Doing good on social media

Photo: Contributed

A graduate of Mount Boucherie Secondary is being recognized for trying to make a positive difference through social media.

Karah Hopgood is one of 16 students, and the only one from Canada recognized during the first ever #Digital4Good event at Twitter headquarters in San Francisco on Monday.

"It's going to be amazing. I am very excited to go and represent Canada and meet other people from around the world," Hopgood said recently, between classes at UBC Okanagan.

Hopgood created the "Humans of Boucherie" Instagram account, which recounts personal stories shared by students and staff which built trust within the school community.

She says it's a snapshot of peoples lives, or a segment of it.

Hopgood got the idea while attending a camp at the University of Santa Barbara.

The #Digital4Good event is spearheaded by #ICanHelp, a non-profit organization committed to empowering students to play an active role in improving the online environment.

"#ICanHelp has worked with over 250,000 students to be the digital change they want to see," said co-founder Kim Kerr, adding the Sept. 18 event in San Francisco is designed to raise awareness of the power of the student voice for social good in social media.

"The focus is always too much on the negative, and we have some amazing youth out there making a difference," said co-founder Matt Soth.

"We want students to inspire students to be digital leaders."