Twitter has for the first time in the company’s (relatively short) history, formally partnered with a charity. The company has teamed up with Room to Read as part of a “Corporate Social Innovation” initiative.
Room to Read is a San-Francisco-based non-profit, which aims to “empower millions of children in the developing world through education.” Twitter staff will participate in making a Pinot Noir and a Chardonnay with Crushpad, a winery (also based out of San Francisco). Consumers will be invited to pre-purchase bottles of the wine (and follow its progress on Twitter), and even be able to take part in some stages of its creation. Once it’s ready, five dollars from every bottle that is sold will go directly to Room to Read for the purpose of enabling literacy programs in some of the poorest parts of the world.
“Like our friends at Twitter, Room to Read is thinking big and growing fast. This innovative partnership will allow us to bring new libraries to thousands of children in developing communities across Asia and Africa,” said John Wood, founder and executive chairman of Room to Read.
“Not only does Room to Read’s get-things-done approach speak to our start-up mentality, but as a company we want to find ways to make a positive impact in the world,” said Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, who seems to really like wine:
“We’re excited to contribute to this initiative by creating two great wines,” said Michael Brill, CEO of Crushpad. “Using the same vineyards and state-of-the-art winemaking that we’re known for, our goal is to seriously over-deliver on both quality and experience.”
The wine itself will be available in the fall of 2010. It is currently in the fermentation process. More information about the project can be found here.
