Mask for Schools: Reboot

Last September, we launched our most ambitious giving campaign ever: donating almost 25,000 of our super-comfy, reusable cloth masks to Alberta families through the public school system.

We kicked off with a straight-up donation of 5,000 masks, but it was our customers who helped us shore up the next 20,000 through a Buy One, Give One program called Masks for Schools. You purchased, we donated, and thousands of kiddos headed into class protecting themselves and each other.

Six months later, we’re asking for that help again with a Masks for Schools Reboot. Why?

• Cloth masks wear out. It’s time to replace those worn, washed, and worn again (and again) masks from September/October. Holes in jeans? Cool. Holes in socks? We can deal. Increased mask porosity that comes with normal textile degradation? Nope. We want to refresh our kiddos’ mask supplies.

• Disposable PPE waste is creating a global environmental crisis. One recent study (Prata et al., 2020) estimated that 129 billion disposable face masks are used every single month. Compare that to single-use water bottles, recognized as one of the world’s major sources of plastic waste: 43 billion bottles are thrown away every month, with 25% of those recycled. There is no official guidance on mask disposal, and no recyclability. If we can get more kids into reusable masks, we’ll be doing our part to limit Canada’s contribution to a very real post-pandemic trash problem.

• Washable fabric masks are an investment that’s out of reach for more families than ever. With so many Canadians experiencing job loss and other economic hardship since the pandemic’s onset, it can be difficult or impossible for many families to invest in longer-lasting, and less wasteful - but more costly up-front - cloth masks.

How you can help

We’re kicking off our April maskraiser with a donation of 2,000 masks. You can help us get to our goal of 10,000 masks donated by refreshing your own Unbelts mask collection this month - for every mask you purchase, we’ll donate another.

• Masks for adults, kids, preschoolers, and families - Shop our masks here. They’re super-comfy, they come in four sizes, and we include a free filter. With our *new* build-your-own-bundle pricing, you’ll get 25% off when you mix and match 3 masks or more in any sizes and colours you’d like.

• Masks for businesses and teams - Ordering 24 masks or more? Contact wholesale@unbelts.com for a bulk rate and a customized donation plan. We’ll feature you as a community supporter on our social channels for helping us reach our goal.

• Help us spread the word - Let your friends and family know that this is the perfect time to replace their own well-worn masks while helping out kids across Canada. Share this blog post and our other Masks for Schools updates on Insta and Facebook - word-of-mouth is everything to us!

Need masks for your school?

We’re taking applications from across Canada. Have your school principal complete our two-minute donation request form, and we’ll be in touch within 5 business days.

We can’t wait to see what we can do together this month. Make sure to follow our progress on Insta and Facebook - and THANK YOU in advance for helping us reach our goal!