Los volunteers from Iberdrola have turned to more than 90 initiatives that throughout this week have been developed in the different countries in which the company is based. More of 7,000 volunteers have wanted to participate, 40% more than last year, from Spain to the United States, Mexico, Brazil, United Kingdom, Portugal, Greece, Italy, Germany, France, Belgium, Japan or Australia.
Under the slogan ‘Together we build the world we want’, from October 1 to 9, solidarity projects related to the care of environmentthe inclusion of vulnerable groups and social assistance.
For example, in Spain, last Thursday native species were planted in the Avila municipality of Solosancho. There, more than 100 Iberdrola volunteers, together with 60 members of the Fundación AMAS and Fundación Ande entities, have collaborated in the planting of 800 native trees in one of the municipalities affected by the Navalacruz fire in 2021, which destroyed nearly 22,000 hectares. The president of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, went there to share the reforestation day with them.
Basically, the Quercus Ilex and Juniperus Thurifera species were planted, and a hunting fence was installed to ensure the protection of the tree mass planted in front of cattle.
Together with the environmental days such as the one in Ávila, Iberdrola has carried out other solidarity activities such as a global race to donate food packs to vulnerable familiescleaning of invasive species and waste on beaches, riverbanks and forests, cleaning of seabeds or the construction and adaptation of different spaces in social entities such as gardens, cultivation tables and orchards.
Likewise, shelters have been built for the protection of species at riskcreated toys to improve the cognitive development and psychomotricity of people with disabilities and the elderly, environmental awareness workshops, sports and inclusive leisure with different vulnerable groups.
The volunteers have given training in energy efficiency, the fight against climate change, responsible consumption, recycling, as well as workshops to improve the employability of women at risk of severe social exclusion, encourage reading among children from vulnerable backgrounds and facilitate the social and labor insertion of refugees. Donations of children’s books, school product kits and clothing and hygiene products for the homeless have also been made, in addition to contributing to UNICEF to improve universal immunization coverage in children around the world.
Face-to-face and online actions
The week has been developed under a hybrid format in which it has been possible to participate, both in person and remotely, in order to amplify and facilitate opportunities for participation. Iberdrola volunteers and their families have shared these actions with other groups, such as people with disabilities, young people and women in vulnerable situations, refugees, children and the elderly.
The Iberdrola Volunteer Program was created in 2006. It is a global, international project aligned with the group’s values, with its Sustainability Policy and with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Specifically, they focus on goals 3 (health and well-being), 4 (quality education), 5 (gender equality), 7 (affordable and clean energy), 10 (reduction of inequalities) and 13 (action for the climate).
Iberdrola’s Corporate Volunteering Program has been recognized by the United Nations, by being included in the ‘Transforming Lives and Communities’ report, published by IMPACT2030 in collaboration with the United Nations Office for Cooperation. This report recognizes it as a pioneering practice in harnessing the skills, passion and experience of its employees in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Iberdrola is the only Spanish company and one from the energy sector present among the 19 selected in the report published on the occasion of the 2021 SDG Week.
More than 700 activities per year
Through the Program, more than 700 activities are offered annually and more than 12,000 volunteers participate. It is a diverse program that adapts to the social needs of a changing environment and offers opportunities for all employees to contribute to social and environmental improvement. The initiatives are developed both in Spain and abroad and are related to the inclusion and development of groups at risk of social exclusion. In the same way, programs are also offered that want to promote care for the environment and the protection of biodiversity, access to energy for those who still do not have it, and the response to emergencies and humanitarian crises.