„A chance to play“ – <br>Games and sports for stronger children

At that time, the Group works council called on all employees to donate an hour‘s worth of their work. The money collected was to help children living on the streets, giving them a roof over their heads, food and education. Since that time, the “An hour for the future – Volkswagen employees help children in need” has been amazingly successful. Total donations exceed Euro 8 million. It has supported projects at Volkswagen AG locations in Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, South Africa and Germany.

Giving people help to help themselves is intended to improve the life situation of children and their families over the long term. The partner organisation in these activities is Terre des hommes. Projects are selected and the activities given professional support on location in consultation with the Group works council. To mark the tenth anniversary of the “An hour for the future” campaign, a three-year special programme has started in the South African location under the motto “A chance to play”: South Africa is the host country of the Football World Cup in 2010. The sad truth is that many young boys and girls can only dream of having a happy childhood.

The circumstances of their lives are often depressing: unemployed parents, relatives dying of Aids, poor educational opportunities, and the concomitant lack of prospects for a vocation or career. Girls are all too frequently victims of sexual violence. Having the chance for sports and games together with a range of learning and training opportunities is therefore especially important for the development of boys and girls. “A chance to play” forms an umbrella to promote projects which have the goal of making children stronger, better qualified for life. The initial Euro 60,000 donation was collected in May 2008 at a celebrity benefit match in the Volkswagen Arena in Wolfsburg.