From the computer screen to the bank

Better the World, a social enterprise based in Toronto, has established a method that lets people raise money for charities simply by surfing the Internet.

The best part is members can choose whatever charity and specific cause they want to contribute to.

Users download a sidebar available at their Web site, which displays small boxes of corporate ads while they surf the Web. In addition, bloggers can also embed a widget into their blog to serve the same function.

Kristen Petri, the head of marketing and communications at Better the World, explained that the money that comes from corporations for that advertising goes directly to charitable organizations.

“Ninety percent of revenue goes to the charity and cause of choice,” Petri said. The other 10 percent is used for maintaining the project.

By making charity simple and easy, Better the World hopes students will take an active role in helping others out.

“We’re really interested in student membership,” Petri said. “The more members we can get, the more money we can raise.”

Steve Croth, one of the three co-founders of Better the World, left a job at Microsoft in November 2007 that he had for 12 years to pursue an Executive MBA at the University of Western Ontario.

A course he took during this time was the birthplace for the idea that became the Better the World enterprise.

“For the course, we solved large strategic issues for organizations and we focused on applying technology for good,” Croth said.

Better the World set up its offices in May 2008 and by February 2009, the Web site had launched and fundraising was underway.

“People can make a real impact in the world,” Croth said. “I’m proud that we are bringing innovation to these organizations. We’re helping them, and that’s what really gets me going.”

Better the World has established a goal of raising $1 billion for the causes their members choose, and their passion for using the Internet for good is going a long way.
The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, for example, is a partner of Better The World and is working on saving an orphaned baby rhino with funds raised through the site.

Other charities have also found Better the World to be helpful. Alyson Rowe, the manager of youth outreach at War Child, a charitable organization that works with children affected by war, was attracted to the concept after meeting two of the founders at a conference.

“I was interested because it is an innovative grassroots project,” Rowe said. “Personally, I think the concept is amazing.”