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2010 stands apart in my book for the year of Disney volunteering. From the Give a Day, Get a Disney Day program to learning about the work Disney VoluntEARS do in their local communities, it’s clear that Disney has a strong current commitment to making the world a better place.
The official Disney Parks blog shares a story about one of the VoluntEARS’ latest projects. The VoluntEARS from Walt Disney World Resort have partnered with Orlando-based nonprofit Clean the World to both promote the recycling of amenities and improve health in impoverished areas.
Clean the World’s mission is to help stop the spread of disease in areas where hygiene-based illnesses are rampant by working with the hospitality industry to recycle the thousands of soap and shampoo products discarded by hotels every day.
As isn’t surprising, given its location and size, Disney World is Clean the World’s largest supplier. The VoluntEARS spearhead the resort’s efforts to aid this important initiative. All 24 hotels in Disney World take part in the project, and have so far donated 25,710 pounds of hygiene products, including soap, shampoo, lotion, and conditioner this year to Clean the World.
The process Clean the World takes with its suppliers goes as follows: whenever a customer checks out of the hotel room, all complementary hygiene products provided in the room, sometimes even if they weren’t used (depending on that particular hotel’s policy), are replaced. Instead, Clean the World takes the discarded products, sanitizes and repackages them, and distributes them to those in need across the world.
Recently bars of Walt Disney World soaps bearing the famous Mouse Ears, among other hygiene goods, have made their way to Haiti in the midst of the cholera outbreak. Members of Clean the World are currently in Haiti helping fight the disease with more than 100,000 sanitized hygiene products, many of them coming from Disney World.
While soap obviously cannot cure cholera, its use helps prevent the disease from spreading. This month Clean the World plans, with Disney World’s help, to deliver another 200,000 bars of soap to Haiti.
I know I’m harsh on the Disney Company sometimes. I don’t like the new approach it’s taking to its films. But I think it’s awesome how much Disney gives back. I’m not sure whether it’s a corporate policy or just the initiative of the parks staff, but I’m proud to be a Disney fan when I hear about stories like this.
Other recent projects of the VoluntEARS include donating school supplies to Central Florida children, cruise ship VoluntEARS painting a mural for donation to a hospital in Barcelona, Spain, and building a playground for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida.
If you’d like to learn more about the mission of the Disney VoluntEARS’ latest partner, Clean the World, check out the nonprofit’s official website here.
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*(This image by erin MC hammer is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.)
