Amazon gives back to our local community and communities across the country through monetary donations and employee volunteerism. “We’re committed to giving back to the communities that we have employees,” said David Zapolsky, Amazon’s senior vice president of global public policy. “Obviously our deepest connection is with the Puget Sound area since exactly 30 years ago basically, we started in Jeff’s garage in Bellevue.” Amazon focuses on tackling challenges that communities face, like availability of affordable housing and hunger. The company also helps increase access to cultural events, like the Bumbershoot Arts and Music Festival and the Chinatown-International District Night Market. Employees also host Winter Wonderland on Amazon’s South Lake Union campus. They invite 1,000 underserved youth and their families to shop and enjoy holiday fun at no cost. “It’s a really magical time,” Zapolsky said. “There’s holiday activities. There’s crafts. There’s food. There’s treats.” Amazon’s Community Impact Report details some of its larger giving efforts, including affordable housing, food security and education. “We’re involved across the board and that obviously scales globally in all the places that we’re at,” Zapolsky said. Because of its large size and scale, Amazon is able to make significant investments in communities. “We even wrote it into our leadership principles that size and scale bring great responsibility,” Zapolsky said. The company also empowers employees to volunteer, including hosting a month of volunteering, typically in May. Globally, more than 100,000 employees in 50 different countries volunteered this year for community gardens, literacy programs, food banks and more. “We kind of look to our employees to set the agenda where they can be of most help in their communities,” Zapolsky said. Learn more Amazon’s community giving and download a full Community Impact Report on Amazon’s website. Sponsored by Amazon. Segment Producer Suzie Wiley. Watch New Day Northwest at 11 a.m. weekdays on KING 5 and streaming live on KING5.com. Contact New Day.