Small Steps Result in Big Impact
Why is it that when I do a Google search for Millennials are... the auto-fill responses end with lazy, selfish, and unhappy? I'm a Millennial, and I wouldn't use those words to describe myself or my friends. However, there clearly is a widely held misconception that Millennials are the me, me, me generation.
Millennials aren't lazy. They're hard workers; they care about global issues, and they want to find careers that make them happy. But don't just take my word for it. There are students all over the world who are making a positive social and environmental impact in their communities.
One way is through the Small Steps, Big Wins Campus Challenge, an international competition where undergraduate students compete against other schools and each other to see who can take the most social and environmental actions. With the completion of the Fall Challenge, students have provided plenty of reasons to question the validity of Millennial stereotypes.
In just three months, thousands of students on over 60 campuses collectively took over 50,000 actions. Small Steppers took actions as simple as recycling an aluminum can and as large as organizing a fundraising event for a charity. They showed their peers simple ways to live a more sustainable and socially responsible lifestyle.
For the fall semester, Net Impact partnered with myActions, the social network for the planet. Each time participants took an action, they shared it from their phone, mobile app, or computer. They uploaded photos to share with other participants in a newsfeed where they could also comment, thank, and like each other's actions.Some fun Fall Challenge stats:
- Over $12,000 raised for charities such as the American Red Cross, Environmental Defense Fund, and World Wildlife Fund
- About 240,000 lbs of carbon dioxide emissions reduced from going into the atmosphere
- More than 2,000 hours devoted to volunteering in local communities
It's inspiring to see students leading the way to create a positive social and environmental impact. I hope that the actions students took will develop into life-long habits and lead to an interest in impact-related careers. In a few short years, students will graduate from college and move on to the next chapter of their lives. Whatever misconceptions exist about Millennials, one fact remains certain: we are the next generation of leaders and our actions will have big impacts on our communities.
The Small Steps, Big Wins Campus Challenge kicks off for the spring on February 10, so sign up now to explore the new platform and mobile app so you can hit the ground running at launch time!
Thanks to the sponsors who supported the Small Steps, Big Wins Campus Challenge: Alcoa Foundation, Newman's Own Foundation, AT&T, Johnson & Johnson, Avon, the Coca-Cola Company, Chevrolet, and Join My Village.
