Marketing Research Education Foundation MREF announced that the Backpack Challenge Readathon is over, with participants retroactively submitting results and making a donation until Wednesday, September 2 at 11:59 p.m. ET to exceed its 2026 goal of providing 600 backpacks with essential school supplies to kids around the U.S.

Education is a powerful thing, yet many children lack access to it. The Marketing Research Education Foundation (MREF) was established in 2015 to bridge the education gap for children globally, harnessing the passion of marketing research and insights professionals looking to make a lasting impact. MREF is an international foundation dedicated to enhancing the educational opportunities for children and youth worldwide. As an industry-wide initiative, the MREF involves researchers from every level of the marketing research industry across the globe. The foundation is a 501©(3) nonprofit that uses financial and human resources to provide the tools necessary to give children access to a quality education. Now in its 10th year, MREF funds projects that promise to improve education, and the nonprofit seeks to unite researchers from around the world to help, whether through financial support during the annual Race Around the World for Education, building a school while on a Vision Trip, or simply reading to children during the annual Month of Service. Through these efforts and more, MREF will continue to transform the lives of children through education.

Founded 2015