Celebrating the Season of Giving with Okta for Good

Keenan Harrell December 14, 2022

Meaningful change can only happen if it's driven alongside our partners and communities. This holiday season, Okta is uplifting the missions of 12 nonprofit partners working to solve the most critical issues in our global communities, including workforce development, the digital divide, racial equity, and critical local needs. 

During this season of giving, we celebrate the impact of these amazing organizations and encourage you to support their missions. Keep reading to learn more. 

Day 1: Year Up

Year Up is an organization working to close the opportunity divide by ensuring that young adults gain the skills, experiences, and support that will empower them to reach their potential through careers and higher education.

Year Up is one of Okta’s core US workforce development partners. Each year, Okta works with Year Up to close the opportunity divide by hosting Year Up interns — providing hands-on job training experience. Okta also leverages its annual Tech Pathways Week to provide mentorship and networking opportunities to Year Up students.

Day 2: NPower Canada

NPower Canada is on a mission to empower Canada’s underserved communities to succeed in meaningful digital careers by providing participants with free, in-demand digital and professional skills training and connecting them to new and rewarding career opportunities with some of Canada’s largest employers. 

NPower students receive job training, mentorship, and networking opportunities through Okta’s annual Tech Pathways Week.

Day 3: TurnUp Activism

TurnUp Activism is an organization of youth advocates and volunteers committed to increasing youth voter registration and turnout, and building the most active, educated, organized, and powerful network of young activists.

In 2020, Okta made a three-year, $3 million philanthropy commitment to advance racial equity — with voting access, rights, and education a strategic focus area. As a racial equity partner, TurnUp Activism and Okta have collaborated on initiatives to educate, mobilize, and empower voters across our communities.

Day 4: Greening Australia

Greening Australia is dedicated to restoring Australia’s diverse landscapes and helping to create an environment where people and nature can thrive.

Okta employees regularly volunteer with Greening Australia – including reef and habitat restoration projects, tree planting, and partnering with Indigenous communities to support traditional land management practices. In addition to advancing Greening Australia’s conservation efforts, this work further establishes Okta’s commitment to climate equity.

Day 5: Digital Literacy Foundation

Digital Literacy Foundation ensures people experiencing disadvantages have the skills to get online confidently and safely, thereby reaping the economic and social benefits technology offers. 

Okta is proud to support the Digital Literacy Foundation’s Tech Mate program, which pairs volunteers with digitally excluded individuals to help improve digital literacy skills and begin accessing the internet for online services.

Day 6: JINC

JINC strives for a society in which a child’s background does not determine their future. The organization provides opportunities for kids in the Netherlands to learn about various jobs, how to apply to them, and more, enabling all people to get a fair chance in the workforce.

In addition to ongoing volunteer and mentorship support from Okta employees, we support JINC’s “Flag Internship” program — reaching over 400 primary and vocational secondary school students each year. JINC students also receive job training, mentorship, and networking opportunities through Okta’s annual Tech Pathways Week.

Day 7: ReDI School of Digital Integration

The ReDI School of Digital Integration provides access to free digital education, giving learners digital skills, a strong network of tech professionals, and a growth mindset.

Okta supports ReDI’s “Digital Women'' Program — providing women who want to learn digital and coding skills and seek career opportunities in tech with foundational IT and computer science knowledge. ReDI students also receive job training, career exposure, and mentorship opportunities through Okta’s annual Tech Pathways Week.

Day 8: Good Things Foundation

Good Things Foundation is on a mission to fix the digital divide, the gap between those who use the internet effectively for daily life and social progress, and those who do not, enabling people to be digitally able, equal, and safe, so they can be happier, healthier, and better off.

Okta works closely with The Good Things Foundation to bridge the digital divide by helping to enable The Good Things Foundation’s “Learn My Way” platform. Learn My Way is used by over 1,000 of The Good Things Foundation’s community partners to provide essential digital skills to digitally excluded communities throughout the UK.

Day 9: COSTI

COSTI Immigrant Services is a multicultural agency providing employment, educational, settlement, and social services to all immigrant communities, new Canadians, and individuals in need of assistance. The programs at COSTI enable people arriving in Canada to use their existing skills, learn new ones, and actively participate in all aspects of Canadian life. 

To address the digital divide, Okta backs COSTI’s Digital and Media Literacy Training program — providing easily accessible training to increase the technical comprehension, confidence, well-being, and mental health of over 300 immigrants, newcomers, and refugees within the Greater Toronto Area.

Day 10: Literary Source

Literacy Source makes it possible for millions of adults to gain the basic literacy skills they need in order to succeed in school, find a job, achieve life goals, and create a better, more hopeful future.

As partners addressing the digital divide, Literacy Source and Okta team up regularly to connect volunteers with adult learners, support professional development programs, and promote digital literacy.

Day 11: Native American Rights Fund

Native American Rights Fund is focused on applying existing laws and treaties to guarantee that national and state governments live up to their legal obligations to Indigenous tribes.

As a strategic focus area of Okta's three-year, $3 million, philanthropy commitment to advance racial equity — Okta partners with the Native American Rights Fund on events and initiatives to promote voting access, rights, and education across our communities.

Day 12: United Women Singapore

United Women Singapore works towards narrowing the gender equality gap through education and raising awareness and advocacy on issues of anti-violence and women’s empowerment, with the support of partners from the public and private sectors.

Okta supports United Women Singapore’s Girls2Pioneers Program, which engages over 200 young women and provides STEM exposure and skill-building opportunities through a research-backed curriculum, and helps to ensure that careers in STEM are accessible for our next generation of tech leaders. United Women Singapore students also receive job training, career exposure, and mentorship opportunities through Okta’s annual Tech Pathways Week.

It has been great to reflect on the year and the work we’ve done to make an impact in our communities. We also recognize how important it is to celebrate those doing society's most important work and elevate the work they do year-round. These are only a handful of the many amazing organizations we work with in a variety of ways, and we are excited to continue building our relationships with them in 2023. 

If you’d like to take a deeper dive into Okta for Good’s work and partnerships, we’ll be releasing our annual impact report in February 2023, or you can check out last year’s report here.