Craig Kielburger - Free the Children

Craig Kielburger

-founder of Free the Children and Me to We-

Famous Canadian Entrepreneur Assignment

Shannon Wong

BBI20

Mr. Macphail

CRAIG'S STORY

That night, Free the Children was born.

Me to We

is an innovative social enterprise.

What is this?

It provides people with daily choices that can truly change the world.

Through selling socially conscious and environmentally friendly clothes, books, and accessories & providing life-changing leadership training, inspiring speakers, and transformative travel experiences...

Me to We changes countless lives for the better and makes a positive social and environmental impact.

In addition, 50% of Me to We’s net profits support the work of the international charity Free the Children.

Entrepreneurial Characteristics

Goal Setting

-Craig’s initial goal was to help carry on the fight for justice that Iqbal had spearheaded.

-This unwavering aspiration drove him to continue free children from poverty and exploitation and free young people from the notion that they are powerless to affect positive change in the world.

Curious

- When he was just 12 years old, he travelled to South Asia by himself to meet child labourers and hear their stories first-hand to learn more about the cause he was supporting.

Persistent

- After fifteen years at work, Free the Children has become the largest network of children helping children through education, with a network of more than one million youth involved in its programs in 45 countries.

Hardworking

- Travelling all over the world to build schools, wells, and launch alternative income programs in underdeveloped countries as well as delivering speeches to empower youth across North America requires steadfast dedication and energy.

Self-confident

- Craig was always confident that people would help support his cause and encourage him on his mission to help impoverished children in third world countries.

Video Clip about Free the Children Today:

OF FREE THE CHILDREN 1995-PRESENT

Fifteen years and 650 schools later, Free the Children is the world’s leading youth-driven charity.

Its main purpose is to free children from poverty and exploitation and free young people from the notion they are powerless to change the world.

As 12-year-old Craig flipped through the Toronto Star looking for the comics section in his Thornhill, Ontario home in April 1995, he was struck by a story...

...a raw, courageous story of a boy his own age named Iqbal Masih from halfway across the world in Pakistan, who was sold into slavery at the age of 4.

Iqbal had spent 6 years of his short life chained to a carpet-weaving loom before he escaped and told his story to the world. At 12 years old, he was murdered for defending the rights of children.

Reading that article, Craig made it his mission to help carry on the fight for justice that Iqbal had spearheaded.

Kielburger captured the attention of the media when he landed an impromptu meeting with former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien who was visiting Southeast Asia for a trade delegation.

Kielburger persuaded Chrétien to bring the subject of international child labour onto the Canadian Government's radar.

He approached numerous charitable organizations, hoping to find a way to get involved and make a difference.

To learn more about child labour, he then travelled to South Asia by himself to meet child labourers and hear their stories first-hand.

However, they all just wanted donations from his parents, and was dismissed as “just a kid” who should wait until he “grew up” before even trying to be an active global citizen.

Although this caused incredible frustration and hurt, it strengthened his resolve and gave him the perseverance he would need later.

Craig went to school, and mustered up the courage to share Iqbal’s story with his classmates. He asked if anyone would help him take action against child labour. Eleven hands went up.

Known as the “12 twelve-year-olds,” Craig and his friends worked out of the Kielburger home. Their main goal was to expose child labour to North Americans and raise money to build a school overseas.

Many garage sales, coin drives, and charity car washes later, the 12 twelve-year-olds finally raised enough money to build a primary school in rural South Asia.

Sources

1. Kielburger, Craig, and Marc Kielburger. Free the Children Annual Report 2009. Rep. 15th ed. Toronto: Free the Children, 2009. Print.

2. "Free The Children - Craig Kielburger Biography." Free The Children - Home. Web. 30 May 2011. <http://www.freethechildren.com/aboutus/history.php?gclid=CJ_M17yBkakCFUWA5QodVDTwqQ>.

3. "Me to We Is..." Me to We. Web. 01 June 2011. <http://www.metowe.com/me-to-we-is/>.