Peace By Chocolate is honoured to donate 3-5% of all company returns to the Peace On Earth Society - an organization registered in Nova Scotia that contributes funds to peace building projects around the world.
How it started
The society work started unofficially after the Fort McMurray Wildfires when Peace by Chocolate launched a donation campaign to support all the evacuees and their families through relief organizations.
Our family remembers what it was like to lose everything, to live in fear and struggle with the uncertainties of how each day may unfold. Since our arrival in Canada, our resilience has grown through the deep, consistent and generous support of people in our home community of Antigonish, from across Nova Scotia and through out country.
We will be forever grateful to so many people for helping us secure the feelings of peace back within our hearts and the safety in our home.
We believe peace is a choice and that only people can make peace.
Since founding our company as new Syrian Canadians in 2016 we have been humbled by the amazing people who have worked with our family in making a more peaceful world.
Peace By Chocolate grew quickly from simple roots operating our of our Antigonish kitchen in 2016 because of the support of peaceful Canadians from coast to coast and then peace loving citizens from around the world.
In the fall of 2018, we formalized our support for peace building projects by registering the Peace On Earth Society in the Province of Nova Scotia, an early step towards one day creating a registered not-for-profit.
How Does It Work?
The goal of our founders and staff is to ensure we partner with like-minded organizations and communities leaders to allow us to give back. We aim to support initiatives that foster peace and compassion and alleviate the suffering of others.
Our hope is that these initiatives will help deepen the conversations people are having and to help create change in some of the violence accepting cultural norms currently embedded in our global society.
Through the Peace on Earth Society, Peace By Chocolate donates a percentage of product revenue, provides subsidies on select chocolate products and volunteers our personal time to a diversity of peace initiatives.
Below is non-exhaustive list of our current efforts in supporting peace building:
The Peace on Earth Society
Strategy # 1: Peace on Earth Society – Community Partnerships
Partnership # 1: Peace Needs Love Pride Bars
Collaborative Partner: Phoenix Youth, Halifax Nova Scotia
Start Date: Fall 2016
Chocolate Products: Pride Bars 92g and 46g
Donation: $ 0.50 - 1.00 / bar
Partner Selection: Knowing some of the challenge that exist for people to “come out” and the conflict this sometimes it causes families we wanted to celebrate peace and support this very important community.
Phoenix House: Phoenix House Phoenix is a non-profit, community based organization located in K’jipuktuk / Halifax, Nova Scotia. Since 1987, Phoenix has been dedicated to supporting youth between the ages of 11 and 24, their families, and communities across multiple locations in Halifax.
Partnership # 2: Nitap Indigenous Friendships Bars
Collaborative Partner: Paq’tnkek Band Council and the Paq’tnkek Mi'kmaw Nation
Start Date: January 2019
Chocolate Products: Nitap Bars 46g (Five Different Varieties) and the Nitap Box 160g
Donation: $ .25 / bar and $ 1.00 / box
Partner Selection: The intentional focus on passing on and sharing Indigenous knowledge within the community was an important factor in making the Nitap Program work. The idea that all the activities would be rooted in an Indigenous approach that supports a higher quality of life, resilience, spirituality and well-being fit perfectly with the values Peace by Chocolate is based upon. Start up funds were provided by Peace by Chocolate, and, once the program was running successfully, the community and organizers helped design the Nitap chocolate bars with on-going proceeds supporting the continuation of the program.
Paq’tnkek Mi'kmaw Nation: Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation is located in Antigonish County, 24km east of Antigonish, Nova Scotia. The name Paqtnkek, meaning “by the bay”, is a distinction emphasizing the importance of the local bay and its resources to the Mi’kmaw people. Historically, the Mi’kmaw of Paqtnkek has lived by the bay in a harmonious, renewable manner, respecting the local environment while honoring their passion for their century’s old culture.
Nitap – “Nitap” is a Mi’Kmaq word meaning “friend” or “buddy”, and profits from our Nitap line of chocolate products go directly to the Paq’tnkek First Nation to provide funding for Nitap cultural programming for community members through the “Nitap Program”.
http://paqtnkek.ca/hooked-on-friendship-paqtnkeks-nitap-program-a-big-hit/#
Partnership # 3: Peace of Mind Bars for Mental Health
Collaborative Partner: The Canadian Mental Health Association – National Partnership
Start Date: October 2019
Chocolate Products: Peace of Mind Bar 46g (Three Different Varieties)
Donation: $ .25 / bar
Partner Selection: We all have mental health and it is a key issues affecting all Canadians. We are all connecting to someone who is suffering and working on their mental health. We wanted a national partner that has the depth of experience and reputation for us to work with to help strengthen everyone have access to resources and support to allow them to thrive.
The Canadian Mental Health Association: Founded in 1918, the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is the most established, most extensive community mental health organization in Canada. Through a presence in more than 330 communities across every province and one territory, CMHA provides advocacy, programs and resources that help to prevent mental health problems and illnesses, support recovery and resilience, and enable all Canadians to flourish and thrive and have peace of mind.
Peace of Mind Bar Promotional Video:
Partnership # 4: Welcome to Canada
Collaborative Partner: Refugee Hub, University of Ottawa – National Partnership
Start Date: October 2019
Chocolate Products: Welcome to Canada Bars 92g and 46g (Six Different Varieties)
Donation: $ .50 / bar and $ .25 / bar
Partner Selection: We are delighted to have partnered with the Refugee Hub of Canada to help highlight and contribute to their important work. As the various complexities playing out in the world continue to unfold and create situations that force people to flee their home, we want to ensure the story we are telling is one of unconditional love and support.
Refugee Hub:
Refugee Hub is housed at the University of Ottawa, the Refugee Hub works to increase protection and rights for refugees by engaging in research, collaborative partnerships, and innovative programming on the community, national, and international level.
We work with citizens, political leaders, policy makers, and civil society to build opportunities and capacity to meet the protection needs of refugees through evidence-based policy and practice.
Partnership # 5: The Hero Bar
Collaborative Partner: Nursing Homes of Nova Scotia Association Partnership
Start Date: June 2021
Chocolate Products: Hero Bars (2 Varieties)
Donation: $ 1.00
Partner Selection: The NHNSA a not-for-profit Association representing Nursing Homes in the Province. They support not-for-profit, for-profit, municipal, and multi-facility nursing homes and use a solutions-focused approach to address opportunities and challenges across the sector.
The donated funds will be allocated by the NHNSA to a bursary for students entering the field of nursing.
Partnership # 6: The Bluenose 100 Bar
Collaborative Partner: Bluenose II
Start Date: July 2021
Chocolate Products: The Bluenose Bar
Donation: $ 1.00 per bar
Partner Selection: To commemorate the 100th anniversary of Canada's treasured schooner Bluenose. We've created a limited edition Bluenose 100 dark chocolate bar accented with sea salt and almonds, with $1 from the sale of every bar going to the Bluenose 100 Committee.
The donated funds will be allocated by the committee to fund further projects to help preserve this icon of Nova Scotia history.
Partnership # 7: The WUSC Bar
Collaborative Partner: The World University Service of Canada
Start Date: October 2021
Chocolate Products: Wusc Bars (4 Varieties)
Donation: $ 1.00
Partner Selection: The WUSC Student Refugee Program allows refugee students from around the world to be sponsored to come to Canada as full residents to learn at one of the 100 partnered post-secondary institutions across the country. Since 1978, the program has supported over 2,200 young refugees to continue their education in safety and peace, our goal is to help that number climb ever higher.
Partnership #8 : PeaceforUkraine.ca
Collaborative Partner: Canadian Red Cross
Start Date: March 2022
Chocolate Products: Peace Bars Collection including the new Ukraine Peace Bar and Peace Maker Series Bars
Donation:
Partner Selection: We know what it is like to have to flee our homeland when the bombs start to fall. We partnered with the Canadian Red Cross where donations from our Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Appeal ( PeaceforUkraine.ca ) or through our selected products above with all proceeds going to this cause, help to provide food, shelter, medical supplies, and other urgently needed relief items being distributed by the Ukrainian Red Cross and counterparts in neighboring countries now sheltering hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians who have crossed borders seeking refuge from the conflict.
Partnership #9: Trans Canada Trails 30th Anniversary - One Trail, One Love
Collaborative Partner: Trans Canada Trails
Start Date:
Chocolate Products: Nature Lover, Peace Seeker, Avid Adventurer, Trail Trekker
Donation:
Partner Selection: Peace By Chocolate is proud to partner with the Trans Canada Trail in honour of their 30th anniversary in the creation of One Trail, One Love: a collection of four Trans Canada Trail–themed chocolate bars inspired by community spirit, connectedness and the natural beauty of the land we’re lucky enough to inhabit. For each chocolate bar sold, $1 will go towards supporting the continued development and maintenance of the Trans Canada Trail, ensuring the sustainability and accessibility of the 28,000 km-long national trail for generations to come. Learn more Here
Partnership #10: Children, Peace & Security Milk Chocolate Bar 92g
Collaborative Partner: The Dallaire Institute
Start Date: 2022
Chocolate Products: Children, Peace & Security Milk & Dark Chocolate Bar 92g
Donation: $1
Partner Selection: We are proud to partner with the Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security in the creation of these delightful bars. The Dallaire Institute was founded by General Romeo Dallaire in 2007, after he confronted the unthinkable during the genocide in Rwanda: children recruited and used to commit atrocities. The Dallaire Institute has trained over 15,000 security forces, including military, police, corrections and peacekeepers, from 100 countries around the world so that they can teach their own forces techniques to protect children and prevent the recruitment and use of children in violence.
Strategy # 2: Peace on Earth Society - Staff Engagement Peace Initiatives
Peace by Chocolate management and staff quietly volunteer their time and energy to engage in community-based peace initiatives in and around our communities. On an annual basis we have been volunteering approximately 25 hours / month over the past year. These contributions may be as simple of speaking to a group, helping out at local pre-organized event and / or helping lead from behind to ensure the co-ordination of various initiatives go smoothly.
One of the most impactful peace initiatives to us personally has been having the honour to listen to and learn from the indigenous leaders and community members from the Paq’tnkek Mi'kmaw Nation. We are very thankful for our time to connect within community members during the Nitap Program.
Strategy # 3: Peace on Earth Society - Support for Community-based Fund Raising Initiatives
Peace by Chocolate receives hundreds of donation requests a year and we simply cannot keep up with meeting the demand for the various fundraising events occurring across the county. We do contribute significantly to various groups and organizations through our Peace on Earth Foundation in the following ways: financial donations, chocolate donations, complimentary speaking engagements and / or access to our wholesale website for reduce costs to allow groups to fundraise etc.
If you would be interested in purchasing chocolate products at our wholesale costs, this may be a great way to raise funds for your event. For more information, please access our wholesale site at: www.peacebychocolatevendor.ca or to place a fundraising order contact our office manager at: office@peacebychocolate.ca
Strategy # 4: Peace on Earth Society – Support causes through products
In 2018, our company launched the Peace bars and portions of the sales of those bars went to support the 2018 Special Olympics Canada National Summer Games. And those bars continue to contribute to our year end donations to the society.
In June 2020, we launched our special edition of the Nova Scotia bars series to support our province that suffered a lot, one tragedy after the other.
Profits from Nova Scotia bar help fund Peace projects across the province that was hit hard by many tragic incidents over the past few months. Donations of the proceeds will be made to The Stronger Together Nova Scotia Fund.
To Get Involved:
The Peace On Earth Society will roll out in greater detail soon. If you are interested in becoming involved or want to join the organization please apply using the form below.