David and Lucile Packard Foundation has partnered with Ashoka Changemakers to launch an online competition in search of initiatives that cultivate empathy skills to strengthen communities and equip young people to become leaders of change. The Building Vibrant Communities: Activating Empathy to Create Change competition will award a total of US $500,000 to up to six winning solutions. The competition is particularly seeking initiatives that have the potential to create impact within one or more of the following California counties: San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Monterey.
“Empathy is a unifying strength of leaders and organizations that work to make our communities strong and thriving. Empathy skills can be essential for problem-solving and innovation,” said Carol Larson, President and CEO of the Foundation.
Building Vibrant Communities: Activating Empathy to Create Change seeks initiatives that engage in activities such as:
- Developing empathy skills in order to foster caring communities that give back;
- Cultivating empathy education to create safer, stronger communities;
- Helping youth reach their full potential through activating empathy; and
- Empowering young people with empathy and other 21st century changemaking skills to enable them to confront community issues and grow as leaders.
The deadline to enter the competition is July 10, 2014, 5 p.m. PDT.
Full information about the competition can be found at Changemakers.com/PackardEmpathy.
