Count Me In is a youth-led leadership organization. The global

youth empowerment Youth empowerment is a process where children and young people are encouraged to take charge of their lives. They do this by addressing their situation and then take action in order to improve their access to resources and transform their consciou ...

movement was founded in 2008 by Shane Feldman, and as of September 2017 the organization has impacted 10 million millennials in 104 countries. The organization was started in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, and now has offices in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Count Me In promotes student volunteerism and community leadership, and has been recognized as the link between teenagers and the charitable sector. The organization's members have contributed over 100 million hours of community service worldwide, which was valued at $2.4 billion by the U.S.

Bureau of Labor Statistics The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is a unit of the United States Department of Labor. It is the principal fact-finding agency for the U.S. government in the broad field of labor economics and statistics and serves as a principal agency of t ...

in 2016.

Background

Count Me In was started by Shane Feldman at the age of 13 in 2008. The organization was developed after Feldman experienced a difficult transition into high school. With the help of his

guidance counsellor A school counselor is a professional who works in primary (elementary and middle) schools or secondary schools to provide academic, career, college access/affordability/admission, and social-emotional competencies to all students through a school ...

, Feldman got involved in clubs and volunteer opportunities, which inspired him to help his peers do the same. He decided to plan a school assembly to help students at his

York Region The Regional Municipality of York, also called York Region, is a regional municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada, between Lake Simcoe and Toronto. The region was established after the passing of then Bill 102, An Act to Establish The Regional M ...

public high school,

Westmount Collegiate Institute Westmount Collegiate Institute is a high school in the Thornhill, Ontario district of the greater city of Vaughan. It opened its doors in 1996, as part of the multi-purpose campus now known as the Jean Augustine Complex, named for Jean Augustin ...

. 400 students from 7 schools participated in the first event, which evolved into Count Me In. What started as a small project went viral, and evolved into the global Count Me In movement.

Count Me In Conference

Count Me In is best known for their youth-empowerment program, Count Me In Conference, rebranded in 2014 as the Count Me In Global Broadcast. The program inspires local volunteer action. The 2014 Count Me In Global Broadcast was the largest youth-run event in history, with 2.2 million viewers tuning in from 69 countries. The event, organized by a team of teenagers, was recognized by the Canadian House of Commons as the largest youth-run empowerment event in the world.

Count Me In Leadership Summit

The Count Me In Leadership Summit is a 4-day leadership camp program for high school and college students. Youth delegates are nominated and selected from around the world, and according to Count Me In, "participants represent a diverse mix of leadership styles and backgrounds". The Count Me In Leadership Summit provides delegates with the opportunity to learn from expert facilitators and keynote speakers, and explore their individuality through interactive panels, breakout sessions, and team-building activities. With a focus on holistic leadership development and

Servant leadership Servant leadership is a leadership philosophy in which the goal of the leader is to serve. This is different from traditional leadership where the leader's main focus is the thriving of their company or organization. A servant leader shares powe ...

, delegates gain new perspectives on the world around them.

Celebrity supporters

Count Me In has gained the support of notable celebrities including two-time nominated Gemini actress,

Ashley Leggat Ashley Leggat (born September 26, 1986) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles as Casey McDonald in the Canadian family comedy series ''Life with Derek'' and as Tiffany in the MTV television film ''Made... The Movie''. Early life Le ...

, Emmy award-winning actress, Kristin Chenoweth, Olympic athlete and world champion,

Perdita Felicien Perdita Felicien (born August 29, 1980) is a Canadian retired hurdler. Felicien is the 2003 World champion in the 100 metres hurdles and 2004 World indoor champion in the 60 metres hurdles. She also won silver medals at the 2007 World Champions ...

, JUNO nominated singer,

Victoria Duffield Victoria Eileen Elizabeth Duffield (born January 3, 1995) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress. She is best known for her debut single "Shut Up and Dance", which peaked at number 12 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart in 2011 and was c ...

, Star of the

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

nominated series Degrassi, Luke Bilyk and Melinda Shankar, rap sensation Lil Jaxe, and Canada's Got Talent finalist, Shale Wagman, Founder of Raise Your Rag, Ryan Porter. Author of "The Ultimate Guide to Teen Life", Yahya Bakka, Pop sensation,

Megan Nicole Megan Nicole Green (née Flores, born September 1, 1993), simply known as Megan Nicole, is an American singer-songwriter and actress who debuted on YouTube in 2009. Early life Megan Nicole was born in Houston, Texas to parents Tammy and Frankie ...

, upcoming global pop star,

Francesco Yates Francesco Yates (born September 11, 1995) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Biography Yates was born in Toronto and started writing music at the age of 11. He signed to Atlantic Records when he was 16. His self-titled debut EP, released on ...

, YouTube sensation, Hunter March. On January 9, 2013, Feldman appeared alongside

Liza Fromer Liza Fromer (born March 18, 1970) is a former cohost of '' The Morning Show'' on the Global Television Network and ''Breakfast Television'' at Citytv in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She graduated from Ryerson University with a degree in Radio and T ...

on Global TV's "The Morning Show" to announce new Count Me In supporters, Degrassi star Luke Bilyk and rap sensation Lil Jaxe. Other celebrities who have supported Count Me In include: * Ashley Leggat * Luke Bilyk * Cody Simpson * Alli Simpson * Cimorelli * Kevin Breel * Thomas Sanders * Hunter March * Jessica Tyler * Carlos Guevara (X Factor USA) * Josh Shipp * Perdita Felicien * Kristen Chenoweth * Rick Mercer * Matt Webb (Marianas Trench) * The Treble

References

{{Authority control Youth organizations based in Canada 2008 establishments in Ontario