Schréder Together Fund
Our Together for our Community strategy embodies our mission to create meaningful moments for people in public spaces by making them safe, comfortable and sustainable.
As part of our ambition to align with the United Nations' SDG 11, we regularly help towns and cities to implement lighting solutions that improve safety for vunerable users at crossings and protect the local fauna and flora.
Over the years, we have also donated street lights to improve the quality of life in economically less privileged areas or to help disaster-stricken zones.
In 2021, we took the decision with the Schréder family to go a step further and give a more structured approach to our philanthropic purpose by setting up a global fund, the Schréder Together Fund, hosted by King Baudouin Foundation.
The goal is to work with non-profit organisations to support the communities in which we live and operate by:
- protecting vulnerable users on the road and in the city;
- improving lighting or safety in public or private spaces (parks, sports venues, hospitals, schools, etc.) in particularly disadvantaged places;
- promoting entrepreneurship with young citizens in less privileged areas;
- preserving the environment and acting against climate change;
- helping to train engineering and technology students and professionals in disadvantaged communities.
Schréder employees are closely involved in the operation of the fund and can make suggestions to help us decide which projects to support.
In 2022, the fund helped the following associations.
YouthStart (Belgium)
YouthStart helps young people who have dropped out of school gain confidence and develop an entrepreneurial spirit. Through short, intensive training sessions, they unlock their full potential and regain control of their lives and their future.
Be.Face (Belgium)
Be.Face is a network of companies that work together to promote the social and professional integration of disadvantaged people. They contribute to the success of their professional project through concrete local actions and in collaboration with local actors. The goal is campaigning for inclusion in the workplace, creating opportunities for students and job-seekers alike.
Petrykiv Regional Municipal Children's Boarding House (Ukraine)
This boarding house welcomes children with disabilities or from disadvantaged areas, offering them a formal education, inclusion, rehabilitation and social help.
The outdoor lighting system around the house was no longer working properly, creating an unsecure environment at night, and required a lot of maintenance. To support this organisation, the Schréder Together Fund will provide new outdoor lighting with more sustainable LED lighting technology.
Matolweni Early Childhood Development Centre (South Africa)
The centre is run by local women and offers food and education to children and women from the poorest level of society.
The Schréder Together Fund donated and organised the installation of over 85 energy-efficient LED luminaires for inside and outside this centre. It also contributed towards new kitchen equipment for the school feeding scheme, computer equipment for the women’s computer room and sewing equipment for community sewing lessons.
Mukumbani Village (South Africa)
This project honours the legacy of Wimpie Ludwick, former General Manager of BEKA Schréder in South Africa, who passed on 6th August 2021. The area is extremely rural, poorly lit, with sometimes serious crimes and abuses. The project has two objectives to deliver:
- solar lighting solutions in the areas where there is no electricity.
- luminaires in the areas where an electrical supply is available.
This project has the political and tribal blessing of the Vhavenda Head Chief, Kennedy Tshivahse and Chief Mashudu Tshivahse. The local authorities in Thulamela Local Municipality will be responsible for future maintenance and will also gather a team to install the luminaires and components.