Financial Empowerment Initiative Featuring Content with Sesame Street Characters to Debut This Month

New York, NY —   Sesame Workshop and MetLife Foundation announced a new phase of their seven-year partnership. “Dream, Save, Do: Financial Empowerment for Underserved Populations in Brazil and Mexico” expands on previous work and aims to build the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that will help families build financial health. The initiative will launch this month with a focus on historically disadvantaged groups, such as rural communities and indigenous people in Mexico and people of African descent in Brazil, particularly women and girls.

As families continue to cope with uncertainty stemming from the global pandemic, the “Dream, Save, Do” resources will help caregivers build resilience, plan for the future, prepare for potential setbacks, and adjust to a “for-now normal.”

With animated and live action segments, interactive games, comics, songs, activity sheets, and caregiver guides featuring the Sesame Street Muppets, “Dream, Save, Do” will reach children and families through a five-pronged approach:

• Mass media:  Brand-new and relevant existing “Dream, Save, Do” content will air on local and public state-level broadcasts.
• School-based programming: Partnerships with select public education systems will address the needs and perspectives of prioritized groups. Training materials will be provided to educators to incorporate a diversity and inclusion lens in their lessons.
• Community-based programming: Content and activities will be integrated into the work of civil society organizations, so that families can engage with “Dream, Save, Do” in non-formal community spaces.
• Self-adoption: A network of partnerships will be secured in both countries, including public school systems and civil society organizations that can integrate “Dream, Save, Do” into their efforts.
• Employee engagement: MetLife associates in Mexico and Brazil will participate in the “Dream, Save, Do” program by contributing to local community engagement efforts.

“We’re proud to support Sesame Workshop to expand this important work dedicated to helping families around the world build a more confident future,” said Tia Hodges, President and CEO, MetLife Foundation. “In this new phase, our shared goal is to build the mindset, skills, and behaviors needed to advance financial health in communities that have been underserved by financial inclusion efforts.”

“Together with MetLife Foundation, we are committed to giving children and families strategies and tools to successfully plan for the future,” said Sherrie Westin, President, Sesame Workshop. “As part of our mission to help children grow smarter, stronger, and kinder, this new phase will support young children across Brazil and Mexico in building the financial health and resilience needed to prepare them for school and life.”

Since 2015, Sesame Workshop and MetLife Foundation have collaborated on an unprecedented global financial empowerment initiative for families. ​Across nine countries in disparate regions, “Dream, Save, Do” has helped children and the adults in their lives set goals, make plans to reach them, and understand that the choices they make can help them achieve their dreams.​ “Dream, Save, Do” uses Sesame Workshop’s proven research-driven process and the unique power of the Sesame Street characters to reach audiences both at a mass scale and through local engagement.

Summative results of the first two phases showed positive impact, specifically:​

• Children are saving more, understanding the need for planning, and having higher aspirations.​
• Adults who were engaged with the project showed changes in their own behavior such as:
  • Increased conversations about financial matters with their children;
  • Increased awareness of what their children are thinking about money issues and about their futures;
  • Confidence in giving children their own money to increase financial independence; and​
  • Confidence in letting their children make their own spending decisions.​
• “Dream, Save, Do” content generated meaningful conversations between adults and children around important concepts such as planning, savings, and understanding the difference between needs and wants.

About MetLife Foundation
At MetLife Foundation, we are committed to expanding opportunities for low- and moderate-income people around the world. We partner with nonprofit organizations and social enterprises to create financial health solutions and build stronger communities, while engaging MetLife employee volunteers to help drive impact. Our financial health work has reached more than 17.3 million low- and moderate-income individuals in 42 countries. To learn more about MetLife Foundation, visit https://www.metlife.com/sustainability/MetLife-sustainability/MetLife-Foundation/.

About Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit media and educational organization behind Sesame Street, the pioneering television show that has been reaching and teaching children since 1969. Today, Sesame Workshop is an innovative force for change, with a mission to help kids everywhere grow smarter, stronger, and kinder. We’re present in more than 150 countries, serving vulnerable children through a wide range of media, formal education, and philanthropically funded social impact programs, each grounded in rigorous research and tailored to the needs and cultures of the communities we serve. For more information, please visit sesameworkshop.org.