What You Need to Know About Archewell, Meghan and Harry's Nonprofit
The era of Archewell is upon us.
Since the start of 2020, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Prince Harry have been quietly working on the launch of their new nonprofit organization, Archewell. The charitable initiative comes after the couple stepped away as working senior royals for the British royal family, a move that ultimately saw the denouement of Sussex Royal.
Though the launch of the Archewell Foundation has been delayed due to the Sussexes' commitment to supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and COVID-19 relief efforts, the couple has been increasingly sharing more information about the organization.
Read on to learn everything we know about Archewell.
When did they announce Archewell?
In April 2020, the Sussexes confirmed that they would be continuing their charitable efforts after leaving the royal family under a new nonprofit named Archewell. The two made the announcement after The Telegraph reported documents that showed Meghan and Harry had filed a trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in March.
“Like you, our focus is on supporting efforts to tackle the global COVID-19 pandemic but faced with this information coming to light, we felt compelled to share the story of how this came to be,” the couple said in a statement at the time.
Why is it called Archewell?
Meghan and Harry revealed in a statement that the Archewell Foundation’s name took inspiration from their son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.
“Before SussexRoyal, came the idea of ‘Arche’—the Greek word meaning ‘source of action.’ We connected to this concept for the charitable organization we hoped to build one day, and it became the inspiration for our son’s name,” read the statement. “To do something of meaning, to do something that matters. Archewell is a name that combines an ancient word for strength and action, and another that evokes the deep resources we each must draw upon.”
Why was the launch postponed?
With the outbreak of COVID-19 and an international resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, Harry and Meghan decided to temporarily postpone the launch of Archewell to redirect their efforts to those two causes, as reported by The Telegraph in June 2020.
On December 31, 2020, the Sussexes launched Archewell's official website, which included childhood photos of themselves with their mothers, Princess Diana and Doria Ragland.
“I am my mother’s son, and I am our son’s mother,” the letter for 2021 read. “Together we bring you Archewell. We believe in the best of humanity. Because we have seen the best of humanity ... From our mothers and strangers alike.”
What will the organization do?
According to the Archewell website, the foundation's “core purpose is to uplift and unite communities—local and global, online and offline—one act of compassion at a time. We believe that compassion is the defining cultural force of the 21st century, and through the work of our 501(c)(3), we support a growing community of partner organizations fueling systemic cultural change.”
The website lists forthcoming projects and partnerships with the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education, the Center for Humane Technology, the Loveland Foundation, the UCLA Center for Critical Internet Inquiry, and the World Central Kitchen.
Dr. Safiya Noble, the co-director of the UCLA Center for Critical Internet Inquiry, commended the Sussexes for working to expose and dismantle the issues of racial inequality.
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are deeply committed to using their light to illuminate the problems of inequality and structural racism,” the author and UCLA professor says in a statement shared with BAZAAR.com. “We have a shared commitment and sense of urgency in making a more compassionate world, much of which is undermined by Internet platforms. I know what they stand for, share in their mission. We look forward to lending our research expertise and networks to our mutual work on the most pressing issues of Internet policy and culture that are accelerating racial, gender, and economic inequity.”
In February, the couple also updated the Archewell website to reflect their partnerships with Spotify and Netflix.
The duke and duchess will also head Archewell Audio, an audio-first production company that has teamed with Spotify “to spotlight diverse perspectives and voices” through podcasts. The Sussexes have also created Archewell Productions, which will produce, in collaboration with Netflix, “programming that informs, elevates, and inspires.”
Who works for Archewell?
Last November, People reported that the Sussexes recruited Christine Schirmer, the former head of communications at Pinterest and former corporate communications manager at Apple, for Archewell's publicity team.
Other team members include James Holt, the couple's communications lead in the United Kingdom, and Toya Holness, who led communications at the New York City Department of Education, as the Sussexes press secretary. PR agency Sunshine Sachs will work with Schirmer, Holt, and Holness as they oversee Meghan and Harry’s ventures in Archewell and beyond.
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