2025
Impact Report
June 2026
Acting decisively to shape the future with intent, partnerships and pace
Gary Shaughnessy,
Chair of the Z Zurich Foundation
Each year, I look back on a world that feels a little more complex than the one before, and on how the Z Zurich Foundation’s (the Foundation’s) work continues to take shape within it. The context around us keeps shifting, and with it, what it means to support communities worldwide.
As we grow in experience and scale, our programmes, partnerships and people continue to build enduring relationships, support efforts that strengthen systems, and direct our resources where they can make a lasting contribution for communities and for society as a whole. This local and grounded experience has helped us listen and act. In November I met employees of Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) and Zurich Santander in Brazil and Argentina along with a number of our most enduring partners. The energy and impact that I encountered was remarkable.
The humanity that I saw there reinforced the privilege that I feel again and again as I also see this clearly through our Young Changemakers program, where young leaders are growing their confidence, finding their voice, and shaping the future of their communities. Their perspectives remind us why listening matters just as much as leading. The same spirit is reflected in the local Zurich CEOs who contribute their time and experience through the Business Action and Advisory Council, driven by a shared belief that business can and should contribute positively to society. It is also evident in the commitment of Zurich colleagues across the Group, from members of our Board of Trustees and our Management Team to volunteers, who continue to give their time and energy to support causes that matter locally.
In countries such as Brazil, Spain, and Türkiye, our work has shown the value of staying engaged long after the initial shock of crisis has passed. Following events like Türkiye’s 2023 earthquakes, early needs were visible and urgent. What came next required patience and resolve. By continuing to work alongside trusted organizations, and thanks to the ongoing involvement of Zurich colleagues and leaders, we remained focused on recovery and resilience well beyond the headlines.
Looking ahead to 2026, I do so with optimism, but not without realism. The global environment remains demanding. Uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, and pressure on resources continue to challenge how the humanitarian and philanthropic sectors operate. Even so, I am encouraged by what I see: progress is possible when collaboration goes with purpose and when communities show a determination to move forward despite difficult circumstances. It is a reminder that progress is built over time, that solidarity still matters, and that when we act together, we help shape a more resilient and hopeful future.
To everyone who plays a part in this collective effort, across Zurich, among our partners, and within the communities we serve, thank you.
Our progress to create deep and sustainable impact at scale together
Gregory Renand,
Head of the Z Zurich Foundation
Living in the favelas in Brazil, Michelle had low expectations for her future. Limited by economic insecurity and a lack of opportunities, she had not let herself imagine more for herself. Then, she took part in Forge’s Social Summer Job Program. For a few months, she joined Zurich Santander in São Paulo, and she and nine others began a learning journey that equipped them with business skills, career development and – most importantly – a belief that they could make a better future for themselves. Michelle told us that her transformation had been remarkable, and the program – though only a few months long – had changed the course of her life. Her story is one of 13 million we have helped write this year.
It has become clear that our approach is working and even faster than expected. Two years into Mission 2035, we have already reached 90% of our four-year people impact target.
But that progress has not come easily. This year, the humanitarian and development sector has faced severe funding cuts, even as the number of people requiring support has continued to grow. Demand is rising while resources are shrinking. For the Z Zurich Foundation, this has been a call to action.
Our impact is fueled by people, partnerships, and patience. No organization alone can fix the problems we face. What works is a community-first, co-designed approach – the opposite of parachuting in solutions.
Take our work with the Climate Resilience Program: our teams take time in communities to listen to residents, to understand their lives today and the risks they face. Then, together, hand-in-hand, they co-design programs and build capacity that helps build resilience over the long term.
For example, for Tarudi and Muriah, who live in a fishing village in Indonesia, long-term resilience against floods didn’t call for emergency response training. Instead, it meant adapting their fishing methods, and learning long‑term storage and preparation, to ensure that even when floodwaters disrupt native fish stocks, they can feed their families and communities. That is the systemic change that can truly support people around the world.
Working with these lenses in mind – systems change, collaboration and a focus on meaningful impact in people's lives – is how we have built the journey we are so proud to report on today. In 2025, we worked alongside nearly 100 remarkable scaling partners, impacting more than 13 million people through 120 programs across 60 countries. At home and abroad, we have seen the power of compassion and action combined. Zurich's people alone logged 239,300 volunteer hours – a record, and a testament to the extraordinary commitment that runs through this organization.
The question keeping me awake at night now is not if we can make a change, but how we remain relevant as context changes and more people need our support. How can we take our approach and apply it to all the communities, the villages, the people that are waiting to meet their potential? I approach 2026 full of energy and dedication for the Foundation to fully deliver on the challenge. To me, our progress this year in creating deep and sustainable impact at scale proves one thing: we have not yet fully understood the true potential of what we have begun. We are just at the start.
2025 in numbers
13.3 million
lives positively impacted via our programming activities in 2025, a 27% increase year-on-year from 2024
Improving Mental Wellbeing:
Positively impacted
5.7 million
lives, including 1,950,000 where the impact was transformational
Adapting to Climate Change:
Positively impacted
3.87 million
lives, including 490,000 where the impact was transformational
Enabling Social Equity:
Positively impacted
2.05 million
lives, including 560,000 where the impact was transformational
Responding to Crisis:
assisting about
170,000*
people via responses to 30+ disasters around the world
Engagement:
Zurich employees volunteered
239,300
hours**
Photo credit ICRCNote: Positively impacted & transformed numbers from our grant programs during 2025 for each of our pillars, we have defined specific impact personas to clarify our definitions of “positively impacted” and “transformed.” In summary: A person has been “positively impacted” if we observe some substantive improvement in their lives as a result of the activity.
A person is “transformed” if we observe an enduring change in their circumstances as a result of the intervention.
* Reported using proxy data in line with available evidence and standard practice.
** Zurich Insurance Group Ltd and its subsidiaries (Zurich). It also includes employees of the Farmers Group Inc. and Cover-More. Zurich Insurance Group has no ownership interest in the Farmers Exchanges. Farmers Group, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Zurich Insurance Group and certain of its subsidiaries provide certain non-claims services and ancillary services to the Farmers Exchanges as attorney-in-fact and receive fees for its services.
2025 in review
The Foundation works with people and organizations across civil society, the private sector, and communities to strengthen prevention, preparedness, and long‑term resilience.
Together, we focus on driving systems change, supporting people and communities when needs are most acute, and enabling recovery that builds greater resilience over time.
This approach reflects the reality that the challenges we address are increasingly interconnected. Pressures on mental wellbeing, particularly among young people, continue to grow. Climate risk is no longer an occasional shock, but a constant feature of daily life for many communities. At the same time, access to education, employability, and opportunity is under increasing strain. These pressures reinforce one another, deepening vulnerability.
The broader global context makes our work even more critical. We are living in a more fragmented and polarized world, with declining commitment to international collaboration and sustained reductions in public development and humanitarian funding. Together, these trends are weakening our collective ability to respond and contributing to longer‑lasting crises.
In this context, 2025 was a defining year for the sector. It underscored the importance of the Foundation’s long‑term, preventative approach—and why it remains both relevant and necessary in the years ahead.
The global context in 2025
Nearly 900 million people
in multidimensional poverty were exposed to climate hazards, often facing multiple shocks such as floods or extreme heat
One in seven adolescents lives with a mental health condition,
and mental disorders affect more than one billion people worldwide
300 million people required humanitarian assistance
and protection, driven by protracted conflict, displacement, and climate‑related disasters
Global official development assistance (ODA) fell by 23%
This is the largest single-year drop on record, reversing a decade of progress and cutting funding for essential health, education and humanitarian programs.
Together, these trends reinforce the Foundation’s role as a long‑term, stabilizing actor that works alongside others to strengthen systems rather than replace them.
Board members' reflections
In moments of profound human need, credibility and trust matter. Our collaboration with the ICRC is rooted in those values and in a shared determination to support humanitarian responses that are both effective and respectful of the people they serve.
Meaningful change starts with people choosing to act. It’s only when resources, expertise and knowledge are combined that lasting resilience becomes possible. This way of working together is what will shape the future, through practical choices made again and again.
When young people are supported to build their personal resilience, they are better equipped not only to navigate uncertainty, but to contribute positively to their communities. This is an investment in both individual wellbeing and long‑term societal strength.
Young people bring fresh ideas to everyday challenges. What often makes the difference is whether they have the support to learn, connect, and turn those ideas into action. When this comes together, it opens possibilities that reach far beyond one individual and strengthens communities and society.
We firmly believe that climate risk management cannot be limited to reacting to disasters, but must start much earlier, with knowledge, prevention and preparation for the new climate reality.
As societies around the world navigate change, it's so important how decisions are made and who shapes them. Bringing together experience from different sectors helps places grow into communities where people can build their lives for years to come.
I’m inspired by how much colleagues care, and the many ways they support their communities. Whether that’s volunteering their time, sharing skills, mentoring others or helping local initiatives move forward. It's something I’m genuinely proud of.
Working hand in hand with communities to better understand their needs and strengthen preparedness against potential crises forms the foundation of our social responsibility approach. We see social impact not just as a side activity, but as an integral part of our strategy. We still have a lot of work to do.
