Actress Sofia Carson, while actively immersing herself in her career, equally immerses herself into charitable projects. She is credited as a global ambassador or active supporter of many organizations. Through her partnerships with organizations such as the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, WE and the Latin GRAMMY Cultural Foundation, she has shown that when it comes to her charitable deeds, she embraces the importance of education for women and children and women’s empowerment. Here are some examples of Sofia Carson’s role in fighting poverty.

Latin GRAMMY Cultural Foundation

Carson was recently named the first-ever global ambassador of the Latin GRAMMY Cultural Foundation. Her role as a global ambassador will be to advocate for, increase and promote awareness of the foundation’s overall mission and educational programs. Carson’s role in fighting poverty with the organization will also include participating in events to help with fundraising and to stimulate the primary focus of the Latin GRAMMY Cultural Foundation, which is to provide scholarships and grants to students around the world who are interested in Latin music, donate musical instruments to schools in need and to preserve different genres of Latin music as well as music education programs. The foundation’s philanthropic program efforts spread among 24 countries and since its establishment in 2014, the Latin GRAMMY Cultural Foundation has donated $5 million in grants, scholarships, musical instrument donations and education events in the United States and Ibero-America.

Recife, Brazil

In June 2019, Carson traveled to Recife, Brazil with UNICEF. In Brazil, 31 children are killed every day, and 90 percent of the violence is aimed toward young girls and women. An average of 51 cases involving violence is reported per day, though the majority of cases are usually not reported because violence toward females is considered normal and expected. Carson’s role in fighting poverty during the trip was to promote and ensure the rights and well-being of all the children, by meeting with the children of Recife as well as their families, to learn about the impactful work that UNICEF is doing in terms of education, empowering girls and early childhood development.

One of the visits Carson made in Recife was to visit the children at COMPAZ, which is a community center, partner with UNICEF Brazil, that emphasizes keeping adolescents away from street activity and works to provide a space for them that embodies peace, education and inclusion. Since COMPAZ and UNICEF have partnered in educating young women, violence in Recife has decreased by 35 percent. Also in Carson’s role in fighting poverty with UNICEF, she undertook a workshop with young women and men that were a part of a program implemented by UNICEF Brazil called Empodera- Today Girls, Tomorrow Women, which is committed to the social and economic empowerment of girls and adolescents by promoting gender-responsive public policies. Carson workshopped with the children to have a dialogue about how to continue to empower women for the upcoming generations. Also, while in Recife, Carson visited the Altino Ventura Foundation, a clinic that offers emergency services and assistance to low-income patients, specifically children and families that have been impacted by the Zika virus.

We, and Me to We Charity

Carson’s role in fighting poverty as a supporter of the WE charity and its partner ME to WE has been long and impactful. ME to WE works to aid employment and economic empowerment to the underprivileged communities around the world, through artisanal and Fairtrade products, as well as global service trips.

Carson’s role in fighting poverty with ME to WE has involved travelling abroad with the charity and developing a Rafiki bracelet where 50 percent of the proceeds from each bracelet will go toward providing young girls access to education, by building educational facilities such as school rooms and libraries, providing the girls with education essentials like pencils and textbooks and nourishing the girl’s leadership and public speaking skills. Rafiki bracelets are a Kenyan tradition, handmade by women. Carson was inspired to help design the “Unstoppable” Rafiki bracelet after going to Kenya with ME to WE and seeing firsthand the impact that the charity is having on the women in the country.

It is evident that with each philanthropic endeavor Carson involves herself with, the safety and education of underprivileged women and young children are at the forefront of her what matters to her.

– Cydni Payton
Photo: Wikimedia