FAQ
Answers to all of your questions. If we’ve missed one you can contact us.
The IKEA Foundation (Stichting IKEA Foundation) works to create a better everyday life for the many people. The IKEA Foundation is funded by INGKA Foundation, owner of the Ingka Group of companies. The IKEA Foundation is independent from the retail business with a sole focus on creating brighter lives on a liveable planet through philanthropy and grantmaking.
Learn more about INGKA Foundation here.
Our belief is deeply rooted in the idea that only through jobs and income can people lift themselves out of poverty. This needs to happen in sync with concerns around how to adapt to and change the negative impacts of climate change. Underpinned by a robust theory of change, our interventions focus in four areas, because this is where we think we can have a deep and long-lasting impact: climate action, employment and entrepreneurship, renewable energy and agricultural livelihoods.
Refugee families continue to be part of many of our programmes, as we see refugees as part of the many people. Our new strategy is about families living in poverty and families who are particularly vulnerable to a changing climate. Refugees are particularly vulnerable to both poverty and climate change, so we will continue to pioneer innovative programmes that help refugee families integrate into their local communities.
Our funding decisions are based on alignment with:
1. our Strategic Mission to improve the lives of vulnerable children by enabling their families to create sustainable livelihoods, and to fight and cope with climate change
2. our values and operating principles
3. our capacity to create systemic impact in an effective and efficient way.
Read more on our funding decisions here.
We get the best results by working with partners who know the most in the areas we want to support. That’s why we partner with programmes managed by a combination of established and well-regarded NGOs (nongovernmental organisations), IGOs (intergovernmental organisations) and other organisations. These partnerships help us to secure top experts, develop innovative approaches, influence and navigate government policy, and achieve the critical mass it takes to make an impact.
No, since we don’t give out direct aid, there is no grant application and unsolicited funding requests aren’t accepted. There are so many great programmes out there, but we can’t fund everything, so instead, we concentrate our resources on cultivating partnerships with key organisations to maximise our effectiveness and efficiency. We do encourage you to keep up your efforts and to look for funding avenues that match your needs.
Yes, IKEA stores worldwide are active in their communities, sponsoring local events, education efforts, clothing and food drives, as well as environmental efforts from recycling to reforestation. You can learn what each store is doing via links to each country and local store from www.ikea.com. In addition, countries where IKEA has stores respond to emergencies in their area with in-kind donations of IKEA products and funding efforts to restore and rebuild.
Sustainability is an integrated part of the way IKEA is doing business and it’s seen as a precondition for doing business. Read more in the IKEA sustainability strategy, available here.
The IKEA Foundation is funded by INGKA Foundation, owner of Ingka Group, the largest franchisee of IKEA. Profits from Ingka Group may only be used to reinvest in the business, save for a rainy day or go out for charitable purposes through the IKEA Foundation.
The IKEA Foundation is an independent philanthropy focused on climate and livelihoods, able to carry out our work thanks to the profits generated by Ingka Group.
Read more about INGKA Foundation’s ownership of Ingka Group and their charitable purpose here.
Our funding at the IKEA Foundation comes from the INGKA Foundation, the owner of the Ingka Group of companies.
The IKEA Foundation Board of Directors make a decision on our funding goals each year. We generally have a budget of around €200 million each year, but recently announced an additional €1 billion in spending to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions between 2021-2025.
While we focus on trying to solve the problem before there is a disaster, we also allocate some funding each year to respond to emergency situations. Our primary focus is on unseen emergencies – those that do not make the headlines of the global news media.
These emergencies, while just as horrifying as the ones you see in the news are increasing in frequency and impact due to climate change. Yet they receive less funding than well-publicised disasters. They tend to happen outside Europe and North America, in communities that are already vulnerable. To support those people and communities impacted, we provide unrestricted funding to our partners like Médecins Sans Frontières and local NGOs through the Start Fund so that they can act quickly to respond where they are most needed.
We use our platform to shine a light on unseen disasters when we believe it will help to bring other funders on board.
Annual grants are dependent on partners providing annual programme reports demonstrating that funds have been used properly and according to original intentions.
You can’t donate to us directly, but if you work or shop for IKEA, you already support our work! IKEA’s profits give us resources to spend on our partners’ programmes.
The best way to get involved is by supporting our partners directly. You can find out more about our partners by clicking here.
You can also get involved by becoming part of our community on Facebook and by following us on LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube. Sharing our content helps to increase awareness of the work our partners do to create a better everyday life for the many people.
They are complementary and amplify each other, and we are jointly creating a comprehensive approach.
The IKEA Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the INGKA Foundation and it operates independently of the IKEA value chain and business. It is restricted on the type of financial support it can give and mainly focuses its efforts on some of the most impoverished communities in the world.
IKEA Social Entrepreneurship can give financial support in more ways than the IKEA Foundation, it can also connect social entrepreneurs to the IKEA value chain, and with IKEA co-workers for knowledge sharing.
No. The IKEA Foundation does not send unsolicited emails offering donations, and we will not ask you for your personal information. We do not provide grants to individuals. You can learn more about the way we work by clicking here.