Ever since the 24Slides Global Challenge, we’ve been thinking about how to make more activities with an even wider reach. The Global Challenge was a fantastic opportunity to connect with our colleagues, exercise our willpower, and above all, support an amazing cause that would create a positive impact in the world. So how does it get any better than that?
Enter #The24Walk! Just like the Global Challenge, this was a walkathon meant to collect funds, this time for a children’s school in Nusa Penida, Indonesia. The catch? It was just one intense day of high effort.
However, we were not alone. This time, to maximize the impact, #the24Walk was an open invitation to anyone who wanted to join and support a good cause. And boy, did they deliver!
Our goal
We joined the Bali Children Foundation to raise funds for 159 school children. In Nusa Penida, Indonesia, Covid-19 has severely impacted education, especially for kids in primary grades, where they should be developing their foundational skills.
“I believe that education is the key to solving many of the biggest challenges long term, but how do we do that in a clever way? I learned a lot from Margaret, who founded Bali Children Foundation 20 years ago. They have helped educated thousands of children in Bali and are continuing this in nearby Islands” – Tobias, Founder and CEO of 24Slides.
#The24Walk consisted of one single day of intense work where participants would walk 10 km. For each employee joining, 24Slides donated 10USD on their behalf. Many of them even went the extra mile and added extra funds on their own. This translated into an amazing collective effort that would support these children’s education and positively impact building their future.
For 24Sliders, this was a great way to show that we don’t only talk the talk but walk the walk (literally) too!
#The24Walk
For the duration of six weeks, we blasted our social media with #The24Walk. We decided to open the invitation to join this activity to our families, network, and customers. By inviting others to join, we were able to extend the campaign’s reach, and it allowed us to raise way more funds than we could’ve ever done on our own.
Finally, during the weekend of March 25th, we strapped on our sneakers and got walking! Our walkathon was not only a great cause but also an excellent opportunity to connect with our colleagues. Since Covid-19, feeling connected with our coworkers has been a challenge we’ve had to face every day. Activities like this not only help us get together but also feel that we’re part of something bigger than ourselves.
“It was an absolutely brand new experience for me, who has never participated in a charity program like this. Awesome!”, said one of the 24Slides team members.
In three of our offices, Denmark, Peru, and Indonesia, our coworkers got together to spend some time walking. But even more, it was incredibly empowering to see how many people joined this initiative and accompanied us with the hashtag #The24Walk. By the end of the weekend, it was astounding to see how much of a global reach the hashtag had achieved, as well as the number of donations it had helped us raise.
Walking 10 km was hard, but our team was definitely up for the challenge. “It motivates me personally to at least walk, and the best part of that: we can do it while actually helping people, it was amazing, really”, said one of our coworkers.
The Results
While it was a challenge, we can confidently say that we made it. #The24Walk had over 200+ participants, and we were joined by people from all over the world; from Denmark to Indonesia, and from Peru to Australia.
In the end, the donations collected all the way up to 10,024 USD. We are incredibly excited to be part of such a great cause and make a difference for these children.The funds will be supporting two schools and their attempt to increase the quality of education by increase the teaching funds, update the curriculum of remedial reading, writing, and numeracy for 1-3 graders as well as English as a foreign language for 4-6 graders. Additionally, the funds will go towards upgrading the libraries in both schools.
Currently, the two schools hold a total of 159 children. However, considering this program’s 12-year graduation rate for all students, the complete impact of this program is expected to be for 2,500 people, with an extended impact of around 10,000 people. The program supports quality education and grants the students the opportunity to move on to tertiary education and employment. As a result the students’ families and extended communities will also benefit from the impact a generation of educated youth will make on the island of Nusa Penida.
“Thanks to 24 Slides, we now have learning spaces and funds for teacher support.” – Bali Children Foundation
This speaks volumes of the level of commitment and solidarity 24Slides coworkers have. 100% of our participants said they would join any future activities again. So you can definitely expect more activities like #The24Walk in the future!
This is the budget for the campaign, including funds raised and funds spent. Provided by Bali Children Foundation.