How a young entrepreneur helped more than 1,700 daily wage workers and raised more than P1M during the ECQ



 

Due to the ECQ, businesses were forced to halt operations - thus leaving so many of our daily wage workers with no jobs, and no means to provide for their families.

 

Despite these challenging times, the ‘bayanihan’ spirit of the Filipinos prevailed. Many companies, members of the private sector, and individuals took the initiative to assist fellow Filipinos who are in need.

 

The rise of COVID-19 cases in the Philippines followed by the announcement of an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) have restricted the movement of people in Metro Manila and Luzon, leaving many daily wage earners and informal workers with no jobs.

 

Joey Gamos, a young entrepreneur, founder and owner of the brand Tara Baraha!, is among the many who stepped up to help those who lost their means of living. ‘Tara Baraha!’ is a small local business selling playing cards that showcase the beauty of the Philippines. The deck comes with 52 info cards that would take you on a visual journey around the Philippines, and three joker cards that serve as bucket lists to top destinations around the country. Gamos mobilized her own network and made use of her business’ Facebook and Instagram page to start a donation drive, “Tara Tulong Tayo!”, for the daily wage earners and their families.

 

Joey Gamos, founder of Tara Baraha used online design platform, Canva, to design her posters for the donation drive.

Gamos felt restless and after speaking to a couple of friends about her worries, she had the urge to do something to help from home. She started by creating a compelling poster through online design platform, Canva, for the visual materials of her initiative. She then launched the fundraising drive on March 16, first day of the ECQ, which aimed to give Php1,000 cash assistance to affected daily wage workers.

“It started as a personal concern about our daily wage worker kababayans and their families. In the news that preceded the start of ECQ, I saw the struggle of so many of our workers who had to endure so much just to get to their place of work as public transportation was put to a halt - a foreshadowing of the hardships that they will go through for the rest of the quarantine period. They expressed their worries and concerns on how they’ll be able to feed their families. Without their income, they would go hungry and possibly resort into other means of surviving. It could lead to crimes and disorderliness in the community - it will be a domino effect, really. Through the generosity of so many kind souls, we have been able to send help to those who need it the most, especially in these tough times. It was great to have been able to create a platform that enabled many of us to be able to help from home. May the kindest and best in us emerge as we continue to fight this global pandemic.” ~Joey Gamos, a young entrepreneur, founder and owner of the brand Tara Baraha!

Joey Gamos designed her ‘Tara Tulong Tayo!’ posters using Canva.

Her close friends and family eventually joined her as the donations poured in as they all helped with the day-to-day operations. For the past 3 months, the whole Tara Tulong Tayo! initiative has become a collective effort by generous individuals, small local businesses and communities as some even mounted their own donation drives/online sales and chose ‘Tara Tulong Tayo’ as their beneficiary.

 

As of June 14th, and Day 89 of the initiative, they have been able to raise Php 1,741,353.00 and have sent out cash assistance to 1,741 of our daily wage worker kababayans. The initiative’s beneficiaries include our workers whose livelihoods have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic: food establishment crew, PUV drivers, maintenance personnel, vendors, construction workers, salon staff, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

ABOUT CANVA
Launched in 2013, Canva is an intuitive online design and publishing platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere. Featuring a simple drag-and-drop user interface and a vast library of templates ranging from presentations, social media posts, posters, invitations to resumes, a huge collection of stock photography, illustrations and fonts, anyone can take an idea and create something beautiful. Canva is available on web, iOS and Android.

 

 

 



Canva for Education supports and empowers Filipino teachers in adapting to the new normal

 

 



In an attempt to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, schools across the globe shutdown affecting billions of students, teachers, school staff and their respective families as lessons either ceased or moved to an entirely remote environment.

While online classes were originally targeted towards unique minority groups such as working adults who want to continue studying, persons with disabilities (PWDs) who cannot go to school physically or those with special medical needs who have to stay home, the disruption brought about by the pandemic has advanced the adoption of online learning in schools all over the world.

 

 



Now more than ever, training and equipping teachers with tools for remote and innovative learning is an essential step educational institutions and the government need to take to circumvent any future scenarios that could potentially affect the schooling year.

 

Canva for Education, offers a rich and authentic learning experience tailored to the needs of a classroom by empowering teachers and students to create and collaborate online through visuals. Best of all, it is an entirely free resource of teachers globally.

 

The user-friendly intuitive platform also includes add-ons such as education-specific content, the ability to create captivating videos, plus every ingredient to bring designs to life with Giphys, over 2 million images, 800k icons and illustrations, 700+ fonts, YouTube integrations and QR codes.

 

 



Yani Hornilla-Donato, Canva’s Manila Country Manager, explained the estimated 27 million students, expected to enroll this academic year in the Philippines, are sure to benefit from Canva for Education - as it is a wonderful platform for project-based learning whether in the classroom or not.

“Our goal is to help teachers create engaging classroom content, simply. With a plethora of classroom-friendly templates, relevant to specific learning goals, teachers can create eBooks and eBook covers, beautiful presentations for their subjects, class schedules, worksheets, handouts, online test papers and posters; the options are only limited by your imagination. We have truly tailored this product to ensure it meets the needs and requirements of schools worldwide, serving as a ‘one-stop-shop’ for creating and collaborating in the classroom. We are happy and excited to share the gift of Canva for Education to Filipino teachers, showing them how they can easily create beautiful learning content for their students and even fellow teachers. Ultimately, the platform aims to help them integrate visual, digital and design literacy in their classroom experience.” ~Yani Hornilla-Donato, Canva’s Manila Country Manager

 

 



Canva for Education also includes an all-new collaboration space, a review workflow, access to content from Google Drive, Dropbox, Folders, version history and SSO with Clever and Google.

 

In a webinar hosted by Canva, in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd), Mark Anthony Sy, DepEd EdTech Coordinator, highlighted the value of equipping educators with tools to empower them in the classroom.

“We have discovered how much Canva for Education can help our teachers be more imaginative in designing materials to engage and motivate their students in the classroom. As a department, we want to empower our educators with tools that will inspire them and help them go beyond limits in their respective classes.” ~Mark Anthony Sy, DepEd EdTech Coordinator

The webinar also paved the way for Canva and DepEd to launch a Facebook Community for Filipino Teachers that serves as a space for professional support and training as teachers  learn and adapt to the modalities of virtual and distance teaching.

 

Canva and DepEd will hold another Canva for Education webinar for Filipino teachers on June 15, live on DepEd Tech’s Facebook page.

 

To know more about Canva for Education, visit https://www.canva.com/education/.

 

 

 

 

 

ABOUT CANVA
Launched in 2013, Canva is an intuitive online design and publishing platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere. Featuring a simple drag-and-drop user interface and a vast library of templates ranging from presentations, social media posts, posters, invitations to resumes, a huge collection of stock photography, illustrations and fonts, anyone can take an idea and create something beautiful. Canva is available on web, iOS and Android.

 

 



Canva Philippines Wins Recognition Among Best Workplaces in PH

Named as one of the Best Workplaces by Great Place to Work Philippines, Canva empowers its employees to be a force for good by providing an enriching workplace. Photo credit: Canva



Online design platform Canva was named among the Best Workplaces by Great Place to Work Philippines, the only startup to make it to the list. Placing on top three, Canva Philippines runs shortly after Synchrony Global Services Philippines, DHL Express. Others in the top five were Icon Hilton and Ingram Micro.

 

Great Place to Work ranks companies according to their high-performing culture, trust in their managers, and how employees take pride and joy in the work that they do. Guided by its values — be a force for good, empower others, pursue excellence, be a good human, make complex things simple, and set crazy big goals — Canva has put its employees’ wellbeing as a top priority to encourage them to deliver work that creates meaningful impact in the lives of their partners and communities.

“This recognition gives us a sense of fulfillment that we are on the right track of providing a healthy and sustainable workplace. At a time when startups continue to be on the rise, this only goes to show that we can provide a fulfilling workplace to our employees and that we are here to stay.” ~Yani Hornilla Donato, Canva Philippines Country Manager

In 2019, Canva announced its valuation of US$3.2 billion, making it one of the fastest growing startups in the world.

 

The onset of COVID-19 also motivated Canva Philippines to show that workplace culture goes far beyond the physical workplace. As a high-growth start-up, it leveraged its adaptable and agile teams to get the job done. In return, Canva remains committed to safeguard not only its employees’ livelihood but also their health and wellness.      

Working from home means they have doubled down on communicating through video conferences and Slack channels. The clubs they have at work have been uploaded into virtual communities they can tune in to such as a make-up tutorial group, and deskcersise group. They have also retained the jobs of their in-house chef and baristas and have provided a channel where they show simple recipes with basic ingredients and brewing coffee from home.

 

In addition to this, each employee has been provided with food and internet allowance; pocket wifi units were also given out to aid remote work. Those who were recently from overseas were also provided with hotel accommodation to delay physical contact with their families.

Prior to the quarantine, Canva Philippines was already proactive in going the extra mile for its Canvanauts by encouraging their passions with activities such as movement corner, chair yoga, and even table tennis. Canva’s latest recognition only goes to show that it pays for companies to invest in its people.

 

For more information on Canva, visit https://www.canva.com/.

 

ABOUT CANVA

Launched in 2013, Canva is an intuitive online design and publishing platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere. Featuring a simple drag-and-drop user interface and a vast library of templates ranging from presentations, social media posts, posters, invitations to resumes, a huge collection of stock photography, illustrations and fonts, anyone can take an idea and create something beautiful. Canva is available on web, iOS and Android.

 



Messages of gratitude and support overflow as netizens design motivational cards for frontliners and COVID-19 patients

Photo credit: Stephanie Nodado

If there’s one thing that keeps the frontliners going it’s the overflowing support of families, friends, and even strangers.

 

As COVID-19 continues to spread across the globe, the number of cases has also escalated in the Philippines placing Filipino healthcare workers at the forefront to fight against the virus. Doctors, nurses, laboratory technicians, and hospital staff face the hazard of infection everyday, and extensive working hours at the hospital can be very exhausting. Virus-stricken patients, on the other hand, have limited contact with their families, and being away from loved ones can really be lonesome.

To show compassion for COVID-19 patients and gratitude for frontliners, online design platform Canva encouraged netizens to show their support by simply designing a motivational card using pre-made Canva templates. In response, different groups and individuals have shared their messages to our frontline heroes and COVID-19 patients. The Filipinos’ trait of bayanihan is indeed in action even online.



Photo Credit: Ivy Awayan Araullo

 

“At a time when the country is facing multiple restrictions, it’s more important than ever to reach out to those in isolation. It’s incredibly motivating to see so many people step up to demonstrate compassion, something I hope will continue once COVID-19 is eradicated. We’re putting people first, which in turn provides stability and psychological safety in the community - the key to all of us winning the war on an invisible, yet shared, enemy.” ~Yani Hornilla-Donato, Canva Manila, Country Manager

Photo Credit: Yasha Christina Alarcon



 Canva sent over 4,000 motivational cards and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) donations to hospitals around Metro Manila to applaud the sacrifice and dedication of the healthcare workers, and to show support to COVID-19 patients.

Check out more cards for frontliners HERE and for COVID-19 patients HERE.

For more information about Canva, visit https://www.canva.com/.

 

 

 

 

 

ABOUT CANVA
Launched in 2013, Canva is an intuitive online design and publishing platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere. Featuring a simple drag-and-drop user interface and a vast library of templates ranging from presentations, social media posts, posters, invitations to resumes, a huge collection of stock photography, illustrations and fonts, anyone can take an idea and create something beautiful. Canva is available on web, iOS and Android.