The Site with 1 Million Signatures for Cecil the Lion [Q&A]
Care2 - headed by founder Randy Paynter - helps people stand together through collective action.
(ShaunWilkinson / Shutterstock.com)
Care2 is the largest social network for good on the web, with over 30 million members and 1,500 nonprofit partners. When people feel passionately about a cause or issue - for example the recent uproar over trophy hunting in the wake of Cecil the Lion’s death - Care2 is where they go to start petitions, garner support and spread the world. Ultimately, the organization is about giving people a platform to make a positive impact in the world.
In this week’s 10 Good Questions, Care2 founder Randy Paynter tells Goodnet about his mission to make the world a better place - and how it feels to be able to see that positive impact spread.
1. What is your organization’s mission?
Care2 was founded in 1998 with a simple mission: to help make the world a better place. Today, Care2 is a highly-engaged social network of more than 30 million citizen activists standing together for good and making extraordinary impact - locally, nationally and internationally - by starting petitions and supporting each other’s campaigns.
2. What makes you guys different from the rest?
By standing together, with a shared vision for a kinder more inclusive world, our passionate global community is able to get results – it is precisely what sets Care2 apart from other petition platforms, and why our nonprofit partners continue to seek us out as they look to meet advocacy and fundraising goals. We also provide personalized support to petition authors so that individuals, with no prior advocacy experience, can tap into the power of one of the world’s most experienced and effective campaign teams.
As an example, see the recent petition started by a Care2 member, demanding justice from Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe for the death of Cecil the Lion. After more than a million people signed the Care2 petition, which made headlines around the world, trophy hunting is now banned around the park where Cecil died.
3. Offices or open work space?
Our headquarters in Silicon Valley has an open work space with a handful of offices. Care2 also has offices in New York City, Washington, DC, and London, while offering a flexible work environment for employees working out of their homes in other locations.
4. What three words describe your organization?
Passionate, Impact and For-Good (that’s one word, right?!)
5. What inspires you?
Seeing millions of individuals, who believe in a brighter future, stand up for what they believe in - and get results.
6. What is the best part about your job?
Hearing stories of how Care2 has helped individuals, animals, and the environment. Knowing we’re making a positive difference all around the world.
7. Does your team eat lunch together?
We bring in lunch for the team on Fridays. Every day small groups will eat together, but we’re a pretty hardworking/heads-down/get results organization so eating while cranking on the keyboard is common.
8. Facebook or Twitter?
9. What do you want Goodnet users to know about your organization?
We are the social network for people passionate about making a difference. Care2 provides a powerful social network to kick start viral campaigns, as well as a vast forum for discussion of social issues and strategies for affecting change, while helping people stand together for collective impact on important issues. We’re also fantastic at recruiting quality donor and customer leads for nonprofits and sustainable brands.
10. How can people get involved?
We make it easy to take action and make a difference. Start an online petition to make a difference in your community or around the globe. Or, support someone else’s petition campaign for human rights, animal welfare, women’s rights, the environment or whatever cause you’re passionate about. Together, we are powerful.
