Ahlström Collective Impact continues its strong commitment to UNICEF’s education work

Ahlström Collective Impact will continue supporting UNICEF’s global education
efforts in 2025 and remains committed to advancing children’s rights in business.
The initiative is also proud to welcome a new member to the network,
Metsäkonepalvelu.

This year, Ahlström Collective Impact’s contribution to UNICEF’s education work
amounts to over €750,000. Support from the private sector is critically important in
today’s increasingly complex global landscape, where cuts by several donor
countries to international aid threaten UNICEF’s global efforts to uphold children’s
rights.

– Companies and foundations play a central role in promoting children’s rights. It’s
inspiring to see that in these geopolitically challenging times, Ahlström Collective
Impact is strengthening its commitment to children’s well-being and reinforcing the
essential work of integrating children’s rights into business, says Annina
Tanhuanpää, Secretary General of UNICEF Finland.

– While global responsibility is being tested in many parts of the world, we remain
firmly committed to our efforts to support children. Ahlström’s mission is to create a
better world for future generations through sustainable value creation, and
Ahlström Collective Impact is a concrete way to maximize our impact through
collaboration and bring our mission to life. I’m very pleased that almost all our
companies are involved in this network, comments Jyrki Vainionpää, President &
CEO of A. Ahlström Corporation.

As part of our shared commitment, member organizations within the ACI network
are aiming to integrate a child rights perspective into their sustainability
strategies—ensuring that both direct and indirect impacts on children are
recognized and addressed. We continue to deepen our expertise through
dedicated training sessions organized by UNICEF Finland, which focus on the
intersection of children’s rights, business practices, and corporate responsibility.
These trainings are a cornerstone of our development, and we further amplify our
engagement through initiatives like the World Children’s Day campaign, where
staff across the network come together to champion children’s rights in meaningful
and visible ways.

– Social responsibility is not a trend – it is a necessity. Social responsibility is the
natural next step after focusing on environmental sustainability. It is time for
companies to step up. Society alone is not moving fast enough, and responsible
businesses have a critical role to play – just as workplace safety once became a
non-negotiable norm, so must social impact. Social responsibility is also deeply
rooted in leadership values. In today’s volatile world, value-based leadership
matters more than ever.

Investing in children’s education is one of the most powerful ways to drive long-term, systemic change.
Building a more sustainable, equal future is not a form of
charity – it is a responsibility, says Nelli Paasikivi-Ahlström, Chair of Ahlström
Collective Impact.

Addressing the global learning crisis

Children’s learning is a global crisis, where up to 70% of 10-year-olds in low- and
middle-income countries cannot understand a simple written text. The situation is
especially dire in sub-Saharan Africa. The digital divide is also widening, with the
majority of school-aged children living in households without internet access.
Member organizations of Ahlström Collective Impact support UNICEF’s education
efforts to address these challenges. The Ahlström family’s commitment to
children’s education has also expanded this year to a new initiative, with the Eva
Ahlström Foundation joining a Nordic funding group supporting UNICEF’s
research center Innocenti’s “Every Child Learning” pioneer project.

UNICEF
UNICEF is the world’s most influential children’s organization, promoting education
in 150 countries. It provides education in crisis zones, challenges attitudes that
hinder schooling, promotes quality teaching, and defends the rights of children
with disabilities and minorities to education. The work focuses both on grassroots
change and the development of entire education systems in collaboration with
national authorities.

Ahlström Collective Impact
The Ahlström Collective Impact collaboration model was launched in 2020. It
brings together companies and foundations from the Ahlström network to invest in
children’s well-being through selected UNICEF projects aligned with the UN’s
Sustainable Development Goals. The support for UNICEF’s education work in
2025 is over €750,000. Members include: Ahlstrom, A. Ahlström, Ahlström Invest,
Avain Yhtiöt, Destia, Detection Technology, Eva Ahlström Foundation, Glaston,
Metsäkonepalvelu, M&J Recycling, Suominen, and the Walter Ahlström
Foundation.