FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AMERICAN GIRL’S 2016 GIRL OF THE YEAR™ DIVES INTO ADVENTURE AND
HELPS GIRLS SEE LIFE THROUGH A NEW LENS
— Collaboration with World Wildlife Fund® to Help Protect Animals and Their Habitats—
Middleton, WI (January 1, 2016): Today, millions of girls are going wild for Lea Clark™,
American Girl’s 2016 Girl of the Year™! Lea, a talented photographer with a love for animals,
discovers a wide world of possibilities when she embarks on a faraway adventure to Brazil.
Available for only one year, Lea’s collection includes a beautiful 18-inch Lea™ doll featuring long
wavy hair and warm hazel eyes, plus several tropical-inspired outfits, accessories, and toys that
reflect her Brazilian travels—including Lea’s Rainforest House with over 30 pieces! To further
expand Lea’s world for girls, an all-new, action-adventure film will debut on DVD from Universal
Studios Home Entertainment in summer 2016.
Written by award-winning author Lisa Yee, the 2016 Girl of the Year books—Lea Dives In, Lea
Leads the Way, and Lea and Camila—introduce girls to a curious ten-year-old girl with an
adventurous spirit. On a family trip to Brazil to visit her older brother, Zac, who is studying the
Amazon rainforest, Lea is excited to capture everything she sees with her camera. Soon Lea
makes some incredible discoveries, but she also faces unexpected challenges, including a fear
of the ocean, tension with Zac, and finding a baby sloth that has been gravely injured. With the
help of her family, her new Brazilian friend, Camila, and her late grandmother’s guiding inspiration,
Lea finds the inner strength and confidence to live her new adventures to the fullest.
Giving Back with Lea
To show girls that, together, they can make a difference in helping protect animals and their habitats,
American Girl has created Wild at Art, a year-long fund-raising campaign in support of World
Wildlife Fund (WWF). Starting January 1, American Girl is encouraging girls to use their artistic
abilities to host an art sale and donate the proceeds to WWF. To launch the campaign, American
Girl has made a $50,000 donation to WWF and also invites customers to contribute at American Girl
retail stores and americangirl.com. Parents can visit americangirl.com/wildatart to learn more and
register for Wild at Art, plus get animal-themed craft ideas, and be entered into a sweepstakes for
the chance to win one of 17 Lea prize packages.
In addition, from January 1 through December 31, 2016, for every purchase of one of the three plush
animals in Lea’s collection—the margay, sea turtle, or sloth—American Girl will donate $1 (up to a
maximum of $100,000) to WWF.
-more-
Page 2—Meet Lea
Other Lea-related initiatives being held throughout the year include the following:
! Lea™ Born for Adventure Paid App and Online Play: Girls can join Lea in Brazil for an
adventure of a lifetime with this paid app, featuring beautiful graphics, exclusive content,
and endless play. The app retails for $1.99 and is available for download on
americangirl.com/girloftheyear. Girls can also visit the Lea-dedicated site for book
excerpts, movie-related content, games and quizzes, wallpaper and e-cards, and much
more.
! Lea Retail Events: On January 1, American Girl stores are hosting Lea’s Debut Event,
where girls will get a first look at her full product collection, plus enjoy in-store activities,
colorful crafts, giveaways, and a fun photo opportunity. Girls can also take part in free and
paid Lea-related events throughout the year. For more details on the in-store events, visit
americangirl.com/stores.
The Lea collection is available on January 1 through American Girl’s catalogue; at
americangirl.com; at all American Girl retail locations nationwide; and at American Girl specialty
boutiques at select Indigo™ and Chapters™ in Canada and El Palacio de Hierro locations in Mexico
City. The Lea books can also be purchased through retail and online booksellers.
To learn more about Lea and the Girl of the Year™ line, go to americangirl.com, Facebook at
facebook.com/americangirl, Twitter at twitter.com/american_girl, Pinterest at
pinterest.com/agofficial, and American Girl’s Instagram page at
instagram.com/americangirlbrand. To request an American Girl catalogue, call 1-800-845-0005.
ABOUT AMERICAN GIRL
American Girl is a premium brand for and about girls and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mattel, Inc.
(NASDAQ:MAT, www.mattel.com), the worldwide leader in the design, manufacture, and marketing of
toys and family products. Headquartered in Middleton, WI, American Girl offers an inspiring world of
dolls, experiences, and entertainment to empower and unite girls of all ages. Best-selling lines include
Truly Me™, Girl of the Year™, Bitty Baby™, and the classic historical character line BeForever™. The
company sells products through its award-winning catalogue, on www.americangirl.com, in its
experiential retail stores nationwide, and in specialty boutiques at select Indigo™ and Chapters™ in
Canada and El Palacio de Hierro locations in Mexico City. American Girl’s mission is to fuel belonging
and connection among girls, a goal that has already earned the loyalty of millions and the praise and trust
of their parents and educators.
ABOUT WORLD WILDLIFE FUND®
WWF is one of the world’s leading conservation organizations, working in 100 countries for over half a
century. With the support of almost 5 million members worldwide, WWF is dedicated to delivering
science-based solutions to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth, halt the degradation of
the environment and combat climate change. Visit www.worldwildlife.org to learn more and keep up with
the latest conservation news by following @WWFNews on Twitter.
Media Contacts
Susan Jevens, American Girl
608.830.4214
[email protected]
Jenna Bonello, World Wildlife Fund
(202) 495-4541
[email protected]
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