Esports tournament organiser Blast Premier has donated $5,000 to Safe In Our World – a UK-based video game charity that supports players, teams and organisations in the industry struggling with mental health issues.
The global CSGO tournament organiser set aside fines that were accumulated and deducted from teams during the 2021 Spring Season (February to June) and donated them to a charity of choice.
The donation will go towards helping Safe in our World continue to deliver some of its work in the field of mental and physical wellbeing for the betterment of the wider gaming and esports industries.
Safe In Our World was founded in 2019, with a mission to foster positive mental health wellbeing and deliver support not only for players but also developers, publishers, retailers and the other people and teams who drive the video games industry forward.
“Never has it been so important to protect and educate esports stars and gamers on the significance of physical and mental wellbeing both on and off the server. Safe In Our World are doing brilliant work in this area.”
Emily Medd, Blast
Some of the work the charity has undertaken to date includes launching a Level Up Mental Health Programme that empowers companies to priorities its employees mental health, creating a Safer Together Discord channel that offers a safe space to interact with fellow gamers and introducing a Community Manager Mental Health Course, which is free for community managers and public-facing roles within the industry.
Emily Medd, director of digital at Blast, said: “Never has it been so important to protect and educate esports stars and gamers on the significance of physical and mental wellbeing both on and off the server. Safe In Our World are doing brilliant work in this area, helping gamers understand and talk about their mental health freely – we’re delighted to be able to make a contribution to their outstanding work.”
Rosie Taylor, charity officer for Safe In Our World, added: “We’re delighted to have Blast’s support to continue to eliminate the stigma around mental health in games. It’s paramount to have resources available to every player and every employee in the industry, so that everybody feels safe to reach out and learn more about mental health – not only to support themselves but each other as well.”
Earlier this year, Blast Premier pledged $12,500 in fines to SpecialEffect, a UK-based charity that uses gaming tech to improve the lives of people with disabilities.
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Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
