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Our response to COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented global health crisis, and we are responding in several ways.

Helping families afford a better life

Families living in poverty around the world face tremendous challenges. With millions of people looking to join the workforce, many find it difficult to find a job and earn a sustainable income.

Protecting the planet

Temperatures are rising, causing changes in our climate that threaten every aspect of our lives—from the food we eat to the water we drink to the air we breathe.

Stories

Investors can influence climate action for the better

It’s about time people realise that their own investments and savings can make a difference in fighting climate change. The key to that is being well-informed, which can be achieved...

4 mins January 21, 2021

Thanks to all our partners for their exceptional work

Throughout 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic has threatened families’ health and incomes around the world, our partners’ work has been more important than ever. “We’re so impressed with how our...

3 mins December 28, 2020

Social business boosts livelihoods and recycling efforts in India

In India, recycling depends upon informal waste pickers who scour through waste, pick out recyclable materials and sell them to recyclers. However, their livelihoods are precarious, with irregular and unfair...

2 mins December 8, 2020

Buildings as a window of opportunity for climate action

Buildings are responsible for 36% of the total greenhouse gas emissions in Europe. Almost half of building-related emissions come from the production of materials like cement, steel and glass, and...

2 mins December 7, 2020

Finding fertile ground to heal the planet

Recently, agriculture has been in the news for its negative effects on the environment; driving deforestation, biodiversity loss, water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. We now know that in the...

4 mins December 5, 2020

Digital skills training helps green entrepreneur adapt to COVID-19

“This is not just a business, this is a social responsibility,” says Esrat, who runs Tulika, a small business producing jute bags in Bangladesh. Jute is a traditional crop in...

3 mins November 17, 2020

It’s time to harness the potential of green entrepreneurship

In front of our eyes and in less than a year, we have seen the world being reshaped by the pandemic, with our systems creaking and cracking under its disrupting...

4 mins November 12, 2020

Helping financial institutions make climate-positive decisions

Climate change threatens every aspect of our society, including the financial sector. That is why financial institutions need to devote more attention to understanding not only the impact of climate...

2 mins October 28, 2020

New podcast season re-imagines a better post-COVID-19 world

Strange times demand interesting new ways of communicating on issues that matter to all of us. We’re living in a time where we have many questions on how we will...

3 mins October 26, 2020

Our response to COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented global health crisis, and we are responding in several ways. At the IKEA Foundation, we believe that everyone’s number one priority should be to look after their family and loved ones, and to stay home wherever possible to stop the virus from spreading. With this in mind, we are talking to our partners about the best ways to progress on the programmes we are funding and how we can help them during this crisis.

Some of our programmes are already working to help people affected by COVID-19, and we are committing up to €10 million to help fund their incredible, life-saving work. We are also talking to our partners about how the pandemic may affect their long-term programmes to protect the planet from climate change and to help families afford a better everyday life. We believe that these programmes are more important than ever before. We know that many of our partners and the communities they serve are facing extraordinary difficulties, and we are committed to supporting them in finding extraordinary solutions.