CHIME FOR CHANGE Campaign, Founded By Gucci, Funds 210 Projects In 81 Countries For Girls' And Women's Empowerment

NEW YORK, July 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- CHIME FOR CHANGE, the global campaign for girls' and women's empowerment founded by Gucci, is pleased to announce that THE SOUND OF CHANGE LIVE concert event has helped raise funds to support 210 projects for girls and women across the globe.  After VAT, the concert raised $3.9M USD to support projects in the three key focus areas of the CHIME FOR CHANGE campaign: Education, Health and Justice.

The CHIME FOR CHANGE campaign, launched in February 2013, presented its first major fundraising event, THE SOUND OF CHANGE LIVE, a global concert held on 1 June at London's Twickenham Stadium.  The concert brought together some of the world's most talented artists and renowned activists to raise funds and awareness for girls and women. Headlined by CHIME FOR CHANGE co-founder Beyonce, the concert raised funds through ticket sales, mobile giving and online donations. Through Gucci's underwriting of the concert event, each of the 50,000 concertgoers was able to donate the full value of their ticket price (less VAT and service fees) to projects of their choice.

Donations were allocated to 84 different non-profit partners through Catapult, the first crowdfunding platform dedicated to advancing the lives of girls and women.  CHIME FOR CHANGE selected Catapult as a strategic partner to ensure transparency, accountability and measurable impact, by allowing the CHIME FOR CHANGE community to choose exactly where their donations go and to track the results of their contributions.

"Gucci has a long history of supporting girls and women, and we know that the solutions exist all around us. There are hundreds of credible, dedicated organizations around the world actively supporting the advancement of girls and women," said CHIME FOR CHANGE Founder and Gucci Creative Director Frida Giannini. "My vision for CHIME FOR CHANGE was to facilitate further awareness and fundraising by bringing together a global community to support the important work that is already happening.  This is the first time in history that CHARITY concertgoers have been able to choose where their money goes."

THE SOUND OF CHANGE LIVE concert was broadcast in more than 150 countries globally reaching an audience of one billion viewers, enabling people from around the world to support real change for girls and women.

"The partnership between CHIME FOR CHANGE and Catapult channeled the generosity and enthusiasm of a massive global audience," said Catapult Founder Maz Kessler. "By using the collective power of the crowd, CHIME and Catapult together tap into an increasingly solutions-oriented culture, enabling people to engage directly and transparently with those working on the frontlines for girls' and women's education, health and justice."

Projects funded through CHIME FOR CHANGE have supported a diverse range of non-profits, from well-known global organizations to small, grassroots NGOs. Project amounts ranged from $695 to $57,750.  Examples of fully funded projects include:

• $25,150 to help Syrian refugees access healthcare through Doctors of the World
• $50,020 to showcase the stories of sex trafficking survivors through Equality Now
• $15,005 to send 30 girls in Houston to Camp SMART through Girls Inc.
• $57,750 to build the first floor of Humaira Bachal's Dream Model street school in Pakistan – further supported by a matching grant from Madonna's Ray of Light Foundation to complete the school building

Donors not only have the unprecedented chance to choose exactly where their money goes, but can also regularly monitor the impact of their contributions.  Partner non-profits submit reports to donors via Catapult at regular intervals, describing how each project is improving the lives of girls and women. In this way, CHIME FOR CHANGE is leveraging the power of technology to keep its community engaged and inspired.

"The Gates Foundation believes strongly in the power of innovation to drive change," said Kate James, Chief Communications Officer at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. "We were enthusiastic to partner with CHIME FOR CHANGE because of the campaign's unique ability to bring women's and girl's issues to a global audience, and through Catapult give donors direct access to the real people and work being done on the ground."

Over the course of the next year, CHIME FOR CHANGE will continue to convene, unite and strengthen the voices speaking out for girls and women around the world through special events, new partnerships and the ongoing creation and dissemination of unique journalistic and film content, especially through its digital and social media platforms. In June 2014, CHIME FOR CHANGE will celebrate the global impact of its community's engagement with an event that will highlight the progress of the first year of the campaign. 

"It's so important to drive awareness to the issues surrounding girls' and women's empowerment," said Carolyn Everson, VP of Global Marketing Solutions at Facebook. "Facebook is an ideal platform to support Chime for Change, with over 1.1B people discovering what matters most to them, including these issues that touch our lives and are critical to the future of women globally."

CHIME FOR CHANGE comes at a historic and pivotal moment for girls and women globally, as the world's attention is drawn to international stories ranging from the fight for girls' education in Pakistan to headlines of violence against women in all corners of the world.  The campaign brings together a coalition of organizations and individuals to effect meaningful change for girls and women worldwide. In addition to Catapult, the campaign's strategic partners include the Kering Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Facebook and Hearst Magazines.

The Advisory Board of CHIME FOR CHANGE includes Hafsat Abiola, Muna AbuSulayman, Valerie Amos, Jimmie Briggs, Gordon and Sarah Brown, Lydia Cacho, David Carey, Joanne Crewes, Minh Dang, Juliet de Baubigny, Waris Dirie, Helene Gayle, Yasmeen Hassan, Arianna Huffington, Musimbi Kanyoro, Alicia Keys, Yang Lan, John Legend, Madonna, Pat Mitchell, Alyse Nelson, Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, Francois-Henri Pinault, Julia Roberts, Jill Sheffield, Alison Smale, Jada Pinkett Smith, Caryl Stern, Meryl Streep, the Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Mpho Tutu, and Monique Villa.

To stay informed, please visit www.chimeforchange.org and join our community on Facebook at www.facebook.com/chimeforchange.

To learn more about the Catapult crowdfunding platform, please visit http://www.catapult.org/.

For information about the CHIME FOR CHANGE campaign please contact:

CHIME FOR CHANGE Founding Committee
Frida Giannini, Beyonce Knowles-Carter and Salma Hayek Pinault.

The full line-up of artists and performers at THE SOUND OF CHANGE LIVE included:
Aishwarya Rai * Abhishek Bachchan * Archbishop Desmond Tutu * Beyonce * Blake Lively * Ellie Goulding * Florence + the Machine * Freida Pinto * Frida Giannini * Gloria Steinem * HAIM * Humaira Bachal * Iggy Azalea * Jada Pinkett Smith * James Franco * Jay-Z * Jennifer Lopez * Jessica Chastain * John Legend * Laura Pausini * Leymah Gbowee * Madonna * Mary J Blige * Mpho Tutu * Rita Ora * Ryan Reynolds * Salma Hayek Pinault * Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy * Simon Le Bon * Timbaland * Zoe Saldana *

GUCCI
Founded in Florence in 1921, Gucci is one of the world's leading luxury fashion brands. Alongside the values of quality, creativity and Italian artisanal craftsmanship, for which the brand is renowned, Gucci also believes in the importance of a responsible attitude towards people, the environment and the communities in which it operates. Corporate citizenship is a fundamental part of the mission and operating philosophy of the company. For more information about Gucci, please visit www.gucci.com

The Kering Foundation
The Kering Corporate Foundation combats violence against women and promotes their empowerment. Launched in January 2009, the Foundation supports community-based projects and encourages employee involvement to sustain women's causes around the world. Through four programmes, it supports local and international NGOs as well as social entrepreneurs, helps raise awareness and establishes joint projects with the Kering brands. In 2012, more than 80,000 women benefited from its support in 16 countries. www.keringfoundation.org @KeringForWomen

Facebook
Founded in 2004, Facebook's mission is to make the world more open and connected. People use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what's going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them.

Catapult
Catapult is the first crowd-funding platform solely dedicated to advancing the lives of girls and women around the world. Catapult connects trusted organizations with a new global audience to increase funds and engagement. Organizations can post projects online, and donors can browse and fund the issues that speak to them most. Every dollar donated goes to the organization and donors receive reports about the project's progress. Catapult beta-launched on October 11, 2012, with the support of notable partners, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Global Fund for Women and the United Nations Population Fund.For more information go to www.catapult.org, and follow Catapult on Twitter: @wecatapult and Facebook at facebook.com/catapult.org. Catapult is a project of WOMEN DELIVER, a 501c(3) organization. Invest in girls and women. It pays!

Hearst Magazines
Hearst Magazines is a unit of Hearst Corporation, one of the nation's largest diversified communications companies. Hearst Magazines is the largest publisher of monthly magazines in the U.S. (ABC 2012), reaching 83 million adults (Fall 2012 MRI) with its 20 titles. In addition the company published more than 300 editions around the world. Hearst Magazines Digital Media, dedicated to creating and implementing Hearst Magazines' digital strategy, has more than 28 websites and 14 mobiles sites for brands such as Cosmopolitan, Popular Mechanics, ELLE, ELLE DECOR, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Marie Claire and Seventeen, as well as digital only sites such as Delish.com, a food site in partnership with MSN; MisQuinceMag.com; and RealBeauty.com. Hearst Magazines has published more than 150 apps and digital editions. In addition, the company includes iCrossing, a global digital marketing agency.

SOURCE Gucci