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Marc Kielburger

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Marc Kielburger
CMOMC
Photograph of Marc Kielburger
Kielburger in 2008
Born
Marc Kielburger

1977 (age 46–47)
Thornhill, Ontario,Canada
Education
Occupations
  • Social entrepreneur
  • author
  • columnist
  • humanitarian
Known forCo-founder ofWE CharityandMe to We
Notable workMe To WE
SpouseRoxanne Joyal
Children2
RelativesCraig Kielburger(brother)
AwardsOntario Medal for Good Citizenship(1998)
Order of Canada(2010)
Websitewww.marckielburger.com

Marc KielburgerCMOMC(born 1977) is aCanadianauthor, social entrepreneur, columnist, humanitarian and activist for children's rights. He is the co-founder, along with his brotherCraig,of theWe Movement,which consists of theWE Charity,an international development and youth empowerment organization;Me to We,a for-profit company[1]selling lifestyle products, leadership training and travel experience; andWe Day,an annual youth empowerment event. In 2010, he was named a member of theOrder of Canadaby theGovernor General of Canada.[2]

Early years and education

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Kielburger was born in 1977 to schoolteachers Fred and Theresa Kielburger.[3][4][5]At age 13, he became involved in environmental activism, founding clubs, starting petitions and eventually becoming the youngest person ever to receive theOntario Medal for Good Citizenship.[6]He traveled toJamaicaon a school program, where he volunteered at a hospice forteenage mothersand at aleper colony.[5][7]In 1990, Kielburger won the award for Best Junior Project at theCanada-Wide Science Fair,going on to win another CWSF award in 1992.[8]

Kielburger attendedBrebeuf College SchoolToronto andNeuchâtel Junior CollegeinSwitzerland,graduating from both in 1995.[9][10][11]In the same year, he was named aJostens Loran Scholarand enrolled inOttawa Universitybefore transferring toHarvard University,where he received a degree inInternational Relations.In 2000, he was awarded aRhodes Scholarshipand attendedUniversity College, Oxford,[12]where he received a law degree with an emphasis onhuman rights law.[13][14][15][8]

Activism and social entrepreneurship

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While Marc Kielburger was studying at Harvard, his younger brother Craig read a story in the newspaper about the murder of a former child labourer in Pakistan.[16]The story inspired Craig to urge world leaders to oppose the practice of child labour.[16]In 1995, Craig and Marc co-foundedFree the Children(later renamed We Charity).[17]Marc's work with Free the Children has included co-creatingMe to We,a social enterprise organization that supports We Charity with half its profits, andWe Day,an annual youth empowerment event held in large stadiums in cities across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. Kielburger later co-founded Leaders Today, an organization that trains young people to develop skills and confidence to effect social change.[18]

In 2008, the Kielburgers appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show where they launched a partnership with Oprah's Angel Network.[19] p Kielburger's work has been recognized through anAshokafellowship.[20]He was also named Most Admired CEO in Canada in the Public Sector 2015.[1]

Kielburger is a member of the board of directors ofFreshii.[21]Kielburger also contributes a column toThe Globe and Mail.[22]

On 9 September 2020,We Charityannounced that it was winding down its operations in Canada and selling its assets to establish an endowment that will help sustain ongoing We Charity projects around the world.[23][24][25]The announcement also explains that the existing board of directors, the existing Canadian employees, and the Kielburgers would leave We Charity Canada.[26]The decision to wind down its Canadian operations were attributed to the financial condition of the organization caused by theWE Charity scandalandCOVID-19.[27]

On January 15, 2024,Martin Luther King's95th birthday,theNational Football Leagueannounced a five-year commitment to Realizing the Dream, a partnership between theMartin Luther King IIIFoundation and a charity Kielberger co-founded called Legacy+, in which the NFL said that all of its teams would be participating. The initiative calls youth, teachers and communities across the United States and the world to perform 100 million hours of community service by Martin Luther King's 100th birthday in 2029.[28]

That night, King's oldest son and formerSouthern Christian Leadership Conferencepresident Martin Luther King III appeared atTampa'sRaymond James Stadiumfor theNFC Wild Card Game,where he and his family stood at midfield for thepregame coin toss.Before the coin toss, King III was interviewed about the project, with Tampa mayorJane Castorand former mayorPam Iorioin attendance, where he said, "Certainly (the elder King) wanted to eradicate what he defined were the triple evils: poverty, racism and violence. But he also believed in civility and being together, and we could disagree without being disagreeable. Unfortunately, our nation is at a divided point. That’s sort of why football games and championships are so important, because they bring people together, from every walk of life."[28]

Several weeks later, on February 5, theCincinnati Redsannounced that it, too, had joined the Realizing the Dream initiative, with Martin Luther King III appearing at the Cincinnati'sGreat American Ball Parkfor the occasion.[29]

Canada Student Service Grant program

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See also:We Charity controversyandWhat WE Lost

In June 2020, the Canadian government announced it had chosen We Charity to run its new Canada Student Service Grant program.[30]The selection of We Charity led to accusations of favouritism, since the government would be outsourcing a massive federal aid program to a private organization with ties to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his family.[30]In July 2020, Marc Kielburger and fellow We Charity co-founder Craig Kielburger announced they were pulling out of the grant contract due to the controversy it created.[30]

On 30 June 2020, the Canadian Press published a video of Marc Kielburger telling youth leaders earlier in the month that Trudeau's office had contacted We Charity to see if the organization would administer the student aid program. Kielburger later said that he had mistakenly referred to the Prime Minister's Office. The Prime Minister's Office also denied direct contact with WE Charity.[31][32]Kielburger said the outreach came instead from officials at Employment and Social Development Canada.[31]

Personal life

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Kielburger is married to Roxanne Joyal.[33]She is a Rhodes Scholar[34]and a fellow Member of the Order of Canada.[35][36]They have two daughters.[37]

Publications

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  • Kielburger, Craig; Kielburger, Marc (2002).Take Action! A Guide to Active Citizenship.John Wiley & Sons.ISBN9780471271321.OCLC51566318.
  • Kielburger, Marc (2004).Take More Action.Thomson Nelson.ISBN978-0771580352.
  • Kielburger, Craig; Kielburger, Marc (2004).Me To We: Turning Self-Help on Its Head.John Wiley & Sons.ISBN9780470835104.OCLC55510177.
  • Kielburger, Craig; Kielburger, Marc (2006).Me To We: Finding Meaning In A Material World.Fireside.ISBN9780743294515.OCLC71126899.
  • Singh, Lekha; Kielburger, Marc (2007).The making of an activist.Friesens Corporation.ISBN9781553831310.OCLC319758042.
  • Kielburger, Craig; Kielburger, Marc (2010).Global Voices.Greystone Books.ISBN978-1553658016.
  • Kielburger, Craig; Branson, Holly; Kielburger, Marc (2018).WEconomy: You Can Find Meaning, Make A Living, and Change the World.John Wiley & Sons.ISBN978-1-119-44781-8.

Further reading

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  • Coleman, Linda S.; Funk, Robert W. (2005). "Take Action: Children's Rights Are Human Rights: Marc Kielburger and Craig Keilburger".Professional and Public Writing: A Rhetoric and Reader for Advanced Composition.Pearson Education.p. 158.ISBN9780131838857.
  • "Young People Changing the World: An Interview with Marc Kielburger".A Human Future.L'ArcheCanada.6(March 2007). 2007.
  • Asabere-Ameyaw, Akwasi; Anamuah-Mensah, Jophus; Sefa Dei, George; Raheem, Kolawole, eds. (2014). "Me to We".Indigenist African Development and Related Issues: Towards a Transdisciplinary Perspective.Sense Publishers. p. 48.ISBN978-94-6209-657-8– viaGoogle Books.
  • Dutton, Jane E.; Spreitzer, Gretchen M. (2014). "Cultivate Hope".How to Be a Positive Leader: Small Actions, Big Impact.Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc. p. 125.ISBN978-1-62656-028-4.
  • Scudamore, Brian (October 18, 2017). "WE Co-Founder Marc Kielburger On Mentors, Mandela, And Spurring Social Change At 17".Forbes.Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved January 21, 2019.

References

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  1. ^ab"The World Needs More Canada".
  2. ^"Governor General Announces New Appointments to the Order of Canada".January 20, 2019. Archived fromthe originalon January 20, 2019.RetrievedSeptember 27,2019.
  3. ^Spiering, Brenda (March 22, 2019)."Two teachers who helped their kids start a movement".Canadian Living.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  4. ^Langlois, Christine (September 21, 2009)."The accidental activists: Craig and Marc Kielburger".Canadian Living.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  5. ^abGoddard, John (October 26, 2006)."The Kielburger crusade".Toronto Star.Archived fromthe originalon October 18, 2007.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  6. ^Kennedy, Philippa (November 1, 2008)."A one-man mission turned global crusade".The National.RetrievedOctober 2,2021.
  7. ^Buchan, Heather (November 26, 2009)."Thornhill's Person of the Year: Marc Kielburger".trnto.com.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  8. ^abBarlow, Reni (January 8, 2017)."CWSF Alumna Stephanie Gaglione – Rhodes Scholar".Youth Science Canada.Archived fromthe originalon September 30, 2020.RetrievedOctober 2,2021.
  9. ^Hanes, Tracy (September 16, 2016)."Schools benefit when charity becomes part of the curriculum".The Globe and Mail.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  10. ^Ash, Peter (May 5, 2014)."Brebeuf has been making men out of boys for 50 years".The Catholic Register.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  11. ^Neil, Brenda (January 6, 2018)."Students step outside".Preferred.RetrievedOctober 1,2021.
  12. ^Shields, Jennifer (December 11, 2017)."Carleton grad wins Rhodes Scholarship".The Charlatan, Carleton's independent newspaper.RetrievedNovember 19,2022.
  13. ^Javed, Noor; Hinkson, Kamila (January 7, 2013)."University of Toronto students snag three Rhodes Scholars spots".Toronto Star.RetrievedOctober 2,2021.
  14. ^"Rhodes Scholars".Loran Scholars Foundation.RetrievedOctober 2,2021.
  15. ^"Marc Kielburger, CM, OMC".One Young World.October 3, 2012.RetrievedOctober 2,2021.
  16. ^ab"Marc and Craig Kielburger's do-gooding social enterprise".RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  17. ^"Stars shine at We Day, inspire students to change the world".The Seattle Times.March 27, 2013.RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  18. ^"Marc Kielburger and Leaders Today".charityvillage.com.August 28, 2006.RetrievedSeptember 28,2019.
  19. ^Warner, Tyrone (May 27, 2008)."Kielburgers join forces with Oprah on new campaign".CTVNews.RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  20. ^"Marc Kielburger a 'young global leader'".January 17, 2007 – via PressReader.
  21. ^Erlichman, Jon (April 4, 2019)."Freshii's top shareholder backs founder amid stock slide - BNN Bloomberg".BNN.RetrievedSeptember 29,2019.
  22. ^"Marc Kielburger".The Globe and Mail.RetrievedSeptember 28,2019.
  23. ^"WE Charity winding down operations in Canada".CTVNews.September 9, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 9,2020.
  24. ^"WE Charity closing operations in Canada".RetrievedSeptember 9,2020.
  25. ^Charity, W. E."WE Charity Canada to wind down operations and set up endowment fund to support education and humanitarian programs".www.newswire.ca.RetrievedSeptember 9,2020.
  26. ^"WE Charity Canada to wind down operations and set up endowment fund to support education and humanitarian program"(PDF).September 9, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 9,2020.
  27. ^"WE Charity Canada to wind down operations and set up endowment fund to support education and humanitarian program"(PDF).September 9, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 9,2020.
  28. ^abKnight, Joey (January 15, 2024)."Family of Martin Luther King Jr. aligns with NFL to carry on 'dream'".Tampa Bay Times.RetrievedApril 9,2024.
  29. ^Martin, Alexis (February 5, 2024)."Reds announce 'Realizing the Dream' initiative with Martin Luther King family".WXIX-TV.RetrievedApril 9,2024.
  30. ^abc"We Charity cuts ties with Canada grant programme".BBC News.July 3, 2020.RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  31. ^ab"WE Charity co-founder said PMO 'called' to award $900M student-grant program, contradicting Trudeau".National Post.RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  32. ^"Marc Kielburger backtracks after saying PMO contacted WE about $900M program".thestar.com.June 30, 2020.RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  33. ^"Their love is built on helping others".thestar.com.March 9, 2009.RetrievedSeptember 29,2019.
  34. ^"Roxanne Joyal Profile".The Rhodes Project.RetrievedOctober 2,2019.
  35. ^"Order of Canada celebrates 50 years by welcoming new members".Toronto Sun.June 30, 2017.RetrievedOctober 2,2019.
  36. ^"Order of Canada Investiture Ceremony".The Governor General of Canada.January 22, 2018.RetrievedOctober 2,2019.
  37. ^"Moving From I To We As A Family".HuffPost Canada.June 13, 2017.RetrievedOctober 2,2019.
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