Lilly Global Giving Puts Power of Philanthropy in Employees’ Hands
By Eli Lilly And Company, PRNESunday, July 24, 2011
INDIANAPOLIS, July 25, 2011 -
- Through new
program, employees worldwide will direct portion of Lilly’s
philanthropic dollars to global programs that address health,
hunger, education, and the environment
For the first time, Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) employees
worldwide can donate to more than 800 grassroots projects across
the globe and have their donations matched by the Eli Lilly and
Company Foundation-doubling the value and impact of each employee’s
charitable contribution.
Lilly is partnering with the GlobalGiving Foundation to offer
its employees across the world a customized Lilly Global Giving
website, where employees may choose from multiple projects that are
helping to advance Lilly’s corporate responsibility goals in the
areas of health, hunger, education, and the environment.
Employees who donate $25 (USD) or more to projects featured on
the Lilly Global Giving website will have their donations
automatically matched by the Lilly Foundation. Each year, the Lilly
Foundation will match employees’ contributions through the program
up to $1 million (USD) companywide.
To encourage employees’ participation in the new program, the
Lilly Foundation is offering every eligible Lilly employee
worldwide the opportunity to direct a $50 (USD) credit toward
causes that are most meaningful to them via the Lilly Global Giving
website. For each project to which they donate, employees will
receive updates from project leaders to learn how their
contributions are making a difference in the lives of others.
“We have a 135-year history of giving back and are proud of the
Lilly Foundation’s strong philanthropic footprint in Indianapolis
and across the United States,” said John C. Lechleiter, Ph.D.,
Lilly chairman, president, and chief executive officer. “Through
Lilly Global Giving, we’re expanding our reach and engaging our
employees in new ways. For the first time, Lilly employees
worldwide will have the opportunity to support global projects
they’re passionate about and have their contributions matched by
the Lilly Foundation. Not only does the match make their donations
go twice as far, it gives our employees a voice in how we use some
of the Lilly Foundation’s resources.”
Lechleiter noted that the new Lilly Global Giving program
complements the Lilly Foundation’s U.S. matching gifts program,
which allows U.S. employees to have donations matched for select
non-profit organizations, such as the United Way.
“Our company is global and so is our role as a good corporate
citizen,” Lechleiter added. “Lilly Global Giving is a natural
extension of our corporate responsibility efforts and our vision to
make a significant contribution to humanity by improving global
health in the 21st century.”
Through Lilly Global Giving, employees may support hundreds of
different grassroots programs, including projects that:
- provide insulin and insulin supplies to patients in
Guatemala; - improve the diagnosis and care of people with tuberculosis in
India; - teach farmers in Zambia about animal management and sustainable
farming; - provide an education for orphaned children in Cameroon;
and - help restore acres of rainforest in Brazil, among hundreds of
other projects.
By participating in Lilly Global Giving, employees may select,
contribute to, and follow the progress of global programs that are
addressing causes they care about.
Lilly selected the GlobalGiving Foundation as its partner
because of the organization’s grassroots approach, which connects
donors to charitable projects and puts decision-making in donors’
hands. Projects approved by the GlobalGiving Foundation have
undergone compliance checks to ensure they meet applicable laws
relating to international philanthropy. Since 2002, the
GlobalGiving Foundation has channeled more than $44 million in
donations to eligible projects and programs across the globe.
“We are so excited to work with Lilly to provide a unique way
for its employees to support high-quality projects around the
world,” said Donna Callejon, GlobalGiving’s chief business officer.
“Lilly employees have a long history of generosity, and we are glad
to help them extend that generosity even further.”
Lilly Corporate Responsibility
Lilly Global Giving expands the global reach of Lilly’s
corporate responsibility efforts, which are focused on:
- improving health for people in need, especially in low- and
middle-income countries; - improving specifically K-12 education in the company’s home
state of Indiana; - improving communities that are home to Lilly’s major
operations; - fostering a healthier environment, specifically in areas that
are touched by its operations.
Lilly Global Giving provides employees with unique opportunities
to help advance this work and gain a deeper understanding of the
challenges faced by people and communities across the world.
Earlier this year, Lilly introduced its Connecting Hearts Abroad
program. In 2011, 200 employees will travel to 10 countries to
assist people and communities that often lack access to basic
resources. To date, 70 Lilly Ambassadors with Connecting Hearts
Abroad have completed two-week global service assignments in
Brazil, China, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Russia, Tanzania, and
Thailand. Some of these ambassadors are sharing their experiences
at:
and
In addition, Lilly employees worldwide are gearing up for the
fourth annual Lilly Global Day of Service on October 6, 2011. The
annual employee service event has been recognized as one of the
largest, single-day volunteer initiatives of any company in the
U.S.
About the GlobalGiving Foundation
The GlobalGiving Foundation helps individual and corporate
donors contribute directly to grassroots charitable organizations
around the world. Utilizing their network of local projects and
web-based platform,
GlobalGiving helps companies achieve their charitable, corporate
responsibility, employee engagement, and cause-marketing goals.
GlobalGiving finds and vets projects, disburses funds, ensures
reporting and develops web solutions that leverage their community
for corporate partner programs. GlobalGiving is a 501c(3)
registered nonprofit organization, located in Washington, D.C. To
learn more about this program and other GlobalGiving corporate
partnership opportunities, please contact Nicole Kukowski,
partnerships manager, at nkukowski@globalgiving.org.
About Eli Lilly and Company
Lilly, a leading innovation-driven corporation, is developing a
growing portfolio of pharmaceutical products by applying the latest
research from its own worldwide laboratories and from
collaborations with eminent scientific organizations. Headquartered
in Indianapolis, Ind., Lilly provides answers - through medicines
and information - for some of the world’s most urgent medical
needs. Additional information about Lilly is available at
(Logo:
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David Marbaugh - U.S. office, +1-317-277-5620, mobile +1-317-489-7109; Karen Van der Westhuizen - Geneva +41-22-306-0322
Tags: Eli Lilly and Company, Indiana, Indianapolis, July 25
