A little more than a year old, the awesome eyewear company Warby Parker (who we’ve shown some love to in the past) is back at it again with their first-ever pair of sunglasses. But like many of the start-up’s other products (since its inception, Warby Parker’s buy-a-pair, give-a-pair program has proven to be a major philanthropic success), these dark specs do a whole lot more than protect peepers from the harsh summer rays. We talked with one of Warby Parker co-founders, Neil Blumenthal, to get the scoop on the new shades:

ReadyMade: Warby Parker now has sunglasses! Can you tell us about them?
Neil Blumenthal: We’ll be releasing a whole line of sunglasses in the near future, but for our first set of sunglasses, we’re having a sales collaboration with Invisible Children. When someone buys a pair of the “socially conscious sunglasses,” $30 of the sale will go directly to the non-for-profit that helps rehabilitate child soldiers.

How did Warby Parker choose to partner with Invisible Children?
We met at a conference called Summit Series, an annual gathering or innovators, non-profit leaders, and academics. I got to know the founders of Invisible Children (Jason Russell, Bobby Bailey, and Laren Poole) really well and realized we had a lot in common in terms of the approach we take to leading our organizations and thought it would be a great idea to collaborate.

The amazing thing about Invisible Children is number one, the impact that they have. They’re helping thousands of the most vulnerable people on Earth—children who’ve been orphaned because of conflict in Central Africa. Invisible Children helps build rehabilitation centers and schools for people who were former soldiers or kids and families who’ve been displaced because of war. A lot of people don’t pay attention to this issue, but Invisible Children has been able to shine a light on it through their amazing storytelling abilities. In the last few years, they've been able to raise $30 million, and 80 percent has come from donations of $20 or less—it really speaks to the grassroots nature of what they're doing. 

Why sunglasses? 
Sunglasses are highly visible, and we wanted to use them as a call to action for what Invisible Children is doing. The name of their organization is labeled on the outside of the frame, and on the inside we’ve inscribed the message, “Do more than just watch.” We’re hoping it’ll encourage and activate people to do something good. Warby Parker is looking to build a long-term relationship with Invisible Children—these sunglasses are just the first step. There will be much more to come in the future. 

Learn more about Invisible Children in the video below. And snag your own pair of these special sunglasses ($95) here.

[Image via Warby Parker] 

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