Hotel Engine Corporate Social Responsibility Update: H1 2022
Giving back has always been part of the growth plan at Engine. As we expanded, we also aimed to continually increase our charitable efforts and extend support toward organizations working to build a better world.
Earlier this year, we announced an increase to our corporate giving and an expansion of our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program. Now, halfway through 2022, we’re proud to look back on what we’ve accomplished so far this year. Our efforts have been focused on four main pillars: Environment, Women and Children, Education and Equal Justice.
Environment
We take our role as stewards of the environment seriously. Based in Denver, CO, we have a great appreciation for nature’s beauty, as well as its fragility — particularly in the face of natural disasters driven by climate change. We support efforts that conserve and protect our natural resources and restore our biodiversity.
In 2022, we continued our partnership with One Tree Planted to help plant an additional 50,000 trees (for a total of 300,000) in critical reforestation areas of the US. Efforts were focused along rivers and streams in the Pacific Northwest to restore habitats of the West Coast Chinook salmon, ultimately helping the endangered orca
Women and Children
SafeHouse Denver, one of our 2022 CSR partners, provides survivors of domestic violence and their children with safe shelter, advocacy and resources. They offer an emergency shelter, a counseling and advocacy center and an extended stay program to meet the needs of all survivors and their families.
Engine supported SafeHouse with a $35,000 grant, along with volunteer hours. Our associates showed up to help stuff envelopes for SafeHouse’s annual mailing, along with other volunteer activities.
Education
We partnered with Children of Uganda this year and provided a grant that will fund the education for eight Ugandan children over the next three years. We are further supporting their efforts by getting our associates involved in a food drive over the next few weeks.
By helping to fund education for these children, we can help them unlock opportunities and give them a chance to build a better future for themselves and their families.
Equal Justice
For our newest CSR pillar, we chose to support the Korey Wise Innocence Project (KWIP), run by the University of Colorado Law School and CU Boulder community. KWIP works to exonerate wrongfully convicted individuals via free investigative and legal services.
Engine’s $35,000 donation helped KWIP fund its outreach and education efforts designed to raise public awareness about wrongful conviction. After receiving these funds, KWIP took the leap to hire a new staff attorney to focus exclusively on policy work!
Employee-Driven Giving
In addition to our four main areas of corporate giving, we also ask our associates to choose a different organization each quarter to receive a $10,000 donation and coordinated volunteer efforts.
Our Q1 pick was The Gathering Place Denver, which helps those experiencing poverty and homelessness establish stability and security. They offer crucial services to the community, including a food pantry, job coaching and job-seeking support, a physical and mental health program and much more. In addition to monetary support, Engine organized a staff volunteer day to help sort items for The Gathering Place’s free Pride Month clothing boutique.
We’re thrilled to announce that our Q2 beneficiary will be Black Pride Denver! This nonprofit seeks to celebrate, liberate and engage Black LGBTQIA+ individuals. Engine is excited to support the organization’s efforts to build a strong and supportive community while honoring the history and cultural contributions of queer people of color.
We are proud to play a small part in the important work all of these organizations are doing, and are grateful to our associates for the active role they play in helping us select our recipients and volunteering their time. Stay tuned for an update on our CSR activities from the second half of the year!
