The ESA Foundation Raises $1.15 Million and Honors Unity’s Unity for Humanity Program with 2026 Champion Award
WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 18, 2026) – The ESA Foundation celebrated its 24th annual Nite to Unite ‘Pathways and Portals’ fundraiser on March 10, raising $1.15 million and honoring Unity as the Champion Award Honoree of 2026. The funds raised will support the foundation’s grants and scholarships for the next generation of game makers and charitable organizations with science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) youth programs. Widely supported by the video games industry, the evening’s lead sponsors were Xbox and Google. The event was also supported by IGN Entertainment as the Exclusive Media Sponsor.
Since its inception in 1994, the ESA Foundation has raised over $24 million for a wide variety of causes that encourage creativity and talent development in the video games industry. This includes scholarships dedicated to inspiring future creators in the video game industry and those pursuing STEAM studies. The foundation also supports nonprofit organizations that empower students to build 21st-century skills and use video games for social impact.
“The ESA Foundation is constantly inspired by the young professionals bringing new perspectives to the video games industry,” said ESA Foundation Lead Sue Madden. “Our scholarship programs don’t just provide financial support, they open new opportunities, foster mentorship, and help students find the skills and confidence they need to make their mark in the industry.”
The ESA Foundation honored Unity’s Unity for Humanity program as the recipient of the 2026 Champion Award. The annual Unity for Humanity program awards grants and technical support to changemakers who are using games and real-time 3D technology to drive positive social impact around the world.
“Unity for Humanity was started after we saw something powerful happening: creators weren’t just using Unity to make games. They were building real tools for education, communities, health, accessibility, and climate change, and they needed more than just software to turn those ideas into impact,” said Raphael Ruland, SVP and CRO for Games at Unity. “We back creators who are using Unity to make a positive difference in the world. This award truly belongs to them, and we’re committed to helping them make their impact even bigger.”
The ESA Foundation also gave an Impact Award at Nite to Unite to iCivics, a nonprofit organization founded by retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. iCivics teaches civics education through video games to 9M youth grades k-12. The program is active in 80% of US counties and supported by more than 100,000 trained teachers. ESA Foundation awarded the organization a $50,000 grant to support the adoption of its most recent game, Investigation Declaration.
Funds from this year’s Nite to Unite will support undergraduate scholarships, including the Computer and Video Games Arts and Sciences Scholarship and the Esports Scholarship. Applications for scholarships open on April 1, 2026 through April 30, 2026, and young gamemakers who are high school seniors or pursuing an undergraduate degree are encouraged to apply starting April 1.
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About the ESA Foundation
The ESA Foundation awards scholarships to the next generation of industry innovators and supports schools and nonprofits that leverage interactive entertainment technology to create meaningful STEAM opportunities for America’s youth. It seeks to harness the power of the video game industry to create positive social impact and supports geographically diverse projects and programs benefiting grantees of all ages, races and genders. To date, the ESA Foundation has raised more than $24 million for a wide variety of worthy causes, primarily through its signature fundraising gala, Nite to Unite.
About Unity for Humanity
Unity for Humanity is a program designed to support and uplift creators using real-time 3D technology to tackle social issues and inspire positive change. It reflects Unity’s commitment to inclusivity and empowerment, aligning with our mission to equip creators with the tools and platforms to help build a better world. The grant is awarded through an open Request for Proposals, with projects evaluated against the 14 UN Sustainable Development Goals and a rubric focused on vision, impact, inclusion and viability. Unity employees review every submission, looking for ideas that aren’t just imaginative, but transformative. Selected projects receive funding, technical expertise and marketing support.
About Unity
Unity [NYSE: U] offers a suite of tools to develop, deploy, and grow games and interactive experiences across all major platforms from mobile, PC, and console, to extended reality (XR). For more information, visit Unity.com.
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