SOS Children's Villages worldwide

Since the partnership began in 2013, the company has donated more than 2.75 million euros to families and children in need. In addition to long-term projects, CEWE supports current emergency aid projects. These include the ‘Humanitarian Aid’ project in Ethiopia (East Africa), which focuses on a combination of life-saving measures, such as food aid and child protection, and the restoration of livelihoods through business training and start-up grants.

CEWE was awarded the first Excellence Award by SOS Children’s Villages worldwide for its diverse and exceptional social commitment.

CEWE views its economic success in a very special way as a commitment to society.

Through its partnership with SOS Children’s Villages worldwide, CEWE supports projects that promote children’s personal development. Appropriate educational and leisure activities help to nurture the children’s personal interests, creativity and resilience. CEWE sites maintain constant contact with their local SOS Children’s Villages to support their activities. For example, Nicole Schulze Beerhorst and Christian Wilbers from the CEWE site in Oldenburg visited the SOS Children’s Village in Worpswede to gain an insight into the ‘animal-assisted therapy’ project.

In Worpswede, children have the opportunity to process a wide variety of experiences through animal-assisted education and to develop further. The aim is for the boys and girls to experience positive moments together with the animals and to connect with them and with themselves. The grounds of the children’s village are home to horses, petting zoo animals and farm animals, which enable the children to do just that. In the long term, this also enhances the children’s ability to form relationships and their social skills, whilst boosting their self-confidence.

At several locations in Croatia, too, over 20 children have the opportunity to express their creativity in a photography group led by two staff members (who are also photography enthusiasts) from SOS Children’s Villages. Together, the children can gain experience both in front of and behind the camera, and even take part in a photography workshop led by a professional photographer from CEWE. The aim of the project is to enable the children to develop their creativity and practise patience and concentration. Furthermore, they are given the chance to express their thoughts and feelings through this medium, to capture precious moments of their childhood and surroundings, and to learn practical skills that may open up career prospects. CEWE Croatia provides ongoing support for these initiatives – through donations as well as through personal and creative involvement. Photo booths offering free instant prints and photo exhibitions have now become a regular feature of CEWE’s activities at major events across all locations. 

In 2025, CEWE also supported the “Development Aid” programme in Hungary, which has been running for many years. The aim of the programme is to provide financial relief to foster parents and enable them to invest specifically in the development of their foster children. This ensures that children in foster care have access to services that promote their well-being, personal development and individual talents. Thanks to CEWE’s support, 30 foster parents were able to make use of a fixed grant, which they could use flexibly to meet their children’s various needs – ranging from developmental, therapeutic and educational measures to extracurricular activities.