Social Sponsorships

Cultivating good corporate citizenship is also about sponsoring community-building initiatives.

For example, since 2000, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) has collaborated with industry partners to build playgrounds so children with and without disabilities can play safely together. Sponsors can donate financially to the effort and also are encouraged to participate in the actual building of the playground.

Last year’s AAOS playground build was at a community center in San Francisco’s Telegraph Hill neighborhood. Participants included AAOS annual meeting attendees, medical industry sponsors, staff from KaBOOM! (a national non-profit dedicated to saving play for America’s children by creating great play spaces through the participation and leadership of communities) and local neighborhood residents.

At this year’s annual AAOS gathering, orthopedic manufacturers, along with hundreds of meeting attendees, industry supporters and community volunteers, met on March 19 for another playground build at Faith Community of Saint Sabina in Chicago, Ill.

“This will be the academy’s second Safe and Accessible Playground build in the Chicago area,” said Kayee Ip, AAOS’ media relations specialist. “Thanks to all the industry sponsors and volunteers, we’ll be able to build a safe, accessible playground for the children of Chicago’s Auburn Gresham neighborhood.”

Sponsoring community-building initiatives—both financially and as a participant—fosters goodwill and reflects positively on your company. It’s also a fun way for employees of the sponsoring companies to come together, informally network, and align with industry partners who also value corporate social responsibility.