Polycom, Inc. the global leader in open standards-based unified communications (UC), on Wednesday has entered into a philanthropic partnership with Right To Play, an international humanitarian organisation to improve lives of children living in communities affected by war, poverty, and disease.

Polycom is donating Polycom RealPresence video collaboration solutions to Right To Play to expand the reach of their programs by improving global communications throughout the organization, connecting teachers, coaches, and community leaders with staff throughout the world; and directly linking donors to see the impact of their support.

A key application of video implementation is to enable experienced coaches at Right To Play’s Toronto headquarters and other regional offices to train coaches and other community members in countries such as Ghana, Ethiopia, China, Peru and Jordan from thousands of miles away, but connected face-to-face with the lifelike visual and audio clarity of Polycom video.

The live video training sessions will teach in-country coaches how to lead and implement Right To Play programs in their communities. The sessions will also demonstrate how to be positive role models for children by teaching them life skills such as leadership, teamwork, healthy living, and resistance to peer pressure, goal setting, equality, and tolerance. The sessions can also be recorded for continued use later.

“More trained local coaches and community leaders means more children around the world will be able to participate in Right To Play programs,” said Johann Olav Koss, Right To Play founder and a four-time Olympic gold medalist. “Polycom’s support and video collaboration technology will further strengthen our programs and help us use the power of sport and play to transform the lives of so many more children. With the ability to use video for training and other initiatives, we can reach even more children and get them playing and succeeding in life.”

“Right To Play’s mission is uplifting and their approach innovative and collaborative,” said Geri Mitchell-Brown, director of Philanthropy and Community Relations, Polycom. “Our partnership with Right To Play reflects Polycom’s commitment to bringing people together through the power of visual communication and aligns with our vision to make video collaboration ubiquitous in a more connected world. Right To Play is positively affecting the lives of children who need our help the most and we are honored to be able to contribute to this worthy cause.”