#GivingTuesday: Social media movement ignites spirit of giving one tweet at a time

With Black Friday and Cyber Monday behind us, a global social media movement is encouraging people to give back.

Many are using hashtag #GivingTuesday, which is now trending on Twitter worldwide, to spread the message.

A number of charities and organizations in B.C. are also using the hashtag to encourage giving.

CanadaHelps spokesperson Shannon Craig says #GivingTuesday started in the United States in 2012 as a grassroots movement and is now in its third year in Canada. 

“It is a global movement for giving and volunteering,” says Craig. “It is a day that opens the giving season. By collectively coming together to say giving back matters, we can bring the holiday season into our consciousness a little bit earlier. It is a time to, maybe, be a little unselfish.”

Craig says they are seeing hashtag #unselfie being used alongside #GivingTuesday by people who are taking pictures of themselves with their faces covered to spread the message of humbleness.

How to participate 

Craig says the best way to help is to donate to a charity you care about.

“You can increase your commitment to a charity and maybe consider becoming a monthly donor,” she says. “That is the best way for charities to receive donations in a predictable way.”

And for people who are not sure what charity to choose, Craig says, take the time to discover one.

Kevin McCort with the Vancouver Foundation says #GivingTuesday is all about celebrating all the things that people do to help make their communities great.

McCort says the idea is that the consumerism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday is followed by the philanthropy and charity impulses of #GivingTuesday.

“We know that the bulk of charitable giving happens in November and December, so if you are going to make a donation anyway, make it it on #GivingTuesday and help us drive a really big day of giving across the province and across the country,” he says.