The views expressed in this article are the views of the author.
If you’ve been on YouTube the past week (then again, who hasn’t?), you might’ve caught onto an initiative involving many video stars. Mr. Beast — a popular YouTuber who constantly carries out crazy challenges — is teaming up with the organization, Team Trees, to plant 20 million trees by the year 2020. For every dollar donated, a tree will be plopped down in the ground.
Will this initiative work? Hard to tell, although at the time of this writing, almost 6 million trees have been planted, or at least will be thanks to many generous donations. That’s pretty impressive, considering that this fundraiser began three days ago. And honestly, the timing could not be better, as the future of our planet is dependent on humans making strict changes to our way of living to keep our planet flourishing.
There are many issues plaguing humanity at the moment: climate change, human trafficking, drug addiction, poverty and racial discrimination, to name a few. As one person, it can feel pointless trying to make a long-lasting impact. After all, what’s the point of starting a charity to combat drug addiction if no one will pay attention?
However, Mr. Beast’s initiative is a great example of internet influencers using their platform and their power to speak about important global issues. People take notice, and action is generated. This is where influencers need to come in. People are already paying attention to them because they have the ability to captivate and motivate an audience. Why not change the spotlight to focus on important issues?
Again, one influencer may not be able to change the world alone. However, by teaming up with a popular, credible charity or organization, it becomes easier to tackle the world’s problems and get everyone on board. Just posting a 10-minute video is perfect for addressing issues that are strongly on your mind. It shows that the influencer is serious about changing things for the better.
I’m not asking you donate your entire net worth to people in need, but use your fame to somehow reach into the crack of problems so everyone can join the fight to mend them back together.
Everyone wants to be famous nowadays and enjoy their plethora of fans and all the perks fame brings. But in the calm of the fame storm, these celebrities should take a minute to stop and think, ‘How can I give back to my community?’ ‘How can I help so many who are less fortunate than me?’ At the end of the day, no one really cares how many riches you had or how much you contributed to the Internet with your original content.
But when an influencer uses their power of money, a large audience and a voice, they can contribute to helping so many who are less fortunate on Earth. And everyone will remember you for it. Mr. Beast is known for his insane videos. But, five years from now, when (hopefully) a majority of the trees are flourishing, we’ll remember him for taking an important call to action to help curb climate change.
While we’re at it, go donate a dollar to plant a tree right now at TeamTrees.