offering wellness cruises on India's Ganges River with ME to WE experiences integrated, allowing guests to meet local farmers and work on development projects.
• Audley TravelminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner tour operator offering sustainable travel experiences with ME to WE components.
• Scott DunnminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner tour operator offering ME to WE sustainable travel experiences.
• River Cruise CompanyminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership allowing cruise passengers to book ME to WE four-day volunteer experiences as part of 13-night Golden Triangle and Sacred Ganges cruise itineraries.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• TOMS: One-for-one social enterprise selling consumer products to fund charitable outcomes, structurally analogous to ME to WE's retail-funded donation model though operating in different cause verticals.
• Ashoka: Network supporting young changemakers and social entrepreneurs worldwide, comparable to WE Charity's youth-leadership development mission and WE Day-style recognition of young activists.

Broad incumbents

• Save the Children: Established international NGO operating child education, health, and poverty programs across WE Charity's same geographies, with broader scope and a much larger fundraising footprint.
• UNICEF: Large incumbent global child-welfare and education organization with overlapping international development and youth programs, providing a scaled benchmark against which WE Charity's WE Villages competes for funding and partnerships.

Direct peers

• charity: water: Nonprofit focused on clean water access in developing countries with strong donor transparency and storytelling, directly comparable to WE Charity's water pillar and Track Your Impact transparency narrative.
• Room to Read: International education nonprofit operating literacy and girls' education programs across Africa and Asia, comparable to WE Charity's WE Villages education pillar and Kisaruni/Baraka-style community institutions.
• DoSomething.org: Youth-activation nonprofit driving social action campaigns among young people, highly comparable to WE Schools and the earned-ticket WE Day youth engagement mechanic.
• Pencils of Promise: Education-focused nonprofit that builds schools and trains teachers in developing countries while engaging youth supporters domestically, mirroring WE Charity's education-pillar emphasis and volunteer-driven fundraising.
• buildOn: Global nonprofit that combines domestic youth service programs with international school-building in developing countries—a near-identical dual-domestic/international service-learning model to WE Charity's WE Schools / WE Villages approach.

Others

• Free The Children / WE Charity Foundation: Historical predecessor brand of WE Charity itself; included only as a legacy reference since the two entities are no longer distinct.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wemovement
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/75005

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WE Charity