SCA in society

Over time, the social dimension has become an increasingly important part of companies’ CSR strategies – and this has also been the case for SCA. The social needs of communities are growing, and many of these can only be solved through cooperation between companies and communities.

At the same time, these needs are a source of inspiration and development for companies’ business models and product offerings. There are ample opportunities to create shared value between companies and the community, where business value for the company and social value for the community go hand in hand.

SCA prioritizes social initiatives with a clear link to the company’s values, expertise, operations and geographic presence. Many initiatives are in hygiene and health, often related to women and children.

The projects vary over time and between regions. They range from hygiene programs to emergency relief or support for local projects and organizations. These projects strengthen SCA’s position in the community and build loyalty and goodwill. They contribute to our reputation as an attractive employer, and make our employees proud to be working for SCA. In 2016, SCA invested SEK 32m in approximately 400 projects.

Living life to the fullest

Age should never be an obstacle when it comes to new experiences and living your life to the fullest. Partnering with the North American organization Wish of A Lifetime, SCA is committed to enriching the lives of seniors. 78-year-old Jenny Bond lives an active life, including whitewater rafting, paragliding skydiving and scuba diving. Yet, a memory that has stayed with her is meeting an elephant at the Munich Zoo in 1960 and ever since, she has wished to help care and feed an elephant. Thanks to SCA and Wish of A Lifetime, her wish came true when Jenny got to meet and care for Tupelo the elephant at the Houston Zoo in the US.

SCA and UNICEF support adolescent girls in Mexico

SCA initiated a collaboration with UNICEF in Mexico in conjunction with the UN’s International Day of the Girl Child on October 11. The cooperation aims to disseminate information in order to tackle problems that often affect adolescent girls and to finance the UNICEF program for girls and boys in Mexico.

SCA entered into a partnership with UNICEF in Mexico to support adolescents and to work for improved gender equality.

The cooperation concerns pressing problems. In Mexico, a country with 15.6 million adolescent girls, challenges include teenage pregnancies, violence and early school dropout. Mexico has most teenage pregnancies among OECD countries and many of these young mothers suffer from serious complications related to pregnancy and childbirth. Violence is also common among young people in Mexico: 36 of 1,000 young people aged 10–17 report being affected by some kind of violence or aggression (ENSANUT:2012).

SCA and UNICEF are targeting young girls and also their parents as teenage years are such an important period. The skills, abilities and resilience capacity acquired during this time are crucial for the potential of people in adult life. The #hablemostodo (let’s talk about everything) campaign was run in social media during the autumn. SCA will also share key messages via Saba Teens packaging (SCA’s feminine care brand in Mexico) and through the brand’s other channels. The messages will focus on the importance of violence prevention, completing school and not becoming a parent at too young an age.

“SCAs motto ‘Care of life’ extends beyond our products. We promote hygiene and health, and want to increase our commitment to also influence equal opportunities and the well-being of women. Our reach will be greater together with UNICEF,” says Atilano Sanchez, Vice President Sales & Marketing for SCA in Mexico and Central America.

Sick children need their parents

In Hungary, SCA has a strategic cooperation with the Bethesda Children’s Hospital. One of the outcomes of the cooperation is the foundation of the Bethesda Family House, a dormitory for parents who want to stay with their children when in hospital.

Children cope better with tough medical treatment if their parents are nearby, and this is possible at the Bethesda Children’s Hospital in Hungary.

Children can endure hard medical treatment and recover more quickly close to their parents. Family accommodation in hospitals is hardly available anywhere else in Hungary.

A Hungarian tax law allows people to donate 1% of their income tax to a dedicated CSR project. In its long-term cooperation with Bethesda, SCA has shared its marketing expertise and communication channels to encourage individuals to donate their 1% to the Bethesda Foundation. In addition, SCA has cooperated with key customers to support this initiative and to help raise funds through joint campaigns. As a result, more than HUF 10m was collected and the number of people supporting the project with their income tax increased by 25%, which enabled the building of the Bethesda Family House. SCA also supports the hospital with hygiene products. By not just donating money but helping Bethesda raise money, we have created a sustainable process that will also work in the future without the support of SCA.

HELP FOR COMMUNITIES STRUCK BY NATURAL DISASTERS

In 2016, a series of devastating natural disasters affected many people across the world. SCA and its employees have tried to help and alleviate the effects.

An earthquake that struck central Italy in August killed about 300 people. SCA in Italy supported the affected locations in cooperation with the Italian Red Cross. Employees could donate money via their salary, which was matched by SCA. In October, yet another earthquake occurred. SCA delivered construction materials for 40–50 cabins from the Tunadal sawmill, intended to build temporary houses for those affected.

Similar initiatives were carried out in North America following flooding in Texas and Louisiana and wildfires in California.

Ecuador was hit by an earthquake measuring 7.8 Mw on the Richter scale in April. It was the worst natural disaster in the country for 67 years and it claimed about 700 lives and made 30,000 people homeless. Employees at SCA’s joint venture Familia in Colombia gathered COP 8,355,000 for the Red Cross and donated hygiene products, food, medicines, water and clothes that were delivered to Ecuador. 22 Familia employees work in the area of which two had their homes destroyed and three had their houses damaged. Familia offered their employees psychological and financial support and assistance in the reconstruction of the houses.