Every child has the right to education. Likewise, every child has the right to an intact, protected environment.
The Living Schools in Malawi, East Africa, achieve both. They offer several hundred girls and boys a good education with bright prospects for the future. In addition, they make efficient and careful use of natural resources in one of the poorest countries in the world.
UNICEF Children's Fund project
The UNICEF Children's Fund project is thus not only pursuing the goal of providing high-quality education worldwide, but is also aligned with Viessmann's corporate purpose of creating living spaces for generations to come.
The new activities of the Viessmann Foundations start with a donation of 250,000 euros for the Living Schools in Malawi made by Katharina Viessmann on behalf of the 12,300-strong Viessmann family to the Managing Director of UNICEF Germany, Christian Schneider.
Social responsibilities
Viessmann has already supported many social, cultural, scientific and educational initiatives at a regional level
"For many decades, we have already supported many social, cultural, scientific and educational initiatives at a regional level. Now we are expanding our social responsibility internationally by launching the Viessmann Foundations," says Katharina Viessmann.
The Living Schools project in Malawi is our first of many future commitments, and it is a cause close to our hearts. Especially in times of crisis, it is important for us to take on more responsibility for future generations - precisely in places where people are not as well-off as in Germany.
UNICEF thanks Viessmann
"We would like to thank the family who owns the company and the Viessmann Foundations for their great and generous support," says Christian Schneider, Managing Director of UNICEF Germany.
"Thanks to the donation, pupils in Malawi can learn in an intact environment with access to clean water and gain their first experiences using digital technology. They learn a lot about protecting the environment and how to be sustainable in a playful and independent way in hands-on lessons. All this empowers them to create their own future."
The key points
The key points of the Living Schools project in Malawi in more detail:
- Clean drinking water: building a solar-powered water system for clean drinking water and sanitation that serves a primary school with 1,300 pupils and a nearby health centre for 1,200 youth and an additional 600 community members.
- Sustainability in the curriculum: Construction of school gardens where children learn how to handle plants and are taught about protecting the environment and recycling.
- Use of solar power: Solar energy for a stable and green energy supply.
- E-learning: Teachers and school children receive training to blog about the progress of the project.
Creating sustainable living spaces
The newly established Viessmann Foundations has the mission statement: "Creating sustainable living spaces for generations to come together - in everything we do." Three key areas of action have been derived from this motto:
- Sustainable living spaces
- Future generations
- Bringing out the best in all of us
Donations during COVID
Back in spring, at the beginning of the corona pandemic, Viessmann donated 100,000 euros for the purchase of laptops and tablets that were lent by schools in the Waldeck-Frankenberg district to pupils for homeschooling.
However, Viessmann has not only been committed to education. In addition, further aid efforts have been carried out:
- 90,000 masks given to aid organizations.
- The development of respirators for seriously ill corona patients.
- The series production of new ventilation units for schools, doctors' surgeries or social institutions, such as food banks or hospices.
