Read more about our initiatives and partnerships supporting drivers, delivery people, merchants, and communities.

Keeping communities safe, fighting food insecurity, helping businesses prosper, and driving equity are four core areas that have guided our social impact work. With more than $3 million in donations and grants along with support for more than 20 local nonprofits, we’ve made a commitment to work with diverse local partners that are making a big impact on communities across the country.

In our latest 2021 Social Impact Report, we have highlighted just some of the more recent collaborations and initiatives that are helping to make our commitment a reality.

 

Keeping Communities Safe

During the height of the global pandemic, we saw an opportunity to generate awareness and create more access to COVID-19 vaccines. Uber and Uber Eats worked with Health Canada to amplify public health information about vaccines to millions of riders, drivers, delivery people, customers, and merchants, helping more Canadians make informed decisions that protect themselves and their neighbours. As vaccines rolled out across the country, we also worked with the City of Toronto, Consortium COVID Quebec, BC 211, 211 Alberta, and the Transportation Options Network for Seniors to offer free and discounted rides to vaccine sites in an effort to help eliminate transportation barriers for vulnerable communities.

Meanwhile, our global commitment to Driving Change saw us focus on improving women’s safety, which included partnerships with the YWCA, an organization that develops resources to create systemic change and end gender-based violence; Woman Abuse Council of Toronto (WomanACT), to support work on policy implementation and education; the Ending Violence Association of BC (EVA BC), to support training and anti-violence work to eliminate sexual assault; and Le Chaînon, a Quebec-based organization that provides safe housing and support to women at risk.

As part of our ongoing commitment to safety, we’re looking at ways where we can make a meaningful impact on different communities. This year we worked with Opération Enfant Soleil, an organization that raises funds for pediatric care in Quebec, to match up to $100,000 in driver tips to help provide the best care for sick children in the region. As a way to both celebrate the important service that Uber drivers provide and help keep roads safe, Uber has partnered with Operation Red Nose for the first time—matching driver tips up to $25,000 to help fight impaired driving this holiday season.

 

Fighting Food Insecurity
It’s hard to reconcile the fact that almost two-thirds of all food produced in Canada is thrown out knowing that one in seven Canadians is facing food insecurity.

This is a completely avoidable crisis. With Uber Freight, we have the ability to help change this by working with nonprofits like Second Harvest, Canada’s largest food rescue organization, to quickly and efficiently transport large volumes of goods while providing vital logistical support. We asked Lori Nikkel, CEO of Second Harvest, about how Uber is helping address food insecurity in Canada and she had this to say:

“Transportation is one of the greatest challenges of getting good healthy food to communities. We are incredibly thankful for the partnership with Uber Freight which has enabled us to provide chicken, eggs, seafood, beef, vegetables, and dry goods to remote and fly-in communities where food insecurity rates are among the highest.”

Through our partnership with Second Harvest, we’ve helped rescue 5.2 million pounds of food and redistribute it to communities in need, while also reducing the negative impact of greenhouse gases created by food waste.

 

Helping Businesses Prosper
We want businesses, drivers, and delivery people using Uber to thrive. To support restaurants during the pandemic, we worked with Restaurants Canada to provide 400 independently owned restaurants with $1 million in grants to help them weather disruption.

Research from the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) has shown that 99% of Indigenous businesses are small businesses, many of which have been negatively affected by COVID. We worked with CCAB to support 450 indigenous entrepreneurs with their business development and growth, while also helping them tackle their transportation challenges.

We have also partnered with The Forum, a not-for-profit dedicated to empowering self-identified women entrepreneurs, to launch a new program that will provide 500 self-identified women on the Uber platform with the tools, resources, and mentorship to take their business to the next level.

Meanwhile, a collaboration with the Canadian Black Chamber of Commerce (CBCC) is developing Black Business Direct, a new, national online directory of Black-owned businesses. The free digital resource is continuing to grow into a comprehensive, easy-to-access resource that Canadians can use to discover and support local Black-owned businesses. Christelle Francois, President of the CBCC, had this to say about how Black Business Direct will support black-owned businesses:

 

”The directory will serve as a powerful tool and contribute in an impactful way to the community business ecosystem. This incredible partnership with Uber Canada creates the opportunity to support Canadian Black-owned companies to be championed and supported.” 

We’re also looking at ways to support sustainability initiatives including a $20K grant to Ressources Geomega for their innovative hydrometallurgical process in partnership with the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec.

 

Driving Equity
We’ve put a number of partnerships in place to ensure that all people are empowered and have the freedom to move and participate in their communities. In partnership with Go Be Safe, Uber provided ride vouchers in response to increasing incidents of anti-Asian hate and racist violence on public transit and in our communities.

Leading up to the recent federal election, we also helped drive the vote by providing  Canadians with 50% discounts on trips to polling stations so that every Canadian could exercise their right to vote on election day.