Story submitted by Chime Financial.

Chime Financial has pledged 1% of its equity to fund the Chime Scholars Foundation (CSF). CSF has operated as a pilot program for one school year, and has already awarded more than 350 scholarships. Going into 2024, CSF plans on expanding the program by welcoming over 100 new scholars.

CSF awards annual renewable scholarships of up to $5,000 to kids pursuing education after high school, and is built to fund college and other post-secondary programs for those with a passion to pursue a brighter future through higher education. CSF scholarships are designed to lend a hand to ambitious, everyday people so they can pursue careers without the heavy debt burden facing so many graduates.

Learn more: https://www.chime.com/blog/scholarship-spotlight-chime-scholars-foundation/

This story was submitted by DocuSign

Our goal is to make a difference in the global communities where our employees and customers live and work.

At DocuSign, we believe in the power of giving back. Our commitment to positively impacting communities is not just a corporate goal; it’s a core part of our culture. We embody this commitment through our employee volunteer and corporate matching programs. This initiative is more than a corporate responsibility program; it’s a journey that empowers our employees, strengthens team connection, and makes a tangible difference in people’s lives.

The Heart of Our Program: Empowering Employees

A key focus of the DocuSign IMPACT programs is employee empowerment. We encourage volunteering by providing 24 hours of paid time off each year for employees to work alongside their favorite organizations. In addition, the DocuSign IMPACT Foundation offers a 100% match for employee donations to eligible nonprofit organizations. We recognize that our employees have diverse interests and causes they care deeply about; this approach allows DocuSign employees the freedom to support the areas and organizations they are most passionate about.

Global Impact Moments

Our commitment to impact extends throughout the entire year. In addition to the many events and opportunities that our IMPACT Team organizes, we see hundreds of volunteer events and giving opportunities organized by employees each year. In 2023 alone, DocuSign employees have collectively contributed more than 12,000 volunteer hours! Twice per year, DocuSign supercharges our IMPACT programs by organizing dedicated global initiatives such as Earth Month and Global IMPACT Week. During these global impact moments, thousands of employees come together, in-person and virtually, to drive positive impact and learn from each other and from our nonprofit partners.

Building a Community within Our Company

Volunteering together with our community partners has helped build a stronger, more connected DocuSign culture. Team volunteer days are not only a way to give back, but also an opportunity for team building. Employees often share that volunteering alongside their colleagues brings a sense of connection and deepens relationships within teams, offices, regions and ERGs (Employee Resource Group). DocuSign employees often share the immense pride they feel in working for a company that encourages and curates opportunities for them to contribute to, and connect with, their community.

Looking Ahead
At DocuSign, giving back is an integral part of who we are. By empowering our employees to give back in meaningful ways, we are not just contributing to the communities we serve but also fostering a culture of compassion and responsibility within our organization.

This story was submitted by SANS MATIN. 

At SANS MATIN we feel it is important to give back. That is why we donate 2% of all sales to charity. We partner with charities we feel resonate with us and align with our key values and brand ethos. Children Change Colombia (CCC). 

CCC is the largest UK charity working exclusively in Colombia, working with children and their families to challenge poverty, inequality, discrimination, and violence. We chose CCC after having spoken to many of our shoemakers in Medellin about the issues facing Colombia, particularly relating to the young population. Being a family business, this particularly resonated with us and our key values. The Amazon Conservation Team (ACT): Hand-in-hand with indigenous and other local people, ACT applies the power of innovation and time-tested traditional practices to protect the forests and watersheds of South America.

Over the last 25 years, ACT has expanded and created over 1.9 million acres of indigenous reserves. In that same time they have partnered with 78 local communities to work together to preserve and replant the Amazon Rainforest. An incredible charity that is doing so much to protect our natural world. The PolG Foundation: As a recently founded non-profit, The POLG Foundation’s mission is to support & accelerate research to find effective treatments & a cure for POLG-related mitochondrial disorders. This non-profit organisation is close to our hearts at SANS MATIN. The foundation was started after a family member of one of our Co-Founders was diagnosed with Mitochondrial disease in 2016.

We are delighted to support our three fantastic charitable partners and look forward to our continued work together!

This story was submitted by Solution Junkies

When Solution Junkies was founded 4 years ago, they knew they wanted to do business in a different way- by weaving giving back into the fabric of the company.

Solution Junkies is a Salesforce consultancy, focused on transforming businesses using the power of the Salesforce platform. The company slogan is ‘Projects for Purpose’, which represents a number of things about the way in which they operate.

Focusing consulting projects on business impact, delivering real transformational change for customers.
The ENABLE methodology- teaching customers to become Salesforce experts, empowering them instead of tying them in to long term development costs. Volunteering and giving back, including profit, employee time and supporting client’s causes as well as their own.

Part of the Projects for Purpose methodology, as well as their own volunteering efforts, includes co-volunteering with clients at the end of every implementation phase. Over the past year the team have got involved with a variety of activities including:

• A Night Walk for client Maggie’s Cancer Centres, walking 18km through London at night.


• 100 Miles for client RSPCA, with internal mile logging competitions.


• Volunteering providing support for the homeless at Ace of Clubs with client Zoopla.


• A team day restoring biodiversity at Nottingham Nature Reserve.


• Building new shelving as a team at Stepney City Farm.

In total, across 33 employees the team racked up an impressive 1200 volunteer hours in 12 short months. Here are their tips on how to achieve something similar:

• Build giving back into your company mission and vision.


• Share your ethos with your clients and donate hours to do something worthwhile with them, it’s a great relationship building activity and a chance to work on something you both value.


• Set targets for volunteering hours, monetary donations and suggestion sharing.


• Include volunteering objectives in annual reviews.


• Have fun, celebrate success and share pictures with each other.

Solution Junkies is proud to pledge their time and profit to supporting the communities around them, and will continue to grow their impact as the business grows over the coming year.

This story was submitted by Canva

Since the very beginning of Canva, we’ve been driven by the belief that it’s possible to build a valuable product while also having a lasting positive impact on the world. While plenty has happened over the last decade, our aspiration to do the most good we can remains unchanged. Everything we do contributes to our Two-Step Plan as a company: Step One – to become one of the world’s most valuable companies; and Step Two – to do the most good we can.

An important way we’re moving Step Two forward is by empowering nonprofits with access to our premium visual communication tools for free to amplify their impact and achieve their goals. We’re proud to share that our nonprofit community recently reached a very special milestone: 500,000 incredible organizations designing with Canva for Nonprofits.

Being a force for good
In 2019 we embodied our value ‘be a force for good’ and joined Pledge 1%, committing 1% of our time, profit, product, and equity to have a positive impact. As well as supporting nonprofits with our product, we do this day-to-day by donating our time through volunteering, donating funds through partnerships with organizations such as GiveDirectly, and empowering over 50 million teachers and students with free access to Canva.

Since launching Canva for Nonprofits, we’ve been constantly inspired by the positive impact our community has in every corner of the globe. Every day, we see changemakers, advocates, and leaders use Canva to create real change – and together, these nonprofit teams have created over 150 million designs!

Designs that make a difference
From workshops and design training sessions to social media webinars and resources such as marketing, sustainable development goals, or crisis toolkits, we’re proud to play a small role in the tremendous difference these organizations make.
For Andrea Lytle Peet, life was turned upside down following an ALS diagnosis – but she’s made it her mission to encourage others to appreciate the gift of life and help others facing ALS through the Team Drea Foundation.

Establishing the Foundation from scratch, and with 10 volunteers as staff, Canva has been an essential visual communication tool for Andrea and her team to grow awareness, spread their mission, and drive fundraising efforts. They’ve utilized Canva for Nonprofits to create social media posts that have driven record fundraising results, and have easily developed videos in Canva’s video editor without needing specialized capabilities. To date, Andrea and her team have raised more than $750,000 USD for ALS research.

Forever Projects is on a mission to help women in Tanzania break the cycle of poverty and create a self-sustaining future. It does this through locally-led change: by partnering with local teams on the ground in Tanzania to empower women to build strong, connected families and live with dignity and hope. Like most nonprofits, Forever Projects relies on the generosity of donors to continue operating.

Visual communication is helping Forever Projects build awareness and connect with more donors than ever before. Founder Mark Dombkins and his team are creating visually engaging content to scale their mission, secure critical funding, and keep fundraising partners and donors informed about the impact they’re having – think presentations, videos, funding proposals, and thank-you cards.

Designing a better world, together
We’re humbled and inspired by the profound impact the 500,000 nonprofits in the Canva community are having.

We truly believe communication and design are critical when taking action on solving the most pressing issues of our time, so we’re proud to host hundreds of resources and templates for nonprofits in our content library to help design real change. As we celebrate this milestone with our nonprofit community, we’re excited about the next 500,000 and many more to come.

Find out more about Canva for Nonprofits today.

This story was submitted by Cobra

At Cobra, we devote 1% of our working time to local initiatives with Pledge 1%. We do this together with Stichting Present Zwolle (Present Foundation). Present builds a bridge between people and companies who voluntarily want to give help and those who can use help. This is how Present builds a society that cares.

The foundation believes that you can often make a world of difference to someone in just one working day. In that one day, something really gets off the ground. You provide just that one push to get someone out of the house, back among people. Or you help to make their house livable, visitors can be received again without shame. Or you help them forget their current situation by taking them on a nice activity. Small action, big difference.

Bingo afternoon & go-karting
At Cobra, we look for meaningful activities, such as a bingo afternoon with the elderly or restoring a neglected garden for someone in need. In March 2023, we visited a shelter for immigrants near Zwolle. We were given a tour and heard the most harrowing stories of people there who had fled life-threatening situations. For example, we heard the story of a refugee who once ended up in the Netherlands. He told about the difficult period he had in the first few months, due to the lack of proper psychological help and shelter. He fought his way through that difficult period, started a furniture factory run entirely by refugees and made a documentary of his inspiring story.

After this impressive tour, we went go-karting with the children at the shelter. There they had the time of their lives and didn’t have to think about their lives as refugees for a while. A humbling and rewarding afternoon. By joining forces, together we can contribute something positive to the community. Think of it as a kind of team activity, but just a little different!

Watch the video in which our colleague Ruben Schuring tells you more about Stichting Present and why we participate in this great initiative.

This story was submitted by Discourse Agency

Never underestimate the possibilities with a group of committed individuals working towards a common goal. The team at Discourse Agency is bringing an ethical voice to ESG (Environment, Social and Governance). This small yet mighty team has been leading the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) conversation for decades.

Our Profit-for-Purpose pledge is giving in action as Corporate Social Responsibility is top of mind for everyone who is affiliated with Discourse Agency. The team has a history of community service, regularly donating time and money towards causes that matter.

PrivilegeWalk.ca is the first ed-tech innovation coming out of Discourse Agency.

STEPS to Complete:

The VPW can be found at PrivilegeWalk.ca

1) Please complete the walk at the link above. You are walking with actual past participants of this walk through the power of technology.

2) Once completed, enter an email to reveal a “Download” button.

3) Click the “Download” button and the report will be generated and downloaded to the device used (it is mobile and desktop responsive).

4) Read through the report to get perspectives and insights as to how Privilege can show up in society and the intersectionality of the topic.

We believe in the power of community and honoured to join the esteemed companies participating in the Pledge 1% initiative! As leaders in social innovation we kindly ask all leaders continue to be the change!! We are proud to be in such wonderful company, onward and upwards .

This story was submitted by rready AG

In a world where corporate social responsibility often feels like an abstract concept, at rready, we’ve turned words into actions, following one of our core beliefs ‘no bla just do’ Our journey began with a distinctive initiative blending cultural enrichment and the 1% concept, emphasizing our commitment to making a meaningful difference.

At the core of this initiative lies a simple yet powerful idea: dedicating one hour each month to sharing our passions beyond the confines of our workspaces. In these sessions, team members take the stage to discuss personal passion projects, hobbies, and initiatives, fostering a sense of connection and purpose.

During one such session, Daniela, a member of our Marketing team, seized the opportunity to spotlight a transformative project her and three others had undertaken—a community dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship in Namibia, a country grappling with significant business challenges. Named “It Takes a Village,” their project echoes the African proverb that emphasizes the collective effort required to nurture both a child and a business.

As dedicated volunteers, Daniela and her team have partnered with a local event space, offering crucial support and guidance to young founders and startups in Namibia. Their bi-monthly events feature knowledge-sharing sessions, insightful discussions, and speakers with invaluable experiences. It’s a project fueled by dedication and a profound desire to instigate positive change in their community.

Daniela’s passionate presentation resonated deeply with all of us at rready. Inspired by her commitment and the remarkable work unfolding in Namibia, we decided to take action as part of our 1% Pledge. Recognizing the potential of our monthly sharing sessions as a platform for more than personal stories, we transformed them into a source of support for initiatives like “It Takes a Village.”

In the true spirit of the 1% Pledge initiative, every employee contributed to fundraising based on their comfort levels. Going a step further, the company matched these donations, demonstrating our unwavering support for our employees’ causes. Additionally, we provided valuable resources, such as sets of books on the Kickbox method—an innovative approach to boosting entrepreneurial skills. In the end, the total amount donated by rready constituted about 1% of our Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR).

These funds and materials will significantly impact the initiative, considering that “It Takes a Village” operates entirely through voluntary efforts and offers its services free of charge. The resources will support the organization in hosting events, creating marketing materials, and conducting workshops to empower young entrepreneurs in Namibia.

This story was submitted by XCC – eXperience Cloud Consulting.it

Throughout 2023, volunteers from XCC – eXperience Cloud Consulting dedicated a total of 36 hours to support various community initiatives. The confirmed partnership with Pledge 1% underscores XCC’s commitment to giving back. <<It’s important – confirms Giuseppe Catapano, COO & Co-founder of XCC-, to actively participate in this corporate social responsibility by returning the commitment it deserves to the community. A voluntary dedication to social and cultural activities that can only enrich>>.

XCC volunteers actively participated in various charitable activities, ranging from collecting essential supplies to engaging in environmental projects. Moreover, in between work projects, our XCC volunteers spent quality time with children in foster homes, played cards with the elderly, painted fences, tended gardens, and taught basic computer skills to mothers ready for social reintegration or individuals with Down syndrome.

Not Just a Number

The 36 hours of volunteering are more than just a number; they represent the dedication and passion of the volunteers in making a positive impact. XCC doesn’t relegate volunteering to the sidelines but integrates it into the core of its corporate identity, demonstrating how it can contribute to creating an engaging and socially responsible company.

XCC has five work locations in Rome, Milan, Naples, Potenza and Turin, with employees located throughout the national territory. The company strongly promotes the importance of volunteering as an effective key to addressing social challenges and building a better future for all of us.

XCC firmly believes that corporate volunteering not only fosters volunteer loyalty but also enhances their personal well-being and that of others. The approach goes beyond work obligations, transforming charitable actions into a source of personal satisfaction. Volunteers, once introduced to this philosophy, enthusiastically return to dedicate their time to volunteering initiatives with various non-profit organizations. In the end, XCC definitely believes that the power of volunteering can shape a future where solidarity and sharing become fundamental pillars of society.