During the 2010 FIA Formula 1 Championship season, you might notice one branding change on the AT&T Williams FW32 race car during a number of Grand Prix weekends. In an effort to support local charity initiatives, AT&T with support from the AT&T Williams team, has offered the chance for selected charitable organizations to have their logo placed on the race cars’ headrest during a specific race.

With an estimated worldwide television audience of over 56 million people per race Formula One is an amazing platform for brands to gain global exposure and, by providing this visual presence to supported charities, AT&T is able to provide the opportunity to raise global awareness.

This spirit of services and support for charitable organizations is not something that starts or stops with a specific race weekend. In fact, the organizations selected for this program have a history with the AT&T Foundation, and often even our employees as volunteers and philanthropic supporters. By utilizing the AT&T Williams platform, the AT&T Foundation is able to build even stronger relationships with charities and other AT&T clients to continue supporting them.

And just in case you have missed this program in action during some recent races, I wanted to highlight the organizations that have been presented by AT&T on the headrest and their corresponding race weekend.

Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) at the Monaco Grand Prix

During the Monaco Grand Prix weekend on May 13th to 16th, the AT&T Williams race car featured the Télécoms Sans Frontières’s (TSF) logo to kick off this program. Monaco is arguably the most famous event on the Formula One calendar with an estimated 200,000 visitors to the Monaco street circuit on top of the over 50 million watching the televised program. Exposing TSF’s logo during the Grand Prix weekend proved a great way to draw attention to TSF and the important support they provide.

TSF is the leading charity specializing in emergency telecommunications. In response to the devastation faced through earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, TSF deployed emergency response teams to set up humanitarian calling operations. Their approach to meet this immediate need of these victims allowed families and friends to reconnect, and aid agencies to develop in the logistical operations.

This mission aligns closely to similar operational support approaches developed by AT&T. By providing specialized training to managers, technicians and engineers, as well as developing a fleet of more than 300 self-contained equipment trailers and support vehicles, AT&T has continued to grow its Network Disaster Recover program. This has allowed the NDR team to support response efforts through a number of disaster events including hurricane and earthquake recovery.

United Way of Canada at the Canadian Grand Prix

During the Canadian Grand Prix, June 10th to 13th we wanted to celebrate our ongoing support for United Way by giving visibility to Centraide of Greater Montreal, during the only race held in North America

In addition to providing the opportunity to place their logo on the headrest of the AT&T Williams race cars’ we also had the chance to invite 5 people from Centraide to the track on the Thursday of the Grand Prix weekend where they got a tour around the AT&T Williams garage, F1 paddock and Pitlane. All the teams were busy preparing for the race at the circuit which provided a great opportunity to see the final adjustments being made first hand and close up.In addition to employees of Centraide’s, Ricky Hills-Lefebvre, a 15 year old student supported by the Pathways to Education program attended and Aisha Umar, Sales Centre VP for Canada, AT&T hosted the event.

In 2009, Centraide of Greater Montreal raised over $54 million to help 500,000 people through 360 community agencies. With a strategy that takes on the challenge of poverty, this organization looks to impact areas such as family breakdown, increased violence, poor health, and child development difficulties.

At the heart of the Centraide campaign is the strong belief that everyone is a part of the solution: it’s about working together, moving in the same direction, and being patient. Our company, our network of employees (including myself) and the AT&T Foundation continue to work closely with the United Way and a number of related vital community initiatives through giving, volunteering and through advocacy.

Prince’s Trust at the British Grand Prix

At the British Grand Prix this month, again, viewers could see a charity’s logo on the AT&T Williams cars’ headrest, this time The Prince’s Trust benefitted from this exposure courtesy of AT&T. A couple of weeks prior to the race weekend, The Prince’s Trust had an event hosted by Premier League player Ashlee Cole where they auctioned 4 passes for the British Grand Prix on the afternoon of Thursday 8th July. The auction winners got to have lunch in the exclusive AT&T Williams motorhome followed by a tour of the AT&T Williams garage, Pit Lane and F1 Paddock. This Money Can’t Buy experience was very popular and raised a significant amount of money. So, in addition to the exposure during the weekend — the Prince’s Trust was also able to raise some additional funding!

AT&T has supported the Prince’s Trust since 2005 and over the last five years provided £135,000 to support the work of the charity. Funding from AT&T during this time has helped young people start up in business across the UK.

The Prince’s Trust helps change young lives in the UK through practical and financial support, developing skills as well as confidence and motivation. Since the charity was founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in 1976, it has helped over 600,000 young people across the UK and continues to support 100 more every working day.

There are still plenty of races remaining in the 2010 FIA Formula 1 Championship. So, stay tuned and be on the look out for the next local charity that we are able to support through this program.