Due to irreparable harm from the fallout of the WE Charity scandal, WE Charity announced it is closing the Canadian WE Charity. The US and UK WE Charities continue. WE Charity was a one-star-rated charity. Read Ci's report before donating.

WE Charity (originally known as Free the Children) was co-founded in 1995 by Canadian teenagers Craig and Marc Kielburger. WE Charity's mission was to empower students by giving them and their teachers the tools to create transformative social change. WE Charity rose to global fame. WE Charity and Craig Kielburger were on the Oprah show and CBS' 60 minutes.

WE Charity grew and became a global children's charity with development programs in Africa, Ecuador, Haiti, India, and China. WE Charity's international development followed a holistic and sustainable model designed to empower communities to lift themselves out of poverty. WE Charity also ran youth volunteering programs in schools. In 2009, WE Days began. These were massive youth rallies in Canada featuring celebrities and spokespeople to motivate and empower youth to change the world. Students and celebrities alike volunteered in communities and traveled overseas.

The COVID-19 pandemic severely disrupted WE Charity's operations. COVID-19 canceled WE Days and overseas student trips. On top of the COVID-19 pandemic, WE Charity became embroiled in parliamentary investigations known as the WE Charity Scandal. This was one of Canada's largest news stories of 2020.

WE Charity is currently suing CBC's Fifth Estate, Canada's premier weekly news report, for its investigative look into donor deception. The mother of WE Charity's co-founders is suing Canada's highly-rated podcast, White Saviours. WE Charity's lawyers have corresponded with Charity Intelligence. Please appreciate our report sticks simply to facts.

DONOR ADVISORY: Charity Intelligence issued a donor advisory on July 17, 2020, reflecting WE Charity Canada's turnover in directors. New information came to light about its unique governance structure and the control of the co-founders. WE Charity Canada appointed four new directors in March 2020. WE Charity's board changed again in March 2021 when three of the four newly-appointed directors stepped down in March 2021. Greg Rogers remains as board chair.

In F2023, WE Charity spent $3.6m on its programs. The charity reports that since its founding it engaged 7,000 schools in WE Service Campaigns, supported 3,000 charities, and reached one million students through its WE Day celebrations. WE Charity also states that its international programs provided water to one million people, educated 200 thousand children, and launched 30 thousand women-led businesses. 

Other Charity Intelligence reports:

WE Charity Closing, the details, June 2022

WE Charity Foundation; the legacy continues, June 2022

Charity Intelligence WE Charity Foundation report, August 14, 2023.

WE Charity does not disclose its financial statements publicly. Ci received WE Charity’s financial statements after requesting them from the CRA.

WE Charity’s F2023 financial statements are unaudited and redacted. Ci used the charity’s T3010 filing with the CRA to report expense information as the charity does not use activity-based costing. WE Charity’s financial statements only include an operating statement and balance sheet. Ci was unable to report on information from the charity’s cash flow statement and financial notes.

WE Charity received $1.7m in donations in F2023. The charity also received $2.1m in international donations. WE Charity spent $3.6m on its programs, which is 93% of revenue. The charity recorded a deficit of $13k in F2023.

Administrative costs are 4% of revenue (excluding investment income). Fundraising costs are 7% of donations. For every dollar donated to the charity, 89 cents are available to go to the cause, which is within Ci’s reasonable range.

WE Charity has $219k in reserve funds, which can cover 6% or less than one month of its annual program costs.

Due to the public interest in WE Charity, and also since its website has not been updated with the most recent financial statements, here are WE Charity's audited financials:

For fiscal year ending August 2023

For fiscal year ending August 2022

For fiscal year ending August 2021

For fiscal year ending August 2020

For fiscal year ending August 2019

Charity Intelligence has sent this update to WE Charity for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on August 15, 2024 by Liam Chapleau.

Tel: 416-925-5894

Other frequently asked questions from donors: 

ME to WE: There is confusion among donors about the blurred lines between WE Charity and ME to WE. Collectively these two distinct organizations are referred to as "WE," "WE organization," "WE movement," or "WE entities." ME to WE is an affiliated social enterprise. In other words, ME to WE is a private business controlled by Craig and Marc Kielburger, WE Charity's co-founders. While WE Charity was founded in 1995, ME to WE started in 2004. ME to WE's CEO is Roxanne Joyal, Marc Kielburger's wife. WE Charity's CFO is also ME to WE's CFO.

WE Charity has a complex structure that is rare in the charity sector. Bloomberg News mapped out the charities and private Kielburger businesses that are WE entities.

WE Charity's response to this article is that while it has charities and businesses in many countries with different rules about social enterprises, this corporate structure is necessitated by Canada's antiquated charity rules.