“As our community in Vancouver has been rapidly expanding, the same has been happening in Kenya and Uganda,” says Davis. “I’m really looking forward to bridging these two communities together in a meaningful way through our special guest. I think people will feel really connected to the tangible impact their support is having.”

The fast-paced, inspiring IWANTtoBE event returns this spring in support of local charity One Girl Can, bringing together a community of like-minded Vancouverites, all in the name of eradicating poverty and gender inequality in Africa through education.

Changing education for the girl child is critical for global development. Lotte Davis, founder of One Girl Can, feels like it’s her life’s mission to ensure equal and quality education is given to girls in Kenya and has used her skills as an entrepreneur to build schools in some of the most impoverished parts of the East African nation. She spoke to CNBC Africa’s Kopano Gumbi.

Just in time for International Women’s Day on March 8, Vancouver actress Mackenzie Davis (of Tully and Blade Runner fame) has been named the new ambassador of One Girl Can. We caught up with Davis in advance of the official announcement to learn more about the charity, her connection to it and why she feels it’s so important.

All children should have access to an education. Period. But there are many places in the world where access to education is still restricted, especially for girls.
Various international charities have long been stepping up to help change this, and the Vancouver-based initiative One Girl Can is one of them.
Just in time for International Women’s Day, Vancouver actress Mackenzie Davis has been named the new ambassador of One Girl Can. The Vancouver Sun caught up with Davis to learn more about her involvement.

One Girl Can created a micro-project for each girl, telling her story compassionately and honestly and asking donors to fund her individual education, always taking care to ensure the campaigns were done in a sensitive manner that took into account the girls’ privacy and individual preferences. Donors have the option of making a single gift or signing up for monthly recurring donations to a specific microproject.

Since 2008, AG Hair has donated a portion of each product sold directly to educate girls in Africa. A portion of the sale of every bottle goes to building schools in Kenya & Uganda.

“When I first starting going back to Africa, I was overwhelmed by how great the need was,” says Davis, who over decades of visiting a dozen African countries has channelled her generosity. “I had read a lot and knew about the capacity women in underdeveloped countries had to create change, and the trickle-down effect that empowering one woman with education could have on her family and her community.”

Yanise Ho is seeing America in a unique way,  skating from the East Coast (Miami) to the West Coast (Portland) with no money and no safety net, all to prove that the kindness of strangers still exists. She has already ventured thousands of miles solo and, in the process, raised over $13,000 to date for girls in Africa to continue their secondary education via the Canadian-based nonprofit One Girl Can.

“One Girl Can gives young African women a voice and empowers them to make positive changes in society,” said Davis, addressing the room of difference makers. “This event is about more than just raising money,” she added. “It’s the ideal opportunity for our supporters to connect with how One Girl Can is able to make such a positive difference in Africa.”

ONE WOMAN DID: At the Imperial Theatre on Main street, Lotte Davis saw $350,000 reportedly raised for the One Girl Can organization she founded. That will send 85 African girls to university and 95 to high school.

Proof that One Girl Can make a difference. Bianca Bujan shares Lotte Davis’ story of how she started One Girl Can in the WestCoast Families Education Edition.

Wondering what it takes to start a charity? Lotte Davis started One Girl Can to build schools and careers in Africa. “We don’t just build schools or offer scholarships. We nurture her and make sure that every single one of the girls is successful.”

The Canadian Woman Helping Girls In Sub-Saharan Africa Stay In School. Fashion Magazine’s Joy Pecknold traveled to Africa for a first-hand view into One Girl Can’s activities.

“I believe in the ability of women to become leaders, no matter where in the world they come from.”

Learn more about One Girl Can’s founder, Lotte Davis, through her Lean In feature.

When the second of her two daughters moved out of the family home, Lotte Davis embarked on a project that would make her a mother again — to dozens of young women. Michele Marko sat down with One Girl Can’s founder, Lotte Davis, to discuss her inspiration willpower and for the foundation.

NICHE Magazine highlights One Girl Can’s record-breaking donations at the 2017 #IWant2Be Fundraiser, where all funds go towards building two science labs at a girl’s school in Kenya, and will fund 36 new university scholarships for girls coming from one of the five high schools One Girl Can has built.

Jen Murtagh, guest post contributor, spoke about her recent life-changing journey to Africa with One Girl Can and Lotte Davis, founder of One Girl Can.

“Sam Sullivan’s Public Salon brings together interesting people with interesting ideas for evenings that are meant to inspire and educate.” Lotte Davis, Founder of One Girl Can, was a featured speaker on January 18. Follow the link below to watch Lotte’s inspiring speech.

Lise Boullard from Vancouver Luxury Living magazine interviews Founder, Lotte Davis. The Vancouver-based magazine is run by Shaw TV and One Girl Can Fundraiser MC, Fiona Forbes.

Since 2008, AG Hair has donated a portion of each product sold to educate girls in Sub-Saharan Africa through its Every Bottle Counts campaign.To date, AG has raised $3.6 million for their effort to empower African girls.

“I grew up in apartheid South Africa, and here I was, successful as a woman, and I wanted to do something to help other women succeed,” she explains. “And I knew without question it had to be in Africa, and had to be for women. I did not want to write a cheque, though. I wanted my arms right around it. And when I visited a slum school in Nairobi, that was it, I knew what to do.” What emerged was One Girl Can.

Davis has also used her business to support her philanthropic work–AG’s Every Bottle Counts campaign, it involves donating a portion of each sale to One Girl Can, Davis’ charity that provides educational opportunities to girls in Africa.

Thousands of girls and young women are currently participating in One Girl Can, including coaching programs and workshops that offer one-on-one mentoring and help with post-graduation job searches. As Davis puts it, “With One Girl Can, we are not successful until that girl is earning a salary.”