Niantic and The Pokemon Company Donate to California Wildfire Relief

The Pokemon Company and Pokemon GO developer Niantic are making a major financial donation towards recovery funds in Los Angeles, California, following the massive wildfires that broke out in early January. The donation is a generous gesture towards a city that’s seen a number of Pokemon events.

In early January 2025, multiple wildfires sparked across Los Angeles, California, leading to a month of burning, tremendous property losses, and a significant number of fatalities. In all, tens of thousands of acres have burned, and dozens of people have died as a result of the fires. Though the wildfires have since been contained and put out, the damage that has been left behind will take a long time for residents and companies to recover from. Numerous charities have begun operations in the area to help support those who have been displaced, with game companies like Sony and Activision also pitching in with financial aid towards wildfire recovery, and now the companies behind Pokemon are joining them.

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The Pokemon Company and Niantic have now announced that the two will be making a large donation to GlobalGiving’s California Wildfire Relief Fund. The Pokemon Company is donating $500,000 towards the efforts, with Niantic matching it with its own $500,000, for a total of $1 million towards the cause. GlobalGiving’s California Wildfire Relief Fund has provided emergency grants to community centers that are helping those who have been displaced or otherwise impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires.

Pokemon and Los Angeles

In a statement, GlobalGiving has noted that the group has already issued emergency grants to nonprofit partners courtesy of the two companies’ donations. A spokeswoman for The Pokemon Company said that the company was grateful to be able to help assist the cause with partner Niantic. Niantic said that it wanted to give back and support the local community not only through this donation, but by hosting the Pokemon GO Tour: Unova in Los Angeles, which will host gameplay events across the city, Orange County, and at the Rose Bowl.

Pokemon GO and the game series in general have often brought players together and created a sense of community. As Pokemon GO has hosted numerous events in Los Angeles in the past, it’s appropriate and generous for the two companies to help with the recovery efforts. There’s still a long way to go before those impacted get back to a sense of normalcy, but gestures like this are sure to warm the hearts of Pokemon fans that have been or know someone that’s impacted by the fires.

Pokemon

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Satoshi Tajiri