RIHANNA’S WHEEL POWER: Less than a week after meeting French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss educational matters, Rihanna has launched a five-year educational partnership with the world’s leading bike-sharing program Ofo.
Set up through her Clara Lionel Foundation, the eight-time Grammy winner-led “1 KM Action” will help fund CLF’s Global Scholarship Program and support dynamic educational programs in Malawi. In addition, some students have already received bikes to help young girls get to school safely, “cutting down those very long walks they make to and from school all alone,” Rihanna said. Some teachers have also been given bicycles to get to class on time.
After graduating from college and before starting Ofo and becoming its chief executive officer, Dai Wei volunteered for a year as a teacher in one of China’s more impoverished regions. “We believe in unlocking every corner in the world with equal access to education as well as with our bike-sharing scheme,” he said.
The pairing with the Clara Lionel Foundation comes at a time when the station-free Ofo is in the process of trying to raise $1 billion. Last month Alibaba helped the three-year-old bike-sharing start-up raise $700 million. The 29-year-old Barbadian does not have a deal with Ofo
Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.
Read More…