Corporate Social Responsibility

This year, our staff once again actively participated in Earth Day. By organizing waste collection activities at various locations, our efforts are aimed to raise awareness on adopting a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. For instance, our teams from Luxembourg and Amsterdam took the initiative to clean up nearby streets around the office, removing waste and contributing to the preservation of our environment.

Over the 2024 summer, DWS and strategic CSR partner Healthy Seas dove on a mission: Operation Deep Blue Legacy! Here, a dedicated team of 6 divers, embarked on a series of dives in the High Seas to reclaim two WWII shipwrecks from deadly ghost nets. This mission not only aims to clean these historical artifacts but also to revive the marine life thriving around them, underscoring the enduring legacy we inherit and the one we must foster for future generations. Witness this amazing journey in the Deep Blue Legacy Documentary series. 

More and more people in Germany need support, which is also noticeable at the food banks: food donations are decreasing and at the same time demand is increasing. That is why we are supporting the Frankfurter Tafel with a donation of 10,000 euros, which was presented by our board member Manfred Bauer in December. A big thank you also to our employees for supporting the food bank on a voluntary basis with so much commitment.

Over 140 employees marked World Food Day by taking action to support those suffering from hunger and food insecurity through volunteering activities in various global locations. At DWS, we are committed to reducing social inequality as part of our CSR goals, starting with our volunteers supporting those in need. 

As part of this commitment, our teams partnered with local communities and food banks such as the Food Bank in Frankfurt, Feeding Hong Kong, Luwalhati ng Maynila Home for the Aged, GreenBox, Feeding Britain, Akshaya Chaitanya and Women’s Lunch Place, amongst others. Whether distributing and packing food, raising awareness through food waste workshops or cooking meals, our employees are making an impact! 

The WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) is one of the largest independent conservation organizations in the world. For over 2 years, DWS has supported the WWF marine conservation project in the Mesoamerican Reef near Belize. In their 3rd progress report, WWF shared the latest project updates as well as upcoming actions for the year in terms of coral restorations, policy updates, coral watch, reef health and mangroves. Results include 8 coral nurseries, 16 restoration sites in operation (across 6 MPA - marine protected areas), and a total of 8,833 corals that have already been planted this year, amongst others.  

Our CSR partner, Healthy Seas reached a significant milestone, celebrating its 10 year anniversary since being established. To mark this occasion, DWS welcomed our colleagues from the marine conservation organization to our headquarters in June in Frankfurt. This was the first time that Healthy Seas visited our offices in person. They had the opportunity to raise greater awareness of their excellent work, while our colleagues were able to engage interactively with the team and learn more about upcoming opportunities and ways to get involved to make a difference as an ambassador for Healthy Seas.

This year our colleagues around the globe supported World Earth Day by organizing clean-up and awareness activities in nearby parks and beaches. From the USA to Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, France, and Luxembourg, all the way to Taiwan and India, we are drawing awareness to a more ecological and environmentally conscious lifestyle, recovering trash bags in nearby parks, and supporting one of our core CSR objectives: tackling climate change.

Our CSR partner, Healthy Seas, is expanding its geographic focus and launched a series of Ghost diving activities in Hong Kong with the support of DWS’s donation, made in December 2022 as a replacement of holiday gifts for clients.  

On March 18th, the Ghost Diving Hong Kong volunteer team kicked off its collaboration with Healthy Seas and with support from DWS, to successfully recover about 120kgs of gill nets in the area of Sharp Island, Hap Mun Bay, Sai Kung. Although gill nets are typically very light, they are also the deadliest type of marine litter to marine animals.

Since 2020, we have partnered with Healthy Seas in its efforts to rid the world's oceans of ghost nets, saving the lives of countless marine creatures.

We believe in supporting those in need. The two devastating earthquakes and aftershocks that hit south-east Turkey and northern Syria, left thousands dead and even more people, including children, injured or affected.
UNICEF is one of the few relief organizations on the ground and is preparing and executing relief efforts.

To help the emergency efforts, DWS colleagues have pulled together, raising EUR 40,000 in charitable donations. This amount has been matched by DWS, and topped up with a corporate donation, bringing the total amount to around EUR 130,000 to support UNICEF’S important work in the region.

The situation at the German food banks is dramatic: The number of needy people has increased, while the amount food donations has gone down significantly. That is why we were very happy to support the food bank “Frankfurter Tafel” with a donation of 30,000 euros, which was handed over by our Executive Board member Manfred Bauer. The helpers at the food bank do amazing work throughout the year and we are happy to make a contribution to support the organization.  

People in the Horn of Africa are currently suffering from the worst drought in 40 years. Families in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya are particularly affected. Their fields and crops have withered, and livestock have died. The devastating drought has destroyed their livelihoods and led to a hunger crisis.

Before Christmas, our employees globally donated around 15,000 euros to UNICEF so that people in the Horn of Africa can be supplied with special food, drinking water, hygiene articles and medicines. With an additional donation of 20,000 euros, DWS more than just doubled the employee donations.

Each year on October 16, DWS celebrates World Food Day, an event established by the UN to raise greater awareness on "how to build a world where everyone has access to enough nutritious food”.  In particular, the UN reinforces the key message of "leave NO ONE behind”, a sentiment that is particularly poignant amid the ongoing pandemic, geopolitical tensions and cost-of-living crisis. Therefore, our employees got involved with local food banks at various locations.

September 17 marked this year's World Cleanup Day – observed annually across the globe – focused on protecting and keeping the environment clean. For the first time, DWS organized a global series of events to mark the entire month of September in the spirit of environmental protection. Colleagues from Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, France, India, the Philippines and Japan took part in the clean-up activities. Colleagues not only cleared streets of litter, but also coasts, riverbanks and seas.

Aid benefited the socially disadvantaged in order to ensure basic services.

We look forward to continuing our partnership with Women for Women International and to seeing more successful graduates of the Stronger Women, Stronger Nations program. The numerous positive feedbacks have encouraged us to support the organization for another year. "The program showed me how to save and manage money and use credit to achieve my goals," said one participant.