1. What was the first decision made when the national state of emergency was declared?
As soon as we realised the extent of the national and global crisis, we looked at the strains on the emergency system. It was immediately clear what action we should take, as in the current context support of the health system is vital. Thus, the Globalworth Foundation donated 200,000 euros to the Romanian Red Cross to help fund medical supplies as well as logistical, human and material support to aid our country’s response to the threat of the novel coronavirus. All the supplies went to the National Institute “Prof. Matei Bals”, the largest medical institution for infectious diseases in Romania. We were among the first companies in Romania to donate to the cause and we were extremely pleased to see that, in a few days, the list of companies getting involved was expanding more and more.
Later, because the situation has worsened worldwide and the number of diseases has increased exponentially, we have decided to rise our financial contribution. In addition, given that Globalworth also operates in Poland, we have joined forces to help in both countries and we have launched the Globalworth Foundation in Poland. Therefore, so far, we have reached a total of 600,000 euros donated in the fight of reducing the effects of COVID-19. The funds have enabled acquiring 32 vital functions monitors, 4 mechanical ventilators, 27,500 FFP2 and N95 safety masks, 4,645 FFP3 safety masks, 9,500 surgical masks, 4,100 protective overalls, 500 protective glasses, 500 protective gloves, 100 disinfectant bottles, 21 beds for intensive care unit and intensive medical supervision and 9,000 meals for 7 hospitals in Romania and Poland.
Since the pandemic started, all the actions took place under the motto “Everyone should get involved to make things better”. Because, yes, everyone should get involved to make things better. Moreover, a community of genuine people from all over Romania has been created, and they have donated and still donate, over 18 million euros to the Romanian medical system. We are aware of the superhuman effort of the medical staff and we all need to get involved, to be supportive, to help them heal us!
2. How did you manage to support your community/employees during this period?
Globalworth means 35 buildings in Poland and Romania, with more than 700 tenants and tens of thousands of employees working daily in our buildings. It means Globalworth Industrial – our 100% functional logistics and light industrial sub-brand. So, we are a big community, and the safety and well-being of this community are our top priority.
We comply with all health and safety norms and we have taken all the necessary and appropriate measures for our entire portfolio – especially in the common areas, where the risks are highest. We have heightened the measures in all our office buildings and we have also implemented a very strict daily cleaning program. All surfaces with high traffic, such as receptions, stairs, lobbies, elevators and toilets, are disinfected with an extremely powerful special product that destroys viruses while being safe for human health. The cleaning products and disinfectants used are approved by the authorities. In addition, Globalworth has placed alcohol-based disinfectant dispensers in each lobby. In addition to the very strictly applied and respected hygiene and cleaning norms, numerous hand washing points have been installed in our construction sites and the frequency of the training meetings with our specialists in health and safety has increased.
3. Which will be your CSR directions for the current year?
Our CSR strategy remains the same. The Globalworth Foundation develops projects on three main pillars: people, places and technology. However, given the unexpected situation, the funds will be much more oriented towards the first pillar: caring for people. We live in these difficult times and we have this unstable future in front of us and only by helping each other, we will bring humanity back to normal. Thus, we will not stop strengthening the medical system. We constantly monitor the needs and we try to adjust our help depending on the funds and available resources. We will continue to support the national program ” Nesting a Brighter Future For Children” which takes place in 12 day-centers from rural areas. Together with our partner, United Way Romania, we develop home education programs during this period, having in mind the aim of the program: to reduce the number of children who drop out of school.
We will also continue the modernization project for the “Ion Mincu” University of Architecture and Urbanism, Bucharest. We will help the young architects to have access to the latest tools in education and we will create a creation lab – Hightech Learning Center. In 2020 we support 30 young artists in visual arts and music to achieve their artistic potential through individual grants, mentoring programs and national & international opportunities: Margareta of Romania Royal Foundation & Globalworth Foundation – a partnership for the artistic future of Romania.
Last but not least, I would like to mention the financing of medical missions, a project in partnership with Inima Copiilor Association: specialists from abroad travel to Romania to operate on children with heart diseases and they also train Romanian doctors in their first years of specialization. It is true that our plans have changed in the last two months, but our strategy remains the same: we help where our need is most needed.
4. How do you think your business field will evolve?
Unfortunately, the rapid spread of coronavirus will have a significant impact on the global economy, which will obviously be felt in Romania as well. As the current situation is still very fluid, we cannot estimate the magnitude of the crisis yet, but the Globalworth teams are prepared with the business continuity plans and we can intervene depending on how things evolve to get the market back to work, to help the recovery of our community and to limit the negative impact of this crisis. We are confident that we have the best professionals by our side and we will do our best to find the right solutions. Until then, it is important to continue our belief: “Everyone should get involved to make things better.”
Interview published on the CSR Media website. Check the Romanian version HERE.