Last Updated on December 8, 2017 by Tim
There are simple ways for all of us to do good and give back, we can: start a contest, build a product for charity or volunteer time at a needing organization. However, sometimes we have a want to give but don’t have the cash or long hours of time to devote to a cause. Raise5 is a fundraising platform that gives people who are short on cash but big on talent a creative way to raise money for their favorite charities and non-profit organizations.
Raise 5 was founded by 2 University of Toronto graduates: Nelson Wu (@nelsonwuut) a Computer Engineering Grad and Co-founder of Hoody, Mike Tang (@MikeTangster) an Electrical and Computer Engineering Grad, and Hassan Hassan (@hmhl) a University of Toronto student majoring in Psychology. The crowd-funding service works by one person donating a service, for example offering SEO advice or making of a Tiramisu cake, and another person can buy the service for just $5. From the donation the service provider chooses which charity or non-profit to give the money raised to. A simple way for people get a service they need, a person to donate to charity, do-good and make the world a better place – which just happens to be the passion of Raise5’s team.
So how did the idea come about? We asked Nelson Wu, for the details. The Raise5 project got its start during the last StartupWeekend Toronto event. The team was previously inspired by the “1% of nothing” organization, whose mission is to inspire early-stage startups to be more involved philanthropy. We wanted to create a movement that made giving back a part of everyone’s daily or weekly routine. During brainstorm sessions we agreed that there had to be a more convenient option to giving back that didn’t involve pulling out credit cards or travelling to complete traditional volunteering sessions. Raise5 was that solution, a platform that enables anyone to volunteer on their schedule using their own skills & talents while at the same time supporting and creating awareness for their favorite cause.
Of the $5 processed for each service performed, Raise5 keeps $1 to cover the costs of maintaining the platform, PayPal Fees, Server Costs and Operation Costs. The rest is delivered to the charities as decided upon the service provider. Users can currently select from 9 charities at the moment to show support for (Red Cross, United Way, WSPA, Charity: Water, Doctors Without Borders, Wikimedia Foundation, World Food Programme, Zimele, and Girl Guides of Canada), with the promise of more charities to be added as the platform grows.
Well, what are you waiting for? Head over to Raise5 and let everyone know what you can provide to raise $5 for your favorite charity. The world will be a better place with our help and platforms like Raise5 – an ingenious idea by a passionate and young Toronto based team of entrepreneurs.