L’Oréal spearheads €15M crisis fund for climate disaster-stricken communities

18 Sep 2023 --- L’Oréal has announced a new €15 million (US$16 million) endowment fund to support vulnerable communities to develop greater resilience in the face of climate disasters. 

The L’Oréal Climate Emergency Fund will support communities in the most exposed areas by enabling expert partner organizations to help them prepare for and recover from climate disasters.

cIt is estimated that climate-driven disasters have increased five-fold over the past 50 years.

Today, up to three billion people live in disaster-exposed areas, with the number predicted to increase by one billion by the year 2050, highlights L’Oréal.

“L’Oréal has a responsibility to address the world’s most urgent environmental and social needs,” says Alexandra Palt, chief corporate responsibility officer at L’Oréal Groupe and CEO at the Fondation L’Oréal. 

Today, up to three billion people live in disaster-exposed areas of the world, with that number expected to increase by one billion by 2050. 

“The urgent climate crisis we are facing necessitates action on all fronts and calls for global collaboration at every level. With the new Climate Emergency Fund, we are expanding on our commitments to help build resilience for vulnerable communities, together with organizations deploying innovative solutions on the ground.”

Targeting vulnerable communities
The L’Oréal Climate Emergency Fund targets vulnerable communities through partnerships with both local disaster relief organizations and international NGOs. 

The new fund brings the Groupe’s total investments to more than €200 million (US$213 million) across several funds, such as the L’Oréal Fund for Nature Regeneration, the Circular Innovation Fund and the L’Oréal Fund for Women.

The funds will be directed towards two types of actions: “Prepare,” to help minimize the impact of climate disasters before they occur, through disaster planning and early warning systems; and “Repair,” to restore essential infrastructures and vital services such as healthcare, housing and access to food and water when disaster strikes.

The first two L’Oréal Climate Emergency Fund recipients are The Solutions Project, a US-based non-profit organization and Start Network, a global alliance of more than 80 local, national and international NGOs, that both work with people on the frontline to provide early and effective responses when and before humanitarian crises strike.

“Whilst the climate crisis is global in nature, it is clear that some communities are at far greater risk of near-term climate disasters and must mitigate these climate-related events to prevent them from becoming human disasters,” says Christina Bennett, CEO at Start Network. 

“In partnership with L’Oréal and local organizations rooted in their communities, we will support people at risk of crisis to prepare and protect themselves, with the assistance delivered by local teams familiar with their circumstances and best placed to ensure affected populations rebound more quickly.”

Edited Benjamin Ferrer