Giving Machines make it easy to support local charities that provide those in need with items such as clothing, food, emergency supplies and other kinds of support during hardship. Participants select one of 30 options from the vending machine, and pay like they would at any normal vending machine. 100% of the proceeds go directly to the chosen charities. Led by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the Giving Machine campaign has been run all around the world and has collected over $26 million in donations since their introduction.
Learn more by watching the video below.
Giving Machines in Aotearoa
Over the 2023 Christmas period, New Zealand participated in their first Giving Machine campaign. Hosted at Sylvia Park, the Giving Machines featured six New Zealand charities including the Auckland City Mission, The Nest Collective, Woven Earth, BBM (Buttabean Motivation), the Child Cancer Foundation, and Feed the Need.
Ira was proud to participate in the design for the campaign. It was important to us to ensure the campaign resonated with its local audience. We came up with a tagline ‘Māramatia Te Ao’ which comes from a phrase in the Bible which describes the imperative to ‘Light the World’. In other words, it’s capturing the idea of manaakitanga – that as we uplift others, share generously and spread joy – we in turn lift our own mana.
Johnson McKay, Ira’s Kaiwhakahaere Matua had this to say. “This is a test to see how New Zealanders respond to this style of giving. If it works, we hope to see more of it in the future.” The Giving Machines raised $78,518 from 3501 individual donations between the 23rd of November and the 29th of December. It appears Aotearoa responded well to the invitation to ‘Māramatia Te Ao’.
We see this as an expression of great technology, a creative idea, good design, inspiring messaging and bringing diverse expertise together to co-design solutions for all to thrive.
Ngā mihi to the six charities involved, Derek Good and the volunteers from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Vending Direct for providing the vending machines for free, and Sylvia Park mall for hosting.
