That figure includes cash and product donations from Amazon, the use of our logistics network, and products donated on behalf of Amazon Sellers who are part of our Fulfilled By Amazon programme in the UK, estimated at more than €150 million in value.
The donations have supported charities across the European Union (EU) and the UK, and we have provided more than 5 million free deliveries of food and essential goods to the most vulnerable families.
We prioritise support of communities and partners where Amazon’s unique capabilities can make a real difference. With the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, we opened humanitarian aid hubs in Slovakia and Poland within 10 days and donated more than two million relief items and 25,000 technology devices. Through our digital education initiatives, such as Amazon Future Engineer, we’ve supported more than half a million students in accessing computer science education. And thousands of our employees have donated their time to volunteer in the communities where they live and work.
Helping people when a crisis strikes
Amazon’s resources and logistics capabilities make us uniquely suited to help vulnerable people when a crisis strikes. Our disaster relief efforts utilise Amazon’s technology and global logistics network to provide fast, effective aid in times of need.
In Europe, we have transformed a fulfilment centre in Poland into a humanitarian hub stocked with items supporting our continued assistance for refugees in partnership with the World Food Programme, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent (ICRC), and Save the Children International.
“Thanks to partners like Amazon, Save the Children has been able to support nearly half a million children and families in Ukraine and surrounding countries through provision of critical supplies, cash vouchers, child protection and education programmes.” – Sarah Thompson, Partnership Manager, Save the Children International.
Our response to the earthquake disaster and wildfires in Türkiye, and to the floods in Western Europe, are some other recent examples of our wider disaster relief efforts. In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, we offered our logistics expertise in the UK to deliver millions of healthy breakfasts to children with Magic Breakfast, and to deliver test kits to the homes of essential workers.
We also offer free delivery of donated items directly from our own inventory, as well as from our business partners and customers. In May 2022, for example, we partnered with L’Oréal Germany to donate more than 110,000 hygiene products, and delivered these alongside more than 160,000 nappies donated by Amazon to Tafel Berlin in Germany. We also delivered more than 400 pallets of toys donated by Hasbro in France to our humanitarian aid hub in Poland to send to Ukrainian children.
Addressing the cost of living crisis for vulnerable populations
More than one in every five people in the EU and UK currently live under conditions of poverty and social exclusion[1][2]. Amazon works with government officials, other businesses and organisations, and community partners to build coalitions that address the needs of vulnerable populations. For example, we worked with former British Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Gordon Brown, to establish a coalition of charities, such as the Cottage Family Centre, and along with local businesses, helped deliver hundreds of thousands of essential products to more than 50,000 vulnerable families in Scotland.
"We are such a wee [small] charity. We try to provide opportunities for families who have faced traumatic events that increase their health and wellbeing. What Amazon has given us has changed things in so many ways for families and all the people who try so hard to support them." – Pauline Buchanan, Manager at the Cottage Family Centre, Scotland.
We also partnered with Comic Relief to support the Comic Relief Cost of Living Appeal, and most recently announced the extension of our partnership to support its iconic Red Nose campaign, which aims to support people struggling with the cost of living crisis in the UK and around the world.
In Italy and Spain, we supported several local food banks (FESBAL, Banco Alimentare, Fundación Altius) by donating, packing, and delivering more than 50,000 tonnes of food to families.
“Amazon delivers us approximately 1,900 products every day from its two Amazon Fresh centres [in Spain]. The food is fresh, very varied and of high quality. Thanks to Amazon, we can now help to feed families every day.” – Natalia Rueda, Director of Communication of Fundación Altius.
In Germany, more than 860 volunteers worked with four charities (Munich Foodbank, Berlin Foodbank, Die Arche, and Karuna) to donate, pack, and transport gifts for more than 20,000 families, and together with the Polish Red Cross, our employees in Poland packed 30 tonnes of food during the holiday season that helped over 24,000 people in need.
Investing in the future and inspiring young generations through tech education
The European Commission estimates that nine out of 10 jobs in the future will require digital skills. However, 169 million Europeans between 16 and 74 years old (44% of the population) do not have basic digital skills[3]. At Amazon, we believe in the transformative power of education to unleash creativity and unlock human potential. However, we also recognise that, while talent and passion is spread across all young people, opportunity is not – and we are working to address this with our international STEM programmes such as Amazon Future Engineer (AFE), AWS Educate, AWS Spark, AWS Skill Builder, and AWS GetIT. Since its launch in 2016, AFE has provided free education programmes to more than half a million students across thousands of schools in the UK, Germany, and France in close collaboration with local strategic partners, such as TeachFirst (UK), Secours Populaire (FR), and ReDiSchool (DE).
“Thanks to Amazon Future Engineer, we have conducted more than 100 workshops with refugee kids, with around 30 of them actually taking place in refugee camps. Your support gave us the strength and courage to go out there and visit those kids outside of school." – Jana Kausemann, Digital Kids Programme Manager at ReDiSchool Germany.
In October 2022, we also launched IT Skills 4U, a free workforce-development programme to help Ukrainians get career services support and skills training to pursue cloud computing careers. In addition, we continue our Europe-wide partnership with Meet and Code to fund grassroots coding events that empower young people to explore the world of technology and coding. Our efforts to support young learners are just part of how we’re helping individuals reimagine their careers with access to free skills training. Globally, AWS has pledged to provide free cloud computing skills training to 29 million adults by 2025.
Thousands of community volunteers are making a difference
With more than 200,000 Amazon employees across Europe, our people showcase the best of us. We continuously invest in locations where our employees work, and we encourage them to volunteer for causes that are important to them. Their stories inspire us every day. From providing legal services for free to packing hygiene kits and school supplies, we empower our employees to be a force for good in the world. During our Global Month of Volunteering in 2022, thousands of Amazon employees came together to support more than 150 charitable organisations across Europe. Our community volunteers continue to give their time and skills to a variety of causes, including working at food banks, hosting refugee families, donating essential goods, reading in schools, cleaning up local environments, and helping communities recycle more.
“Going together to the local food banks and packing the food kits that will go to the families of the Lombardy Region where I live, it really makes me feel I can make at least a small difference for the people who really need it” - Chiara Pellegrino, Brand Specialist and volunteer at Amazon.it
Amazon is present in more than 20 countries across Europe, and we will continue to address the most pressing societal needs – such as alleviating poverty and supporting young people – through our philanthropic initiatives and partnerships. With education, investment, and access to technology we aim to make a difference in the lives of those greatest in need in our communities and across our region.
[1] UK Parliament, House of Commons Library, Poverty in the UK: Statistics, 2022. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn07096/
[2] Eurostat News, 2022. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/-/ddn-20220915-1
[3] The Digital Skills Gap in Europe, 8 March 2021, https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/digital-skills-gap-europe
