SOS Children's Villages worldwide

We are celebrating the 10th anniversary of the cooperation between SOS Children's Villages worldwide and CEWE. CEWE attaches great importance to sustainability, which includes helping people in need. The SOS Children's Villages implement this convincingly worldwide.

SOS Children's Villages worldwide and CEWE have been close partners since 2013. The Oldenburg company has a long tradition of donating, and to this day has given over 2.25 million euros to families and children in need. In addition to established projects, CEWE backs emergency relief projects requiring immediate attention. In 2017, this included taking care of children affected by the famine in Somalia, and humanitarian relief in Diffa, the region bordering on Niger and Nigeria. Emergency relief for those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic was also aided in 2020. This diverse and exceptional social commitment led to CEWE receiving its first Excellence Award from SOS Children's Villages worldwide.

CEWE sees its economic success as a very special commitment towards society.

The success of the solid partnership between CEWE and SOS Children's Villages worldwide is owed to three pillars:

1. The assumption of corporate responsibility through financial/material assistance

CEWE aids SOS Children's Villages worldwide financially and with donations in kind. Such aid helps children and families in need.

2. Helping through creativity by involving customers

CEWE organises photo and creativity contests and involves the SOS Children's Villages worldwide. For the CEWE Photo Award, for example, CEWE donates 10 cents per photo submitted to SOS Children's Villages worldwide.

3. Employees volunteer to help wherever help is needed

CEWE employees volunteer whenever and wherever help is needed at the various locations throughout Germany and Europe. This has created particularly close relationships with the children's villages in Ghana, Hungary, Czech Republic, Poland, Croatia, Norway, Austria, France, Germany, and Belgium. 

Through its partnership with SOS Children's Villages worldwide, CEWE supports projects that promote the personal development of children. Suitable educational and leisure activities strengthen the personal interests, the creativity, and the resilience of the children. Local CEWE teams are in constant contact with the SOS Children's Villages in their vicinity to support their activities. Nicole Schulze Beerhorst and Christian Wilbers from the CEWE headquarters in Oldenburg visited the SOS Children's Village in Worpswede near Bremen to get an idea of the "animal-assisted therapy" project.

In Worpswede, children have the opportunity to take part in animal-assisted pedagogy, which helps them in their personal development. The aim is for the boys and girls to experience positive moments together with the animals and to get in touch with them and with themselves. The grounds of the children's village are home to horses and other animals that enable the children to do just that. In the long term, the interaction with the animals also increases the children's ability to relate to others and their social skills, as well as strengthening their self-confidence.

Also, at the Lekenik and Ladimirevci sites in Croatia, more than 20 children can live out their creativity in a photography group led by two SOS Children's Villages employees (who are also photography enthusiasts). Together, the children gain experience in front of and behind the camera and even take part in a photo workshop conducted by a professional photographer from CEWE. The goal of the project is for the children to develop their creativity and practice patience as well as concentration. In addition, they get the chance to communicate their thoughts and feelings via this medium and to capture precious moments of their childhood and environment.

In August 2023, 14 children in Poland also had the opportunity to take part in a photography workshop. Under the guidance of a Polish photographer, they were able to immerse themselves in the world of photography not only theoretically but also practically and try their hand at it. Together, they made the invisible visible to the naked eye - the main topic of the workshop was macro photography. The highlight of the activity was a trip to the CEWE site in Kędzierzyn-Koźle, where the children were able to take a look at the production and print out their photos at a CEWE photo station to create a lasting memory of this special day.