Reflecting on 25 years at WE
1995
Twelve-year-old Iqbal Masih—an escaped child labourer who told his story to the world—is murdered in Pakistan. Three days later, 12-year-old Craig Kielburger reads about Iqbal in the Toronto Star and is moved to take action on the issue of child labour. He, his older brother, Marc, and 11 classmates start “Free The Children,” operating from the Kielburger family home.
1998
Donations to Free The Children (later rebranded “WE Charity”) fund its first schools in the mountainous region of Waslala, Nicaragua, and in West Bengal, India. In subsequent years, the organization breaks ground on schools in Kenya and Ecuador.
2000
Craig and Marc host their first youth volunteer trip to Kenya, to help create meaningful connections between travellers and local residents and inspire new actions. Today, thousands of guests, including youth, school groups, families and corporate groups, travel with ME to WE Trips to visit WE Charity development projects in communities around the world.
2004
Building on previous development work, WE Charity launches WE Villages, a holistic and sustainable development model that evolved to include five pillars that address the root causes of child labour, providing education, clean water, health care and food-security and income-opportunity programs that work together to help families lift themselves from poverty.
2007
On October 19, the first-ever WE Day welcomes 8,000 students to Toronto’s Ricoh Coliseum to celebrate the power of youth to change the world. The night before, founders Craig and Marc wonder if anyone will come. Now, young people from across Canada, the U.S. and the UK attend WE Days every year, earning their entry through service.
2007
Roxanne Joyal, who was integral to the evolution of WE Charity, founds ME to WE Artisans to help Maasai women gain access to a global market for their traditional beadwork. Today, ME to WE Artisans provides women in Kenya and Ecuador with a sustainable income, empowering them within their households and community, and helping them send their children to school.
2011
WE Charity establishes Baraka Health Clinic to provide health care services for communities in rural Narok County, Kenya. In 2013, the clinic opens a maternity wing to support maternal and infant health. In 2017, the health clinic is officially recognized as Baraka Hospital with the opening of a surgical unit and in-patient wing that further serves the health care needs of the region.
2014
The all-girls campus of the Kisaruni Group of Schools, established in 2010 in rural Kenya, celebrates its first graduating class. When Kenya’s national exam results are released, Kisaruni ranks first out of 112 secondary schools in Narok County.
2016
WE Charity opens the Mondaña Health Clinic in the Amazon region of Ecuador, having partnered with the Ministry of Health to fully rebuild the structure to offer maternal health, outpatient and dental services. The clinic also becomes the base for mobile clinics, providing outreach programs to surrounding communities.
2018
In response to a need identified by teachers and youth, we introduce WE Well-being, an initiative that empowers youth and families with educational tools and resources to promote their own positive well-being and the well-being of others. Developed in collaboration with leading mental health professionals and with the help of our founding partner, The Erika Legacy Foundation.
2019
WE College, which opened in Narok County, Kenya, in 2017, celebrates the first graduating classes in Tourism and Hospitality. The occasion is marked by an official ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by H.E. Margaret Kenyatta, First Lady of the Republic of Kenya.
2019
WE Teachers launches: a new, free program that empowers teachers with the resources and tools they need to address critical issues with students, to ensure that teachers have what they need to help youth become active, engaged citizens.