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Pilot project aims to improve well-being of children and youth in Waterloo Region
Publication Date: 2019/04/17
WATERLOO, 17 April 2019 – Recognizing the need to invest in programs designed by and for local youth, Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation (KWCF), Overlap Associates and UNICEF Canada’s One Youth are launching the Waterloo Region One Youth Fund.
KWCF will manage a grant stream that will direct money from the fund to charitable partners across Waterloo Region that support child and youth well-being.
The fund has $10,000 in seed money -- $5,000 donated by Kitchener-based design firm Overlap Associates, with an additional $5,000 provided by KWCF. Individuals and businesses committed to improving the lives of local children and youth are encouraged to donate to the fund. Donations, which are tax-deductible, are accepted at www.kwcf.ca/wroneyouth.
UNICEF Canada’s One Youth program, a 12-year initiative to make Canada the best place to grow up, will also receive some of the grants from the fund.
“Overlap is committed to improving the futures of children in Canada and abroad,” explained Brock Hart, CEO, Overlap Associates. “This fund will support local organizations while also being part of a national initiative led by UNICEF Canada. The goal of this fund is to keep providing support to children here in the Waterloo Region and to begin helping children in other communities across Canada. When we’re successful as a community, it’s important to find ways to support other communities. As UNICEF Canada’s design partner since the initial launch of the One Youth initiative, we’ve seen their capacity to work for children around the world and here in Canada. We believe in their innovative approach to engage young people and help them advocate for change.”
“We are thrilled that Overlap Associates, with the support of UNICEF Canada, is establishing this fund to support healthy children and youth well-being in Waterloo Region,” said Elizabeth Heald, President and CEO, Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation. “This new fund aligns with one of the three focus areas identified through Wellbeing Waterloo Region. We are pleased to be able to match Overlap Associates’ donation by providing an additional $5,000 to the Waterloo Region One Youth Fund to financially strengthen this innovative initiative.”
“Partnering with a local business and Community Foundation to support our One Youth objectives will have profound impact on children and youth in Waterloo region and serve as a prototype for communities across Canada,” stated Lisa Wolff, Director of Policy & Research at UNICEF Canada. “We look forward to being part of efforts that improve the well-being of young people.”
Those interested in learning more about the fund or donating can visit www.kwcf.ca/wroneyouth. For more information about UNICEF Canada’s One Youth, visit www.oneyouthcanada.ca.
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About Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation (KWCF) enables people, companies and organizations to do more good by making it easy for fundholders to give and for charities to receive money. When you make a donation to KWCF, they invest that gift into a permanent endowment fund which generates income that is then distributed through grants to support a wide range of charitable causes within our community. As a leading community-building organization in Waterloo Region, KWCF is focused on collaborating with partners to identify and meet current and future needs of our community, by enabling social capital and developing creative forward-thinking innovative solutions for place-based philanthropy. www.kwcf.ca
About Overlap Associates Overlap is a global design firm using human-centred design, strategy, and research to help organizations make headway on the problems that matter most to them. We conduct qualitative research for—and with—our clients to draw out insights, generate relevant ideas, and road-test practical solutions. Every day, we co-design solutions with the people who know their problems best. Overlap primarily works in the nonprofit sector, which includes government, hospitals and healthcare, libraries and culture, social good organizations and foundations, and education. www.overlapassociates.com
About UNICEF Canada’s One Youth From 25th to 1st place, UNICEF Canada’s One Youth is working to make Canada the best place in the world to grow up. As the global UN agency for kids, UNICEF has worked to improve conditions for every child around the world for more than 70 years, and has saved more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization. UNICEF Canada’s One Youth brings that work to Canada, by building the new gold standard for measuring child well-being, and developing and testing innovative solutions to the challenges they face. We are calling on Canadians to take action and do better for children and youth. UNICEF is supported entirely by voluntary donations. For more information about UNICEF Canada’s One Youth, please visit www.oneyouthcanada.ca. For updates, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
For more information contact: Lynne Short Vice President, Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation 519-725-1806 ext. 204 lynne@kwcf.ca
About UNICEF
UNICEF is the world’s leading humanitarian organization focused on children. We work in the most challenging areas to provide protection, healthcare and immunizations, education, safe water and sanitation and nutrition. As part of the United Nations, our unrivaled reach spans more than 190 countries and territories, ensuring we are on the ground to help the most disadvantaged children. While part of the UN system, UNICEF relies entirely on voluntary donations to finance our life-saving work. Please visit unicef.ca and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.