Zynga Inc. [zynga.com], a global leader in interactive entertainment, announced that it has partnered with will.i.am, frontman of Black Eyed Peas and founder of the i.am Angel Foundation, as a launch donor for the American Dream GoFundMe initiative. With a mission of raising $5 million in contributions, these funds will be committed to unlocking STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) education opportunities for America’s underserved communities.
“Turn around the nightmare of poverty and prison into the American Dream,” said will.i.am, founder of the i.am Angel Foundation. “We can do it with fair access to quality public education including STEAM skills that will give every student a career path and the opportunity to achieve true economic equality.”
To kick off the campaign, will.i.am released his new single, “American Dream”, which focuses on education as a social justice issue and the building block of economic equality. The single is the first song to be released to launch a GoFundMe campaign and is available to stream via Apple Music.
Additional pre-launch donation partners (as of 1-9-2021) include contributions from Apple, Angela Ahrendts, Tim & Nancy Armstrong’s Armstrong Angel Fund, Marc Benioff, Solina Chau, The Coca-Cola Company, Ron Conway, Tim Draper, Lady Gaga, Laurene Powell Jobs, Dean Kamen, Andrew Liveris, Yuri Milner, Paramount Pictures, Mark Pincus, Haim Saban, Anthony Scaramucci, and Oprah Winfrey.
Zynga’s contribution from their newly created Social Impact Fund, established in June 2020, marks the company’s first donation since announcing the creation of its $25 million endowment fund to invest in educational and charitable causes related to diversity and inclusion.
Zynga will also utilize the breadth of its channels and audiences to extend awareness for the campaign and encourage other individuals and entities to join. In the iconic hit game Words With Friends, ‘Dream’ will be the January 12, 2021 ‘word of the day’, echoing the theme of
the initiative. Throughout January and February, Zynga will release new content to drive awareness and action for the fundraiser through its social, blog and employee channels.
