The non-profit foundation increases its support by 45 percent in the 2014/15 financial year.
Stäfa, May 21, 2015 - The Hear the World Foundation is committed to creating a world in which everyone has the chance to enjoy good hearing. In the 2014/15 financial year, for example, the Swiss foundation supported 25 projects in 17 countries by providing more than 1,500 hearing solutions and funding totaling over CHF 2.1 million. The foundation has thus increased its support for people with hearing loss who are in need of aid by 45 percent in comparison with the previous year.
An overview of the year’s highlights
- 25 projects in 17 countries were given a total of CHF 2,144,000 in financial support. This is a 40 percent increase compared to the previous year.
- Over 1,500 hearing aids and FM systems were donated worldwide. They were professionally fitted and follow-up care was provided.
- 336 Sonova employees devoted a total of 527 days to voluntary work schemes or fundraising projects.
Working together for better hearing
The non-profit Hear the World Foundation was founded by Sonova, the leading manufacturer of hearing solutions, in 2006 and advocates equal opportunities and improved quality of life for people with hearing loss around the world. Sonova’s vision is to create a world in which every person has the chance to enjoy good hearing and can lead a life without limitations. With this in mind, the Hear the World Foundation, through its non-profit projects, focuses its support on those who cannot afford, or do not have access to, the appropriate care. “I am delighted that we were able to continue to increase our support this year. Through our commitment, we are offering people affected by hearing loss, and particularly children, the chance of a better future. A special thank you goes to our employees throughout the world who got involved in a good cause and this important initiative, the only one of its kind in the industry, by participating in voluntary work schemes and fundraising projects,” explained Lukas Braunschweiler, President of the Hear the World Foundation and CEO of Sonova.
Four priorities for sustainable commitment
Providing audiological care for children with hearing loss is one of the focal areas of the Hear the World Foundation’s activities. The Foundation’s other three priorities are training professionals, developing schemes to prevent hearing loss, and running programs for parents and families with affected children. Hearing aids enable these children to communicate and to integrate into society. This gives them the chance to receive a school education, which is vital for their future professional development. The foundation provides support for families that, for geographical, social or financial reasons, do not have any access to audiological care for their children. “The quality of the care provided always takes priority in all our projects. Our aim is for children in low-income countries to receive the same quality of audiological care as children in higher-income countries,” explained Braunschweiler. The foundation therefore makes sure that its project partners have modern hearing aids as well as the appropriate equipment for fitting and validating them. The local expertise required to provide this care is developed on site through the voluntary work of Sonova employees. The Hear the World Foundation thus ensures long-term audiological care and creates local jobs.
Eight new project partnerships
The Hear the World Foundation intends to continue its commitment to helping people with hearing loss on a comparable scale in the new reporting year. In addition to the fourteen projects that have been ongoing for several years, eight new projects have been selected from a wide range of applications. The Hear the World Foundation will support these financially as well as providing expert assistance and hearing solutions, thus helping to bring Sonova’s vision of creating a world in which every person has the chance to enjoy good hearing another step closer.
The Hear the World Foundation’s 2014/15 activity report
For detailed information on the foundation and its projects, please see the 2014/15 activity report, which is available online at www.hear-the-world.com/report. We would be happy to send you a printed version on request.
Hearing loss – a neglected issue with serious consequences:
- Approximately 15% of the world’s adult population is affected by hearing loss.[1]
- Around half of cases of hearing loss could have been avoided if preventive action had been taken.[2]
- Every year, some 665,000 children are born with significant hearing loss.[3]
- 80% of people with hearing loss live in countries where income is low to moderate and often they do not have any access to audiological or medical care.[4]
- Only one in 40 people with hearing loss wears a hearing aid in developing countries.[4]
About the Hear the World Foundation
By supporting the charitable Hear the World Foundation, Sonova is campaigning for equal opportunities and a better quality of life for people with hearing loss. As a leading manufacturer of hearing care solutions, the company feels socially responsible for contributing towards a world where everyone has the chance to enjoy good hearing. For instance, the Hear the World Foundation supports disadvantaged people with hearing loss around the world and gets involved in prevention and providing information. It focuses particularly on projects for children with hearing loss, to enable them to develop at the appropriate rate for their age. More than 80 famous ambassadors, including celebrities such as Plácido Domingo, Annie Lennox, Sting and Joss Stone, champion the Hear the World Foundation. For further information, go to www.hear-the-world.com. Connect with us at https://www.facebook.com/CanYouHearTheWorld
[1] Source: WHO, The global burden of disease: 2004 update (2008)
[2] Source: WHO, Factfile Deafness (2006)
[3] Source: WHO Unicef (2004)
[4] Source: WHO Factsheet Number 300 (2012)
