section_path: Activism/Born This Way Foundation
section_name: Born This Way Foundation
paragraph_text: Born This Way Foundation
  
  In 2012, Gaga launched the Born This Way Foundation (BTWF), a non-profit organization that focuses on youth empowerment. It has been named after her 2011 single and album. Media proprietor Oprah Winfrey, writer Deepak Chopra, and US Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius spoke at the foundation's inauguration at Harvard University. The foundation's original funding included $1.2 million from Gaga, $500,000 from the MacArthur Foundation, and $850,000 from Barneys New York. In July 2012, the BTWF partnered with Office Depot for a series of limited edition back-to-school products, with 25% of its sales going towards the foundation, for a guaranteed donation of $1 million. The foundation's initiatives have included the "Born Brave Bus" that followed Gaga on tour as a youth drop-in center as an initiative against bullying.
  
  In October 2015, at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, Gaga joined 200 high school students, policy makers, and academic officials, including Peter Salovey, to discuss ways to recognize and channel emotions for positive outcomes. In 2016, the foundation partnered with Intel, Vox Media, and Recode to fight online harassment. The sales revenue of the 99th issue of the V magazine, which featured Gaga and Kinney, was donated to the foundation. Gaga and Elton John released the clothing and accessories line Love Bravery at Macy's in May 2016. 25% of each purchase benefited the BTWF and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Gaga partnered with Starbucks for a week in June 2017 with the "Cups of Kindness" campaign, where the company donated 25 cents from some of the beverages sold to the foundation. She also appeared in a video by Staples Inc. to raise funds for the foundation and DonorsChoose.org.
  
  On the 2018 World Kindness Day, Gaga partnered with the foundation to bring food and relief to a Red Cross shelter for people who have been forced to evacuate homes due to the California wildfires. The foundation also partnered with Starbucks and SoulCycle to thank California firefighters for their relief work during the crisis. Gaga had to previously evacuate her own home during the Woolsey Fire which spread through parts of Malibu. In March 2019, she penned a letter to supporters of the BTWF, announcing the launch of a new pilot program for a teen mental health first aid project with the National Council for Behavioral Health. Gaga revealed her personal struggles with mental health in her letter and how she was able to get support which saved her life: "I know what it means to have someone support me and understand what I'm going through, and every young person in the world should have someone to turn to when they're hurting. It saved my life, and it will save theirs."
  
  In September 2020, Gaga released an anthology book, Channel Kindness: Stories of Kindness and Community, featuring fifty-one stories about kindness, bravery, and resilience from young people all over the world collected by the BTWF, and introduced by herself. She promoted it with a 21 days of kindness challenge on her social media, using the "BeKind21" hashtag. In 2021, Gaga collaborated with the Champagne house Dom Pérignon to benefit the BTWF by releasing a limited edition of Rosé Vintage 2005 bottles along with a sculpture designed by her. The 110 exclusive pieces were sold at private sales, and the profit of $570,000 was donated to the foundation. On the 2021 World Kindness Day, Gaga released a 30-minute special, titled The Power of Kindness, as part of the foundation's Channel Kindness program, in which together with a mental health expert and a group of eleven young people, she explored the connection between kindness and mental health.
  
  In 2012, Gaga launched the Born This Way Foundation (BTWF), a non-profit organization that focuses on youth empowerment. It has been named after her 2011 single and album. Media proprietor Oprah Winfrey, writer Deepak Chopra, and US Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius spoke at the foundation's inauguration at Harvard University. The foundation's original funding included $1.2 million from Gaga, $500,000 from the MacArthur Foundation, and $850,000 from Barneys New York. In July 2012, the BTWF partnered with Office Depot for a series of limited edition back-to-school products, with 25% of its sales going towards the foundation, for a guaranteed donation of $1 million. The foundation's initiatives have included the "Born Brave Bus" that followed Gaga on tour as a youth drop-in center as an initiative against bullying.
  
  In October 2015, at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, Gaga joined 200 high school students, policy makers, and academic officials, including Peter Salovey, to discuss ways to recognize and channel emotions for positive outcomes. In 2016, the foundation partnered with Intel, Vox Media, and Recode to fight online harassment. The sales revenue of the 99th issue of the V magazine, which featured Gaga and Kinney, was donated to the foundation. Gaga and Elton John released the clothing and accessories line Love Bravery at Macy's in May 2016. 25% of each purchase benefited the BTWF and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Gaga partnered with Starbucks for a week in June 2017 with the "Cups of Kindness" campaign, where the company donated 25 cents from some of the beverages sold to the foundation. She also appeared in a video by Staples Inc. to raise funds for the foundation and DonorsChoose.org.
  
  On the 2018 World Kindness Day, Gaga partnered with the foundation to bring food and relief to a Red Cross shelter for people who have been forced to evacuate homes due to the California wildfires. The foundation also partnered with Starbucks and SoulCycle to thank California firefighters for their relief work during the crisis. Gaga had to previously evacuate her own home during the Woolsey Fire which spread through parts of Malibu. In March 2019, she penned a letter to supporters of the BTWF, announcing the launch of a new pilot program for a teen mental health first aid project with the National Council for Behavioral Health. Gaga revealed her personal struggles with mental health in her letter and how she was able to get support which saved her life: "I know what it means to have someone support me and understand what I'm going through, and every young person in the world should have someone to turn to when they're hurting. It saved my life, and it will save theirs."
  
  In September 2020, Gaga released an anthology book, Channel Kindness: Stories of Kindness and Community, featuring fifty-one stories about kindness, bravery, and resilience from young people all over the world collected by the BTWF, and introduced by herself. She promoted it with a 21 days of kindness challenge on her social media, using the "BeKind21" hashtag. In 2021, Gaga collaborated with the Champagne house Dom Pérignon to benefit the BTWF by releasing a limited edition of Rosé Vintage 2005 bottles along with a sculpture designed by her. The 110 exclusive pieces were sold at private sales, and the profit of $570,000 was donated to the foundation. On the 2021 World Kindness Day, Gaga released a 30-minute special, titled The Power of Kindness, as part of the foundation's Channel Kindness program, in which together with a mental health expert and a group of eleven young people, she explored the connection between kindness and mental health.