<s>
Change.org	B-Application
is	O
a	O
website	O
which	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
create	O
and	O
sign	O
petitions	B-Application
to	O
advance	O
various	O
social	O
causes	O
by	O
raising	O
awareness	O
and	O
influencing	O
decision-makers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Petitions	B-Application
often	O
focus	O
on	O
causes	O
such	O
general	O
justice	O
,	O
economic	O
justice	O
,	O
criminal	O
justice	O
,	O
human	O
rights	O
,	O
education	O
,	O
environmental	O
protection	O
,	O
animal	O
rights	O
,	O
health	O
,	O
and	O
sustainable	O
food	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
was	O
launched	O
in	O
2007	O
by	O
current	O
chief	O
executive	O
Ben	O
Rattray	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
support	O
of	O
founding	O
chief	O
technology	O
officer	O
Mark	O
Dimas	O
,	O
Darren	O
Haas	O
,	O
and	O
Adam	O
Cheyer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2011	O
,	O
Change.org	B-Application
claimed	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
subject	O
of	O
a	O
distributed	O
denial	O
of	O
service	O
attack	O
by	O
"	O
Chinese	O
hackers	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2011	O
,	O
there	O
was	O
a	O
proposal	O
to	O
merge	O
the	O
Spanish-speaking	O
counterpart	O
website	O
Actuable	O
into	O
Change.org	B-Application
;	O
the	O
merger	O
occurred	O
in	O
2012	O
when	O
the	O
voluntary	O
union	O
of	O
Actuable	O
users	O
into	O
the	O
Change.org	B-Application
platform	O
was	O
approved	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2012	O
,	O
Arizona	O
State	O
University	O
decided	O
to	O
block	O
access	O
to	O
Change.org	B-Application
in	O
response	O
to	O
a	O
petition	O
created	O
by	O
student	O
Eric	O
Haywood	O
protesting	O
"	O
rising	O
tuition	O
costs	O
at	O
the	O
school	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
University	O
officials	O
claimed	O
that	O
"	O
Change.org	B-Application
is	O
a	O
spam	O
site	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
the	O
blocking	O
was	O
conducted	O
"	O
to	O
protect	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
our	O
limited	O
and	O
valuable	O
network	O
resources	O
for	O
legitimate	O
academic	O
,	O
research	O
,	O
and	O
administrative	O
uses	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
reported	O
on	O
April	O
5	O
,	O
2012	O
,	O
that	O
Change.org	B-Application
hit	O
10	O
million	O
members	O
and	O
was	O
the	O
fastest-growing	O
social	O
action	O
platform	O
on	O
the	O
web	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
that	O
time	O
,	O
they	O
were	O
receiving	O
500	O
new	O
petitions	B-Application
per	O
day	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
May	O
13	O
,	O
2012	O
,	O
The	O
Guardian	O
,	O
BBC	O
News	O
,	O
and	O
other	O
sources	O
reported	O
that	O
Change.org	B-Application
would	O
launch	O
a	O
UK-specific	O
platform	O
for	O
petitions	B-Application
,	O
placing	O
Change.org	B-Application
in	O
competition	O
with	O
38	B-Application
Degrees	I-Application
,	O
a	O
British	O
not-for-profit	O
political-activism	O
organization	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
August	O
2013	O
Fast	O
Company	O
article	O
reported	O
that	O
Change.org	B-Application
would	O
roll	O
out	O
features	O
for	O
petition	O
recipients	O
allowing	O
them	O
to	O
respond	O
to	O
the	O
petition	O
publicly	O
and	O
create	O
a	O
decision-maker	O
page	O
where	O
they	O
could	O
see	O
all	O
petitions	B-Application
against	O
them	O
in	O
one	O
place	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
30	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
workers	O
for	O
Change.org	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
a	O
majority	O
of	O
staff	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
and	O
Canada	O
had	O
signed	O
union	O
authorization	O
cards	O
in	O
favor	O
of	O
being	O
represented	O
for	O
collective	O
bargaining	O
by	O
CODE-CWA	O
and	O
that	O
Change.org	B-Application
had	O
voluntarily	O
recognized	O
CODE-CWA	O
as	O
the	O
representative	O
of	O
the	O
workers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2011	O
,	O
a	O
fourth-grade	O
class	O
in	O
Brookline	O
,	O
Massachusetts	O
,	O
launched	O
the	O
"	O
Lorax	O
Petition	O
Project	O
"	O
through	O
Change.org	B-Application
requesting	O
Universal	B-Application
Studios	I-Application
to	O
include	O
a	O
more	O
vital	O
environmental	O
message	O
on	O
its	O
website	O
and	O
trailer	O
for	O
its	O
upcoming	O
film	O
,	O
The	O
Lorax	O
,	O
a	O
classic	O
Dr	O
Seuss	O
children	O
's	O
story	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
morning	O
of	O
February	O
2	O
,	O
2012	O
,	O
Stef	O
Gray	O
,	O
a	O
23-year-old	O
graduate	O
in	O
New	O
York	O
,	O
held	O
a	O
news	O
conference	O
at	O
the	O
Washington	O
offices	O
of	O
Sallie	O
Mae	O
,	O
the	O
"	O
nation	O
's	O
largest	O
private	O
student-loan	O
provider	O
"	O
,	O
presenting	O
the	O
results	O
of	O
her	O
Change.org	B-Application
petition	O
,	O
which	O
had	O
received	O
about	O
77,000	O
signatures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
November	O
2013	O
,	O
Aaron	O
Thompson	O
of	O
Tuscaloosa	O
,	O
Alabama	O
,	O
started	O
a	O
petition	O
directed	O
at	O
Seth	O
MacFarlane	O
to	O
bring	O
back	O
Brian	O
Griffin	O
of	O
the	O
TV	O
series	O
Family	B-Application
Guy	I-Application
after	O
he	O
was	O
briefly	O
killed	O
off	O
in	O
the	O
Season	O
12	O
episode	O
"	O
Life	O
of	O
Brian	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
numerous	O
other	O
petitions	B-Application
have	O
been	O
made	O
for	O
the	O
same	O
purpose	O
,	O
they	O
have	O
yet	O
to	O
obtain	O
as	O
much	O
attention	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
July	O
14	O
,	O
2019	O
,	O
an	O
online	B-Application
petition	I-Application
titled	O
"	O
The	O
Immediate	O
Halt	O
to	O
the	O
Construction	O
of	O
the	O
TMT	O
Telescope	O
"	O
was	O
posted	O
on	O
Change.org	B-Application
in	O
protest	O
against	O
the	O
Thirty	O
Meter	O
Telescope	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
petition	O
gained	O
over	O
500,000	O
signatures	O
within	O
24	O
hours	O
,	O
making	O
it	O
the	O
fastest-growing	O
petition	O
for	O
the	O
site	O
and	O
overburdening	O
servers	O
at	O
Change.org	B-Application
in	O
the	O
UK	O
,	O
which	O
became	O
unresponsive	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
high	O
demand	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Iman	O
Ghavami	O
,	O
the	O
prisoner	O
's	O
brother	O
,	O
created	O
a	O
change.org	B-Application
campaign	O
in	O
a	O
petition	O
to	O
the	O
Government	O
of	O
Iran	O
and	O
the	O
Government	O
of	O
the	O
United	O
Kingdom	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
February	O
2016	O
,	O
50	O
petitions	B-Application
have	O
exceeded	O
100,000	O
signers.A	O
petition	O
against	O
the	O
"	O
Loi	O
El	O
Khomri	O
"	O
,	O
a	O
labour	O
law	O
project	O
by	O
the	O
French	O
Labor	O
Minister	O
Myriam	O
El	O
Khomri	O
,	O
has	O
over	O
1	O
million	O
signatures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2018	O
,	O
an	O
anonymous	O
creator	O
of	O
a	O
Facebook	O
community	O
against	O
bike	O
riders	O
started	O
a	O
Change.org	B-Application
anti-cycling	O
petition	O
that	O
shortly	O
reached	O
over	O
100,000	O
signatures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
petition	O
(	O
as	O
of	O
10:11	O
AM	O
UTC	O
on	O
March	O
24	O
,	O
2019	O
)	O
has	O
1,418,105	O
signatures	O
,	O
making	O
it	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
signed	O
petitions	B-Application
on	O
Change.org	B-Application
and	O
the	O
highest	O
concerning	O
Australian	O
affairs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
two	O
earthquakes	O
hit	O
Central	O
Mexico	O
on	O
September	O
7	O
and	O
September	O
19	O
,	O
2017	O
,	O
there	O
were	O
different	O
petitions	B-Application
to	O
force	O
the	O
"	O
Instituto	O
Nacional	O
Electoral	O
"	O
(	O
National	O
Electoral	O
Institute	O
)	O
,	O
the	O
Mexican	O
Senate	O
,	O
and	O
President	O
Enrique	O
Peña	O
Nieto	O
to	O
donate	O
most	O
or	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
money	O
destined	O
for	O
the	O
upcoming	O
2018	O
general	O
elections	O
be	O
redirected	O
to	O
victims	O
of	O
the	O
natural	O
disaster	O
in	O
Mexico	O
City	O
and	O
neighbor	O
states	O
of	O
Morelos	O
,	O
Chiapas	O
,	O
Oaxaca	O
,	O
and	O
Puebla	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
petitions	B-Application
collected	O
more	O
than	O
3	O
million	O
signatures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
following	O
is	O
a	O
list	O
of	O
petitions	B-Application
that	O
have	O
reached	O
or	O
surpassed	O
3	O
million	O
signatures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
+	O
Petitions	B-Application
Total	O
signatures	O
(	O
millions	O
)	O
Petition	O
status	O
(	O
Success	O
;	O
Failure	O
;	O
Ongoing	O
)	O
Ref	O
Justice	O
for	O
George	O
Floyd	O
19.6	O
S	O
Justice	O
for	O
Breonna	O
Taylor	O
11.4	O
O	O
Julius	O
Jones	O
is	O
innocent	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
makes	O
revenue	O
through	O
a	O
subscription	O
membership	O
model	O
and	O
people	O
promoting	O
petitions	B-Application
on	O
the	O
site	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
is	O
a	O
for-profit	O
,	O
"	O
venture-backed	O
company	O
that	O
hosts	O
activist	O
petitions	B-Application
written	O
by	O
members	O
of	O
the	O
public	O
,	O
gathers	O
email	O
addresses	O
from	O
signees	O
,	O
and	O
encourages	O
people	O
to	O
circulate	O
the	O
petitions	B-Application
heavily	O
on	O
social	O
media	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
for-profit	O
,	O
Change.org	B-Application
is	O
a	O
public	O
benefit	O
company	O
with	O
B	O
Corp	O
status.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
has	O
raised	O
$72	O
million	O
from	O
backers	O
,	O
including	O
LinkedIn	B-Application
founder	O
Reid	O
Hoffman	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
a	O
Change.org	B-Application
spokesperson	O
,	O
"	O
The	O
money	O
raised	O
from	O
petitions	B-Application
goes	O
toward	O
helping	O
the	O
campaign	O
win	O
and	O
helping	O
us	O
build	O
and	O
maintain	O
our	O
technology	O
platform	O
,	O
making	O
it	O
possible	O
for	O
us	O
to	O
provide	O
people	O
with	O
the	O
tools	O
they	O
need	O
to	O
win	O
the	O
change	O
they	O
want	O
to	O
see.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
members	O
contribute	O
monthly	O
to	O
sustain	O
the	O
technology	O
and	O
the	O
small	O
teams	O
of	O
campaigners	O
who	O
coach	O
and	O
support	O
petition	O
starters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
revenue	O
is	O
from	O
advertising	O
;	O
individuals	O
and	O
organizations	O
who	O
start	O
or	O
sign	O
petitions	B-Application
then	O
chip	O
in	O
to	O
promote	O
those	O
petitions	B-Application
to	O
other	O
site	O
visitors	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
has	O
raised	O
$50	O
million	O
from	O
investors	O
in	O
business	O
,	O
technology	O
and	O
the	O
media	O
to	O
date	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
2013	O
,	O
the	O
website	O
started	O
"	O
crowd-promoted	O
petitions	B-Application
"	O
that	O
allowed	O
a	O
signatory	O
to	O
promote	O
the	O
petition	O
by	O
paying	O
$5	O
to	O
$1000	O
at	O
the	O
final	O
stage	O
of	O
petition	O
signing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2018	O
,	O
Anne	O
Savage	O
,	O
the	O
CEO	O
of	O
Bicycle	O
Queensland	O
,	O
claimed	O
that	O
a	O
prominent	O
Australian	O
anti-cycling	O
petition	O
on	O
Change.org	B-Application
was	O
full	O
of	O
false	O
names	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
spokesperson	O
for	O
Change.org	B-Application
denied	O
that	O
the	O
signatures	O
were	O
fake	O
,	O
saying	O
that	O
the	O
organization	O
's	O
engineering	O
team	O
had	O
double-checked	O
the	O
petition	O
and	O
confirmed	O
there	O
was	O
no	O
unusual	O
activity	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
operates	O
a	O
system	O
for	O
signature	O
hiding	O
,	O
which	O
works	O
only	O
if	O
the	O
user	O
has	O
an	O
account	O
on	O
Change.org	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
is	O
a	O
Delaware	O
General	O
Corporation	O
Law-organized	O
benefit	O
corporation	O
and	O
certified	O
B	O
corporation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
site	O
has	O
been	O
accused	O
of	O
fooling	O
its	O
users	O
and	O
hiding	O
that	O
it	O
is	O
"	O
a	O
for-profit	O
entity	O
with	O
an	O
economic	O
incentive	O
to	O
get	O
people	O
to	O
sign	O
petitions	B-Application
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
spokesperson	O
Charlotte	O
Hill	O
countered	O
this	O
criticism	O
in	O
a	O
September	O
2013	O
article	O
in	O
Wired	O
,	O
saying	O
,	O
"	O
We	O
are	O
a	O
mission-driven	O
social	O
enterprise	O
,	O
and	O
while	O
we	O
bring	O
in	O
revenue	O
,	O
we	O
reinvest	O
100%	O
of	O
that	O
revenue	O
back	O
into	O
our	O
mission	O
of	O
empowering	O
ordinary	O
people.It	O
'	O
s	O
not	O
just	O
that	O
we	O
're	O
not	O
yet	O
making	O
a	O
profit	O
–	O
we	O
are	O
decidedly	O
not-for-profit.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Its	O
founder	O
Ben	O
Rattray	O
gave	O
a	O
reason	O
for	O
org	O
's	O
legal	O
status::	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
Change.org	B-Application
was	O
accused	O
of	O
encouraging	O
astroturfing	O
and	O
abandoning	O
the	O
progressive	O
user	O
base	O
from	O
which	O
it	O
initially	O
gained	O
traction	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
of	O
the	O
users	O
who	O
lost	O
interest	O
in	O
the	O
site	O
after	O
this	O
change	O
expressed	O
difficulty	O
being	O
removed	O
from	O
the	O
Change.org	B-Application
mailing	O
lists	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
has	O
also	O
been	O
accused	O
of	O
selling	O
the	O
personal	O
data	O
provided	O
by	O
the	O
users	O
to	O
third-party	O
companies	O
that	O
hire	O
its	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
May	O
17	O
,	O
2021	O
,	O
Change.org	B-Application
updated	O
its	O
privacy	O
policy	O
,	O
which	O
included	O
a	O
formal	O
statement	O
from	O
the	O
company	O
regarding	O
the	O
selling	O
of	O
personal	O
data	O
:	O
"	O
Change.org	B-Application
does	O
not	O
sell	O
the	O
personal	O
information	O
of	O
any	O
of	O
our	O
users	O
,	O
and	O
we	O
have	O
not	O
sold	O
data	O
in	O
the	O
last	O
12	O
months.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
Change.org	B-Application
does	O
admit	O
in	O
its	O
privacy	O
policy	O
that	O
they	O
pass	O
users	O
 '	O
data	O
to	O
a	O
third	O
party	O
to	O
"	O
ensure	O
the	O
smooth	O
running	O
of	O
the	O
Change.org	B-Application
platform.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Topics	O
for	O
Change.org	B-Application
petitions	B-Application
have	O
grown	O
to	O
include	O
disagreement	O
with	O
the	O
Academy	O
Awards	O
and	O
removing	O
milk	O
from	O
certain	O
types	O
of	O
coffee	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
authors	O
of	O
these	O
petitions	B-Application
have	O
been	O
criticized	O
for	O
focusing	O
on	O
“	O
first-world	O
problems	O
”	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
further	O
debate	O
over	O
the	O
content	O
of	O
petitions	B-Application
came	O
in	O
November	O
2014	O
when	O
Martin	O
Daubney	O
called	O
some	O
of	O
them	O
"	O
bizarre	O
"	O
and	O
stated	O
that	O
the	O
site	O
was	O
being	O
used	O
to	O
promote	O
censorship	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
response	O
,	O
the	O
Change.org	B-Application
communication	O
director	O
John	O
Coventry	O
defended	O
the	O
wide	O
range	O
of	O
petitions	B-Application
,	O
saying	O
that	O
"	O
people	O
make	O
an	O
informed	O
choice	O
in	O
what	O
they	O
want	O
to	O
support.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
following	O
week	O
saw	O
criticism	O
alleging	O
that	O
petitions	B-Application
about	O
the	O
media	O
receive	O
more	O
attention	O
than	O
petitions	B-Application
about	O
"	O
saving	O
'	O
actual	O
 '	O
lives.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
solicits	O
signatories	O
to	O
donate	O
money	O
after	O
signing	O
the	O
petition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
further	O
reported	O
,	O
"	O
Change.org	B-Application
keeps	O
the	O
money	O
and	O
uses	O
it	O
to	O
'	O
circulate	O
 '	O
petitions	B-Application
more	O
widely	O
and	O
pay	O
for	O
its	O
operating	O
costs.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Over	O
140	O
former	O
employees	O
of	O
Change.org	B-Application
published	O
an	O
open	O
letter	O
noting	O
that	O
"	O
these	O
contributions	O
serve	O
to	O
market	O
the	O
petition	O
and	O
Change.org	B-Application
itself	O
via	O
billboards	O
and	O
digital	O
ads	O
"	O
and	O
,	O
following	O
the	O
murder	O
of	O
George	O
Floyd	O
and	O
consequent	O
Black	O
Lives	O
Matter	O
uprisings	O
in	O
June	O
2020	O
,	O
that	O
"	O
these	O
actions	O
constitute	O
Change.org	B-Application
profiting	O
from	O
the	O
death	O
of	O
Black	O
people.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Change.org	B-Application
has	O
attracted	O
the	O
interest	O
of	O
researchers	O
working	O
in	O
the	O
field	O
of	O
civic	O
technology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
quantitative	O
analysis	O
of	O
the	O
website	O
's	O
data	O
,	O
researchers	O
found	O
that	O
while	O
some	O
users	O
can	O
be	O
identified	O
as	O
natural	O
"	O
power	O
"	O
users	O
,	O
average	O
users	O
also	O
learn	O
from	O
their	O
experience	O
;	O
the	O
change.org	B-Application
recommendation	O
system	O
reinforces	O
their	O
willingness	O
to	O
continue	O
using	O
the	O
website	O
through	O
tailored	O
recommendations	O
,	O
turning	O
them	O
into	O
"	O
power	O
"	O
users	O
Research	O
also	O
suggests	O
that	O
petitions	B-Application
containing	O
positive	O
emotions	O
have	O
higher	O
chances	O
of	O
success	O
,	O
while	O
petitions	B-Application
appealing	O
to	O
moral	O
and	O
cognitive	O
content	O
are	O
less	O
likely	O
to	O
be	O
successful	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
study	O
examining	O
a	O
data	O
set	O
of	O
3.9	O
million	O
signers	O
of	O
petitions	B-Application
across	O
132	O
countries	O
showed	O
that	O
men	O
and	O
women	O
have	O
different	O
policy	O
priorities	O
and	O
that	O
even	O
though	O
women	O
create	O
fewer	O
petitions	B-Application
than	O
men	O
,	O
their	O
petitions	B-Application
are	O
more	O
likely	O
to	O
be	O
more	O
successful	O
.	O
</s>
