In the podcast, you will learn how Sears got started in the world of ad tech, who some of the 1,000+ ad tech executives and companies are that support Team Dayā’s mission of Building Change by constructing primary schools in the developing world, and how you can support the group if you have one hour, one week or more time available.
Anyone curious to learn more about joining a future school build or otherwise supporting the mission should contact our Head of Recruiting Jaryd Knutsen.
If you have a combination of fundraising chops, an adventurous spirit and the belief each of us has the capacity to be Building Change, get in touch with us and have a conversation.
Team Dayā 2024 Plans
In 2024, we plan to build schools in Nepal (March), Senegal (June 2024) and Guatemala (December 2024). These ground breakings will be our second school in each of these countries.
The exact start dates are:
Sunday, March 17, 2024 – Nepal (arrive Kathmandu) [groundbreaking completed]
Sunday, June 23, 2024 – Senegal (arrive Dakar) [full, no more capacity]
Sunday, December 1, 2024 – Guatemala (arrive Guatemala City) [available]
Team Dayā is going to build a school next Tuesday, May 14th at the DMS by LUMA conference in New York City.
We are excited to return as LUMA’s charity partner and to work to raise $40,000 to fund one of our future primary school construction projects in the developing world. Can’t wait until Tuesday? Read this message from LUMA Founder & CEO Terry Kawaja and join him in supporting our Let’s Raise $40K goal Tuesday.
(PHOTO: Team Dayā members Nicolle Pangis (Ampersand, WPP), Jay Sears (mastercard, Rubicon Project) and Mike Benedek (Datonics) will speak about the group’s work breaking the cycle of poverty and illiteracy during the lunch hour on Tuesday.)
If you have a combination of fundraising chops, an adventurous spirit and the belief each of us has the capacity to be Building Change, get in touch with us and have a conversation.
Team Dayā 2024 Plans
In 2024, we are building schools in Nepal (March), Senegal (June) and Guatemala (December 2024). These ground breakings will be our second school in each of these countries.
The exact start dates are:
Sunday, March 17, 2024 – Nepal (arrive Kathmandu) [groundbreaking completed]
Sunday, June 23, 2024 – Senegal (arrive Dakar) [full, no more capacity]
Sunday, December 1, 2024 – Guatemala (arrive Guatemala City) [available]
(PHOTO: In March 2024, Team Dayā members Michel de Rijk (Singapore – WPP, S4 Capital), Purwa Jain (Singapore – InMobi, Komli) and Jay Sears (New York – mastercard, Rubicon Project) were welcomed back to Dhayapur. Nepal and the first school the group funded in 2019.)
Team Dayā is excited to see many of our ad tech OG friends and make some new ones next week when we join Silicon Alley Sports (SAS) as their 2024 impact partner on Monday, May 6, 2024 at Ardsley Country Club. These 150 attendees have been building change in the tech industry for many years, and now we get to speak with them about our work Building Change by funding the construction of primary schools in some of the most impoverished places in the world.
Big thanks to SAS founder Darren Herman (Bain Capital) and his advisory board Eric Danetz (Reuters), Ben Kartzman (Mediaocean), Matt Tepper (Nutrafol), Pete Deutschman (The Buddy Group), Gary Kibel (Davis & Gilbert LLP), Nick Cromydas (Hunt Club) and our Rye friend (everybody’s friend) Richy Glassberg (Safeguard Privacy) for making us part of this community. Beyond covering event expenses, each year Silicon Alley Sports channels its additional funds into charitable causes, making each event a step towards a greater good. Team Dayā will be the SAS 2024 recipient and all funds will go towards future school construction.
Team Dayā founder Jay Sears and memeber Mike “The Bricklayer” Benedek will be in attendance. Please reach out if advance or at the event if you would like to learn more on how to get involved and support our work.
(PHOTO: Team Dayā members Mike “The Bricklayer” Benedek, Jay Sears and Hasan Arik with Chief Khokhan Nolong in Nguiddine Keur Sara, Senegal after signing the covenant that governs the school building.)
Not sure? Read these 1st person accounts of team members:
Lauren Rose (Connatix – New York): “It was an experience that served as an awakening or reset of sorts … I carry with me a renewed perspective on what truly matters: the profound impact of education in lifting communities, nurturing dreams, and fostering collective well-being.”
Purwa Jain (InMobi, Komli Media – Singapore): I embarked on a journey that would forever alter my perspective on education, community, and the power of collective action.
Jordan Mitchell (Rubicon Project, IAB Tech Lab – Seattle): No matter how different we seem to be, we’re all humans that want the best for our children and our communities. Prior to this, the community had not seen white people (except on the internet). We talked about our beliefs, our lives and our families, laughed and joked, and they remarked that the similarities between us outweighed the differences.
Nicolle Pangis (Ampersand, WPP – New York): After an opening ceremony, groundbreaking, LOTS of dancing, and getting settled in with our host families, the real work began. And it really was work. We hauled water, sand, bricks and rocks to the build site – in buckets – on our heads. We learned how to make mortar, and then learned how to apply the mortar to the block walls. By the time we left, we had finished digging out for the full foundation and new school latrines, and had constructed much of the lower perimeter of the school walls. / – / If anyone may be considering volunteering for a future build, I could not recommend it more. Besides helping a community who needs it, I think all eight of the volunteers would say they grew in important ways as a result of the experience as well. I plan to do another build sooner than later, and make it part of my annual calendar moving forward.
(PHOTO: Team Dayā memeber Nicolle Pangis on the school work site in Nchetana, Malawi building the foundation of the new school that will house 100 5th and 6th graders.)
Please donate to Team Dayā – all funds go directly to building schools.
Three Ways You Can Help
Make a Donation Online
Example investment opportunities:
$100 Five shovels for excavating the school’s solid foundation
$250 All the nails, nuts, and bolts to build a roof for the school
$500 In-country mason during the entire construction of the school
$1,000 Paint for a school
$40,000 Fund an entire school
Spread the Word
Share our mission with your friends, your company and your industry
Invite us to speak about our mission to your network
If you have a combination of fundraising chops, an adventurous spirit and the belief each of us has the capacity to be Building Change, get in touch with us and have a conversation.
Team Dayā 2024 Plans
In 2024, we plan to build schools in Nepal (March), Senegal (June 2024) and Guatemala (December 2024). These ground breakings will be our second school in each of these countries.
The exact start dates are:
Sunday, March 17, 2024 – Nepal (arrive Kathmandu) [groundbreaking completed]
Sunday, June 23, 2024 – Senegal (arrive Dakar) [full, no more capacity]
Sunday, December 1, 2024 – Guatemala (arrive Guatemala City) [available]
