Goat-2-Meeting programme raises morale and money on Zoom

A California animal sanctuary is letting its animals join business meetings to help lift spirits and raise money

Spotted: With hundreds of millions of people stuck inside during the COVID-19 pandemic, incidences of stress and poor mental health have been increasing rapidly. Now, an animal sanctuary based in Half Moon Bay, California has come up with an initiative to help raise morale. 

Sweet Farm animal sanctuary has launched a Goat-2-Meeting programme that allows schools, companies and individuals to hold Zoom meetings with some of its 125 animal residents. The programme allows groups to add an animal to their virtual meetings, and already, animals such as Paco the Llama, Brownie the Goat and Gizo the Cow have been remotely brightening up video conferences. 

Companies and individual pay fees ranging from a €60 donation for a 20-minute virtual private tour for six people, to around a €90 donation for a 15-minute corporate meeting with unlimited guests. The money raised helps Sweet Farm to support itself during the crisis and pays for free virtual field trips for schools. These can be customised for any number of children and animals.

The farm has already had bookings from Fortune 100 companies, major Silicon Valley tech companies and Hollywood movie studios.

The coronavirus pandemic has brought out the best in many people and companies – and innovators are no exception. From free 3D-printing of personal protective equipment for medical professionals to platforms that allow safer, no-contact deliveries, the crisis is being met with a tremendous amount of creativity and resilience around the world.

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