Expanding 4K 4Charity Fun Run’s Virtual Footprint

The 4K 4Charity Fun Run Series kicked off in 2014 at IBC Show in Amsterdam as a fun and healthy way to raise awareness and financial support for global and local nonprofits promoting increased diversity and inclusion initiatives. Though the world has changed tremendously since then, the 4K 4Charity mission remains steadfast, and the organization has raised more than $1.2 million (USD) in gross proceeds to benefit organizations that are closing gender, race, and opportunity gaps in technology.

Since the 4K 4Charity Fun Run was co-founded by the late Sam Blackman, founder of Elemental Technologies (now AWS Elemental) and Laura Barber, Emerging Tech PR lead at Amazon Web Services (AWS), it has grown into a series of events that have been held during NAB Show in Las Vegas, the IBC Show in Amsterdam, and SMPTE in Los Angeles and in Portland, Oregon. Each year, the industry events draw in attendees from around the world, seeking a way to connect with colleagues and customers and catch a fitness break from the hustle and bustle of the show floor, while supporting a great cause.

The 4K 4Charity Fun Run Series has organized large scale events in multiple cities around the world and is used to adapting to new scenarios and changing conditions on the ground. This year, as the broadcast and sports production community and the rest of the world equipped hosts with at-home setups and implemented remote workflows, the 4K 4Charity followed a similar path, pivoting our NAB Show event in a few short weeks to become a virtual event. Even in the face of a global pandemic, hundreds of supporters from 24 countries raised more than $21,000 in net donations to support UNICEF in its COVID-19 relief efforts, as well as National Center for Women & Information Technology programs.

The run has seen sustained strong participation from the media and entertainment industry, with donations and commitments to complete a 4K (or 8K) distance from neighborhood trails, in local parks or on a treadmill. Many participants have even brought family members and pets into the activity. The 4K 4Charity Virtual Fun Run provides meaningful opportunities to engage with peers, with online engagement across social platforms to further extend the vision and mission of 4K 4Charity. 4K 4Charity organizers are deeply grateful for the support of generous 4K 4Charity Virtual Fun Run sponsors.

We look forward to continuing momentum during upcoming 4K 4Charity events through the balance of 2020, including fun runs in Portland (through August), and IBC (September – October 30, 2020) and SMPTE (November – December 15, 2020), all of which will be held virtually. As we look towards 2021, we hope to grow the event’s virtual footprint based on the community’s positive response. We look forward to your race selfies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn for the PDX, IBC and SMPTE runs. For the latest updates, including how to get involved or sponsor upcoming events, visit https://4k4charity.com/