Online Student Activism Earns $16,500 for Social Causes
Razoo.com - a new social network for social justice and environmental issues - announced the top five prize winners in their Change Your World Contest. Through the impressive online efforts and creative promotions of college student groups, five nonprofits won prizes between $1,000 and $10,000 for their organization.
Washington, DC, October 20, 2007 --(PR.com)-- Today Razoo announced the official winners of their Change Your World Contest that ended on October 15, 2007. It was an exciting race as the top contenders battled it out until midnight on the final day of voting. The first prize of $10,000 was awarded to Students Helping Honduras (SHH), a young non-profit started by college students that sends groups of students to Honduras to engage in service projects.
SHH co-founder and CEO Shin Fujiyama has informed us that they “will be using the funds to build a school in Honduras and purchase seeds for the indigenous people of La Misquitia where their crops were completely destroyed by Hurricane Felix. Without these seeds, thousands of people would face famine next spring and relief organizations would have to spend tens of thousands of dollars sending food. We have to think ahead and prevent, instead of acting when it's too late.” Justin Simeone, the Chairperson of the Board of SHH also shared how “SHH is incredibly proud of the continued hard work and dedication of its members at UVA, Virginia Tech, Georgetown, William & Mary, and Mary Washington. Their efforts have continually proven what can be possible when passionate young people come together for a good cause. We are also tremendously grateful to all of our additional supporters who helped us make change possible during the course of Razoo's "Change Your World Contest."
The second place prize of $2,500 went to Leadership Initiatives, an organization that seeks to enable university students worldwide to turn their ideas into sustainable community development projects. Leadership Initiatives held a number of Razoo sign-up parties across the US and Nigeria in their creative efforts to win this prize. “We’re excited about mobilizing people around some great causes and contributing to the work of these organizations,” said Razoo CEO Sebastian Traeger. “We’re pleased to be able to give individuals an opportunity to support an organization without needing to reach into their own pockets.”
Razoo also recognized the valiant efforts of two other groups, Liberty in North Korea (LiNK), and Saving Shelter Pets, by awarding them with $1500 honorable mention prizes. LinK will be using the prize money to support their network of underground shelters for North Korean refugees and expand their underground railroad. Saving Shelter Pets plans to use the funds to support the launch of a new program that will to provide much-needed pet-care services to low-income residents in Murray County, Georgia. Razoo also awarded a $1,000 Lucky Draw prize to March of Dimes, an organization working to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality.
Thirty-four different non-profit organizations qualified for the contest by creating a group on Razoo.com and recruiting 100 members by October 1, 2007. From October 1st to October 15th, the Razoo community voted from among the qualifying groups to determine which organization was most worthy to win the contest. This was an opportunity for nonprofits, student groups, and other social cause organizations to win money for their work while increasing their reach and impact in the online world.
Deputy Director Hannah Song of Liberty in North Korea summed it well in saying: “Razoo's vision and tremendous efforts will change the way groups like ours are able to more effectively and efficiently mobilize grassroots efforts and encourage others to similarly take on passions, expend their resources, take actions, and ultimately change the world - because change IS possible.”
Learn more:
http://beta.razoo.com/contest
http://www.studentshelpinghonduras.org/
http://www.leadershipinitiatives.org/
http://www.linkglobal.org/
http://www.savingshelterpets.com/
http://www.marchofdimes.com/youth
About Razoo
Razoo.com is a social networking site that aims to promote social good through connecting individuals around causes they are passionate about. Groups and organizations can use Razoo.com to mobilize people for their work and promote tangible ways for people to contribute to their issues. Individuals can connect to one another and share photos, experiences, and other user-generated content to inspire one another for positive action.
Razoo is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and was founded in October 2006. CEO J. Sebastian Traeger leads the Razoo team, with the mission to promote social good, and to inspire others to get involved by making giving and serving fun, easy, and meaningful.
In addition to the Change Your World Contest and the Razoo.com website, the company has launched several other platforms, each sharing the goal of inspiring giving and serving among young people.
Speed Granting is both an online and offline platform that enables social entrepreneurs to compete with one another for funding, by pitching their projects to peers who then cast votes to determine the recipients of the grants. In its first week of operation Speed Granting attracted almost 2,000 participants.
The Good Happens blog and newsletter aim to, shine a spotlight on the good that happens around us every day.
Brewing Good is an offline event series that brings people together in a fun and creative environment to encourage, recognize and celebrate the good they are doing.
With the conclusion of the Change Your World Contest, Razoo is now planning the launch of its next big contest…
Learn more:
Good Happens blog: http://blog.razoo.com
SpeedGranting: http://apps.facebook.com/speedgranting/
###
SHH co-founder and CEO Shin Fujiyama has informed us that they “will be using the funds to build a school in Honduras and purchase seeds for the indigenous people of La Misquitia where their crops were completely destroyed by Hurricane Felix. Without these seeds, thousands of people would face famine next spring and relief organizations would have to spend tens of thousands of dollars sending food. We have to think ahead and prevent, instead of acting when it's too late.” Justin Simeone, the Chairperson of the Board of SHH also shared how “SHH is incredibly proud of the continued hard work and dedication of its members at UVA, Virginia Tech, Georgetown, William & Mary, and Mary Washington. Their efforts have continually proven what can be possible when passionate young people come together for a good cause. We are also tremendously grateful to all of our additional supporters who helped us make change possible during the course of Razoo's "Change Your World Contest."
The second place prize of $2,500 went to Leadership Initiatives, an organization that seeks to enable university students worldwide to turn their ideas into sustainable community development projects. Leadership Initiatives held a number of Razoo sign-up parties across the US and Nigeria in their creative efforts to win this prize. “We’re excited about mobilizing people around some great causes and contributing to the work of these organizations,” said Razoo CEO Sebastian Traeger. “We’re pleased to be able to give individuals an opportunity to support an organization without needing to reach into their own pockets.”
Razoo also recognized the valiant efforts of two other groups, Liberty in North Korea (LiNK), and Saving Shelter Pets, by awarding them with $1500 honorable mention prizes. LinK will be using the prize money to support their network of underground shelters for North Korean refugees and expand their underground railroad. Saving Shelter Pets plans to use the funds to support the launch of a new program that will to provide much-needed pet-care services to low-income residents in Murray County, Georgia. Razoo also awarded a $1,000 Lucky Draw prize to March of Dimes, an organization working to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality.
Thirty-four different non-profit organizations qualified for the contest by creating a group on Razoo.com and recruiting 100 members by October 1, 2007. From October 1st to October 15th, the Razoo community voted from among the qualifying groups to determine which organization was most worthy to win the contest. This was an opportunity for nonprofits, student groups, and other social cause organizations to win money for their work while increasing their reach and impact in the online world.
Deputy Director Hannah Song of Liberty in North Korea summed it well in saying: “Razoo's vision and tremendous efforts will change the way groups like ours are able to more effectively and efficiently mobilize grassroots efforts and encourage others to similarly take on passions, expend their resources, take actions, and ultimately change the world - because change IS possible.”
Learn more:
http://beta.razoo.com/contest
http://www.studentshelpinghonduras.org/
http://www.leadershipinitiatives.org/
http://www.linkglobal.org/
http://www.savingshelterpets.com/
http://www.marchofdimes.com/youth
About Razoo
Razoo.com is a social networking site that aims to promote social good through connecting individuals around causes they are passionate about. Groups and organizations can use Razoo.com to mobilize people for their work and promote tangible ways for people to contribute to their issues. Individuals can connect to one another and share photos, experiences, and other user-generated content to inspire one another for positive action.
Razoo is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and was founded in October 2006. CEO J. Sebastian Traeger leads the Razoo team, with the mission to promote social good, and to inspire others to get involved by making giving and serving fun, easy, and meaningful.
In addition to the Change Your World Contest and the Razoo.com website, the company has launched several other platforms, each sharing the goal of inspiring giving and serving among young people.
Speed Granting is both an online and offline platform that enables social entrepreneurs to compete with one another for funding, by pitching their projects to peers who then cast votes to determine the recipients of the grants. In its first week of operation Speed Granting attracted almost 2,000 participants.
The Good Happens blog and newsletter aim to, shine a spotlight on the good that happens around us every day.
Brewing Good is an offline event series that brings people together in a fun and creative environment to encourage, recognize and celebrate the good they are doing.
With the conclusion of the Change Your World Contest, Razoo is now planning the launch of its next big contest…
Learn more:
Good Happens blog: http://blog.razoo.com
SpeedGranting: http://apps.facebook.com/speedgranting/
###
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Razoo
Rebecca Carpenter
202.595.3385
www.razoo.com
Rebecca Carpenter
202.595.3385
www.razoo.com
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