Courage to spark change.
© UNICEF/UN0561629/Urdaneta
Ahlström Collective Impact (ACI) is an internationally recognized bold initiative, that through its partnership with UNICEF Finland, the UN organization for child rights, adds value to the purpose as well as business value to Ahlström network companies, while achieving significant change in the global society.
Ahlström Collective Impact unites public and private companies, foundations, shareholders and employees to act together with UNICEF Finland to support the realization of selected United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. During 2021 they are SDG 4,5 and 17 and the joint investments will be directed to UNICEF’s global education program, supporting SDG 4.
ACI to date consists of A.Ahlström, Ahlström Invest, Ahlstrom, Walter Ahlström Foundation, Destia, Detection Technology, Glaston, M&J Recycling, Avain Yhtiöt and Suominen Corporation as well as its initiator the Eva Ahlström Foundation in joint partnership with UNICEF Finland.
Vision
Our vision is a world in which societal problems are systematically being solved through strong collaborations, creating a better world for future generations.
Purpose
Our purpose is to, in partnership with UNICEF, inspire new types of mutually beneficial collaborations between businesses and their stakeholders in collectively channeling resources and know-how towards solving the most pressing challenges in today’s society.
Ahlström collective impact
Together we are stronger
Ahlström Collective Impact (ACI) is a responsibility initiative by The Eva Ahlström Foundation that joins together the foundation and the Ahlström Network companies A. Ahlström, Ahlström Invest, Ahlstrom, Destia, Detection Technology, Glaston, Suominen and Walter Ahlström Foundation. Ahlström Collective Impact is committed to creating change by investing in a better future for children in joint partnership with UNICEF Finland.
The Sustainable Development Goals aim to eradicate poverty and hunger, achieve health and equality as well as provide good education and access to clean water for everyone by 2030. In order to achieve this we must change our way of thinking and acting, as well as how we treat each other. We need to start seeing the world and its resources through a new, gender-neutral lens. If we want to eradicate poverty and inequality – the two major causes of terrorism, conflicts and migration – we must change together, and together change our society and our world from scratch.
All partners in Ahlström Collective Impact have committed to a long-term partnership with UNICEF Finland. The ACI is managed and coordinated by a steering committee, consisting of 1 member per company/organisation and UNICEF. The ACI team selects common long-term and strategic SDG goals to work with during the following years. The partnership also aims to engage employees of the companies in support for the work for children’s rights worldwide.
Collaboration with UNICEF
World Children's Day
To achieve our goals, ACI focuses on active communication and engagement, collaborating with UNICEF Finland, and supporting our network companies in this work. This involves organizing activities such as World Children’s Day in our network companies, conducting training programs and campaigns to raise awareness of children’s rights, and integrating the children’s perspective into business operations by altering policies and processes throughout the entire value chain.
Ahlström Collective Impact celebrates World Children’s Day together with UNICEF Finland. United Nations’ World Children’s Day is celebrated on November 20 each year to promote children’s rights and welfare. Ahlström Collective Impact joins forces with UNICEF Finland to raise awareness about the well-being of the new generations as part of the World Children’s Day celebrations.
Watch the video to learn more about Ahlström Collective Impact and child rights.
Engaging employees
ACI Ambassadors
The Ahlström Collective Impact Ambassador program is an opportunity for all employees and shareholders within the Ahlström Network to contribute to the selected United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by driving and implementing ACI related initiatives and events locally. Ambassadors are chosen from the respective ACI companies. The full Ambassador Group meets a few times/year to discuss upcoming events and uses LinkedIn as its internal communications channel.
UNICEF Reports
Our impact for children 2020-2023
In 2023, the global education crisis worsened, with 250 million children out of school—a 6 million increase since 2021—highlighting severe setbacks in achieving Quality Education (SDG 4). Despite strides in access, socioeconomic disparities and the digital divide persist, especially in marginalized regions. In response, UNICEF invested $1.7 billion, including $525.8 million for emergency support, working across 144 countries with partners like Ahlström Collective Impact to provide resources, training, and infrastructure, aiming to equip millions of children with essential skills for the future.
"Ahlström’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond our business operations — it's also a commitment to investing in the well-being and education of future generations. Ahlström Collective Impact and its partnership with UNICEF reflects our commitment to a better world for future generations, where we actively take responsibility for shaping a world where every child has the opportunity to thrive. By investing in children's education today, we are laying the foundation for a more innovative, equitable, and prosperous world tomorrow. We believe that UNICEF is the right partner due to their unique ability and strength in impacting both governmental policies and hands-on fieldwork."
— Jyrki Vainionpää, CEO at A. Ahlström
"A world leader in innovative fiber-based specialty materials, Ahlstrom has impressive science capabilities, a global footprint and agile assets. We are passionate about combining fibers into high-performance materials and known for our ability to partner with customers to co-create breakthrough solutions that meet their needs, while helping to protect people and the planet. ACI serves as a unique collaboration platform, magnifying our potential for impact. Together, we can achieve greater outcomes, advancing our shared vision for a better world for future generations.”
— Helen Mets, President and CEO at Ahlstrom
“I see our work very much as our great-great-grandparents Antti and Eva Ahlström did in the nineteenth century - we are investing in the future of society. Our ROI is a safe child who grows up to become a responsible adult who can contribute to the community. This supports the Ahlström family values of ambition and responsibility. The ambition is to be the best version of ourselves within a society that has given us so much.”
— Maria Ahlström-Bondestam, Honorary Chair of the Eva Ahlström Foundation
“We are the most trusted partner imaging the unknown, and we take responsibility for the impact we have on society and the environment. As a company and as individuals, we believe that sustainable growth is the only option in terms of long-term success. We see sustainability as a continuous journey shaping our joint future for the common good. With UNICEF and ACI, we have an international network of true change-makers who believe in power of collaboration and has passion and courage to spark changes in global societies for future generations.”
- Hannu Martola, President and CEO at Detection Technology
“Sustainability is at the core of Glaston’s strategy, and we want to be involved in developing sustainable societies of the future. Being a responsible member of society is one of our four sustainability focus areas, and we seek to make a positive contribution to the communities where we operate. The ACI cooperation and joining forces with the Ahlström network companies is strongly aligned with Glaston’s value ‘Together we build the future’ and is an innovative and impactful way to contribute to a better tomorrow for children.”
— Päivi Lindqvist, CFO & sponsor of the cornerstone initiative Elevate sustainability at Glaston
"Sustainability is at the core of Suominen's operations and we are driving for a sustainable future. Being a good corporate citizen is one focus area in our sustainability agenda. We recognize our responsibility to the society and environment and want to make a positive impact locally and globally. With ACI we are part of a community supporting the important work of UNICEF."
— Tommi Björnman, President & CEO at Suominen
“At Destia, we design, build and maintain power lines, roads, bridges, tracks and bus stops that enable smooth trips to school, and parks where you can take a break to play and dream. We have thus played a role in making Finland the happiest country in the world. Our operations have a significant and long-term impact on the society, the environment and our stakeholders, and we believe that a sustainable future requires a global outlook. As a founding member of Ahlström Collective Impact, we can have a larger impact on the future of the world and particularly on children's well-being and education globally through UNICEF than what we could on our own."
— Tero Kiviniemi, CEO at Destia
"I see that the corporate sector plays a crucial role in social responsibility, and this role will become increasingly important in the future. UNICEF Finland's recent report on the child rights performance of Finnish companies, viewed through a 'child lens,' is a significant step forward in this effort. Our vision is to create a better world for future generations, and as the world's most influential children's organization, UNICEF has the potential to effect long-lasting changes in the lives of children and young people."
— Nelli Paasikivi-Ahlström, Chair of the Ahlström Collective Impact
“Ahlström family through Antti Ahlström Perilliset Oy is very happy and proud to see how the family legacy in social responsibility and sustainable thinking lives strongly even today. Eva Ahlström Foundation’s bold initiative Ahlström Collective Impact enables in amazing and new-thinking way our businesses to be part of this journey. This initiative helps us in a new and effective way to reach our vision “A better world for future generations.”
— Anne Karell, Director, Head of Family Functions, A. Ahlström Oy
“Ahlström Collective Impact inspires people to focus on good universal values, which will lead to good business values. The ACI model is good for the environment and specifically for children globally. The best effect can be received if other companies would copy this model. If everybody would do the same thing, it would have a global impact and do a lot of good. “
— Peter Seligson, Chair of A. Ahlström Oy
“Walter Ahlström, my great grandmother’s elder brother, very early on understood the significance of research for the development of a young nation and its industrial competitiveness. He founded the Walter Ahlström Foundation in 1926 to support young engineers in their graduate training. Joining the ACI initiative and supporting global education is a natural continuation of his work."
— Markku Wilenius, Chair of the Walter Ahlström Foundation
”We are proud to be part of the Ahlström network, which embraces its global responsibilities with integrity and purpose. Through the Ahlström Collective Impact, we are committed to one of the most vital causes of our time: advancing children’s well-being and their fundamental right to education. This is not only a corporate duty—it is a shared human obligation. Each of us has a role to play in creating a more equitable future for all children, and in doing so, helping to build a more united, compassionate world in the face of growing division,”
— René Normann Christensen, CEO of M&J Recycling.
