JDRF is the world’s largest nonprofit funder of research toward cures for type 1 diabetes (T1D), one of the deadliest auto-immune diseases on the planet. T1D is a potentially fatal autoimmune disease that affects up to 38M people worldwide. JDRF’s mission is to improve lives today and tomorrow by accelerating life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent and treat T1D and its complications.
In 2019, the charity launched JDRF Game2Give to bring together video game developers and players in the fight against T1D. The program was started by two game industry execs, Telltale Games cofounder Dan Connors and recent IGDA Board Chair Hans ten Cate, who are both fathers of children with T1D. Former Kongregate CBO Josh Larson, also a T1D dad, joined as JDRF Game2Give’s director in 2020.
To date, JDRF Game2Give has raised more than $1.1M through Humble Bundles, Twitch charity events, and online game tournaments. The team also built the first-ever charity game in Roblox to take the place of traditional in-person charity walks during COVID-19.
JDRF Game2Give and its growing group of game industry volunteers are actively seeking out IGDA members who care about curing type 1 diabetes, to help raise awareness and money toward crucial research. If you have a T1D connection or simply want to collaborate in support of a good cause, please reach out at gaming [at] jdrf [dot] org.