Corporate citizenship

At all our locations, we assume responsibility for the community in which we live and work.

We can make our business sustainable in many ways, for example by incorporating environmental factors in our insurance products, taking sustainability factors into account in our investments and developing insurance solutions for innovative technologies such as renewable energy sources. Another way of assuming social responsibility over and above the economic contribution a company makes to society as an employer and as a taxpayer is to provide voluntary support for the community. This has been part of Munich Re’s corporate culture since the company was founded more than 125 years ago.

Sharing responsibility for the quality of life in all the locations in which we operate motivates us to achieve even better results. The more sustainable and successful our business is, the greater our contribution will be to the further development of those cities and their surroundings – not only from a financial point of view.

Our commitment to society includes supporting the socially disadvantaged, sponsoring young people and promoting healthcare. Munich Re has also made a name for itself as a patron of the arts and culture. We are, for example, a member of the Bavarian State Opera sponsorship group (the "Premium Circle") and have promoted leading-edge architecture in Munich by commissioning new buildings such as the high-rise development at Münchner Tor.

Wherever possible, we purchase supplies for our Munich headquarters locally to support the regional economy. Within the framework of the Agenda 21 initiative in Munich, we also provide support for the BenE project, a regional centre of competence for education in sustainable development.

But of course, Munich Re is not confined to Munich. We have a presence in many countries, and wherever we operate, we and our subsidiaries assume our responsibilities as members of society, which include commitment to society and culture.

The foundations we have set up now play an important part, enabling contributions to social development to be made independently of economic and financial considerations. The Schinzler Foundation sponsors voluntary work, in particular by Munich Re staff, and the Munich Re Foundation, established in 2005, is dedicated to addressing the principal global challenges for humanity. With its motto "From Knowledge to Action", it draws on Munich Re’s expertise in global risks and sponsors projects aimed at disaster prevention or involving water as a resource and a risk factor in developing countries.

The ERGO companies are also socially committed in many ways. Victoria’s "Victorianer helfen", for example, helps children in need; D.A.S. legal expenses insurer’s "D.A.S.ler helfen" assists people who have fallen on hard times due to misfortune. Both are financed by means of donations of a few cents that staff contribute from their salary and commission each month. The Hamburg-Mannheimer foundation "Jugend & Zukunft" (Youth & Future) is dedicated to youth welfare, with the aim of giving young people a perspective for the future. "Im Zentrum der Mensch" (With a Focus on People) is the motto of DKV’s commitment: a partnership with the Deutsches Hygiene-Museum (German Hygiene Museum) used to promote a sensible and healthy way of life. Finally, staff at KarstadtQuelle-Versicherungen have for many years supported the Madeleine Schickedanz-Kinder-Krebs-Stiftung, a foundation giving financial support for research into child cancer and providing assistance in individual cases for children suffering from cancer and for their relatives.