Business vs smog - Support for climate!

We are raising awareness among children and young people about air quality and climate change

The “Business vs smog” program was initiated by PwC in cooperation with the Krakow Smog Alert and the ASPIRE Association in 2018. Eleven companies were involved in the first edition of the program: Akamai, Amway, Aon, CANPACK Group, Cisco, Hitachi Vantara, Herbalife Nutrition, Jacobs, PwC, Wilson HCG, and Zurich Insurance Company LTD. The aim of the program is to educate the children and youth about smog and air purity.

Volunteers - employees of all involved companies, conduct free workshops in schools and kindergartens. The meetings are held in two thematic paths: smog / air quality and climate change. During classes about smog, we explain, among others: what is the smog, where does it come from and how can it be prevented. The second workshop enables children and youth to learn about the main causes of climate change and to shape ecological attitudes in everyday life.

Our impact to date:

  • 52 000 children participating
  • 1014 volunteers
  • 2030 workshops
  • 165 cities

Interactive map showing the scale of the programme.

The “Business vs smog” program is one of the first in Poland representing such a broad cooperation and community involvement. The program won the TOP CSR Initiative in Poland award during the CEE Business Services Awards Conference in 2019.

The program was also a winner of the title: "Benefactor of the Year 2020", in the Ecology category. The jury of the competition appreciated our long-term cooperation with the Krakow Smog Alert for the improvement of air quality.

30 organisations support raising environmental awareness.

30 organizations have joined the V edition in the 2022/23 school year. There are: ABB BS, Airly, Akamai Technologies, Amer Sports, Amway GBS, Aon, Stowarzyszenie ASPIRE, Bolarus, Grupa CANPACK, Cisco Systems, Credit Suisse, Dyson, Ecolab, EPAM Systems, Euroclear, Herbalife, Hitachi Vantara, HSBC, IAG GBS, Jacobs, Krakowski Alarm Smogowy, Knowable, Maxima Consulting, Motorola, Ocado Polska, PwC,  PwC SDC, SIG, State Street Bank Polska, UBS, UNICEF Polska. 

The program is under the Patronage of Marshals of Małopolskie & Mazovian Voivodships.

The results of the previous first, secondthird and fourth editions.

What the volunteers say about the Business vs smog programme

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We can all have an impact on the environment and the quality of the air we breathe. The more people realize it, the impact will be greater.

Dorota
,,

Thanks to the workshops, I found out that young people have such receptive minds and are open to acting and changing the world. What's more, I learned a lot about smog, what its effects are to our health, and how we can live in a cleaner environment every day.

Anna
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For me, being a volunteer of the Business vs smog programme, was a combination of the pleasant and the useful. First of all, I learned something new and I was able to pass knowledge on. Secondly, I had an opportunity to take part in the school life of my children...

Karolina
,,

I’m glad that I can participate in such a programme, especially now that taking care of our health and respiratory system has become even more important.

Piotr

Thanks to all educational units that participated in this year's competition. Congratulations to the winning institutions! The prizes in the competition were:

  • 3 meetings with Agnieszka Radwańska, UNICEF Poland ambassador, for the Primary School no. 5 in Piaseczno, the Private Primary School  Leonardo da Vinci in Sułkowice and Cheeky Monkeys Kindergarten in Szyce.

  • Airly air sensors with a 12-month service subscription for the Public Primary School (Dobre) and Public Kindergarten No. 6 (Jastrzębie ZdrĂłj)

  • Books "Climate. What adults don't tell you" for all educational units participating in the competition

The task was to design and produce an original banner, appealing for the observance of the child's right to live in a healthy environment. 

More information about the competition https://unicef.pl/biznes-kontra-smog.

We invite you to view this year's results at Airly blog here and the competitions’ results from the previous editions: 2021/22 2020/21 and 2019/2020.


*Study conducted in October 2022 on a sample of 1 800 employees from companies involved in the ‘Business vs smog’ initiative.

Contact us

Dorota Franczukowska

Dorota Franczukowska

Senior Manager, PwC Poland

Tel: +48 519 507 685

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