For nearly twenty years, Dreamforce — the largest software conference in the world – has brought hundreds of thousands of Salesforce trailblazers to San Francisco to learn, connect, be inspired and give back to the community.
One of my favorite parts about Dreamforce (and I’ve been to 11!) is joining attendees to stuff backpacks for our local schools, host a book drive where we collected one million books, or build a wall with cans of food stacked higher than anyone can reach. These moments bring everyone at Dreamforce — from CEOs to interns to performers — together to give back.
This year, COVID-19 has changed everything. Even though we can’t be together at Dreamforce, the communities we serve need us now more than ever. We’re facing so many converging crises: a pandemic, an economic crisis, a racial equality crisis and a leadership crisis. All of these have hit our communities hard. They’ve also exposed the cracks of inequality in our system – we see it across healthcare, education, work opportunity, food insecurity and more.
Since the pandemic hit earlier this year, we’ve delivered more than 50 million pieces of PPE to hospitals around the world, provided free technology to more than 60,000 companies, donated $50M to support our communities, and we’re supporting minority-owned businesses and so much more.
So whether Dreamforce is online or with 170,000 registered attendees in San Francisco, we are committed to making giving back an integral part of the celebration.
Ebony Beckwith, Chief Philanthropy Officer
During Dreamforce to You 2020, Salesforce will donate a total of $5 million to address the crises our communities are facing.
COVID-19 has hit small businesses—the heart of our communities—especially hard. Earlier this summer, Salesforce distributed $3 million in grants to 300 U.S. small businesses. Because we’re not celebrating Dreamforce in person this year, all of the people who typically come to Dreamforce won’t be eating in local restaurants or shopping in local stores. So we’re creating a $2 million fund to support our local small businesses in San Francisco. Please visit salesforce.com/sfsmallbizgrants to be notified when the grant application process opens.
We’ll donate another $3 million to our global nonprofit partners who are working tirelessly to address the converging crises.
- Hunger: To address hunger globally, Salesforce is donating to World Central Kitchen and Eat. Learn. Play. Eat. Learn. Play. is working to end childhood hunger, increase food access and reduce food waste in the Bay Area. World Central Kitchen is using the power of food to heal communities and strengthen economies in times of crisis and beyond. Every completed Dreamforce to You meeting through 12/18 will unlock $25 to World Central Kitchen (up to $500K).
- Health: To combat COVID-19 and address the health crisis amplified by the pandemic, Salesforce is donating to (RED) and CareMessage. The donation to (RED) will support the Global Fund’s COVID-19 response to protect health workers, strengthen health systems and deliver critical health services to vulnerable communities. CareMessage is addressing racial disparities in healthcare for Black, Latinx, and immigrant communities across the United States.
- Climate: To support climate action, Salesforce is donating to Plant-for-the-Planet to support and mobilize the conservation, restoration, and growth of trees across the globe.
For the last few years, we’ve hosted the Future Executive Summit where we’ve brought students and young adults to experience the magic of Dreamforce with curated content and guest speakers. Finally, we plan to host Future Ready Fest, a series of workshops, skill-building sessions and thought leadership moments, in an effort to engage young people globally.
Giving back has always been central to Dreamforce, and this commitment is more important than ever. Over the next two months, there will be even more opportunities to get involved.
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