Southeast Asian tsunami
Our response to the tragic Southeast Asian tsunami disaster in December 2004 was to make an immediate cash donation from Nokia global, via the Finnish Red Cross. Approximately 1,000 mobile phones were given to operators and rescue teams. Operator customer teams worked to restore and expand network capacity, as well as helping to monitor network stability and plan services.

Rapid and responsive employee volunteer efforts were organized through the Nokia volunteering program, either by working directly with aid organizations or participating in employee-giving campaigns. In numerous countries, Nokia matched employee collection campaigns with the same amount donated by employees.

As well as providing immediate aid, we play a role in the long-term reconstruction of communities affected by disasters. For example, we created the Tsunami Reconstruction Initiative in partnership with the International Youth Foundation (IYF) and the Grameen Foundation to help long-term recovery efforts in areas affected by the Tsunami.

The initiative is designed to help young people in affected areas of India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand to find jobs or set up small businesses – and creating long-term livelihoods. Over the three years following its launch in 2006, the €2.5 million program will provide more than 5,600 young people aged 16 to 29 with access to job and life skills training, apprenticeships, job placements, and loans.

Read how the Nokia-funded Tsunami Reconstruction Initiative opened its doors to train Mookda Noorak in boat building—the only female graduate of the course.

Earthquake in Pakistan
In response to the Pakistan earthquake of 2005, Nokia has been funding rebuilding programs and projects over a three-year period. These efforts consist of donations to the Edhi Foundation, the President's Earthquake Relief Fund and Red Cross Finland for a temporary hospital in Muzzafarabad. Nokia also made a handset donation directly to the affected region.

September 11, 2001
In close cooperation with the International Youth Foundation (IYF), we established a Nokia Education Fund for children who lost a parent or parents in the September 11, 2001 tragedies in the United States. The fund assists in covering college education expenses. Since July 2002, the Fund has disbursed 260 scholarships to 175 dependent children of victims of the tragedy. The most popular degree programs are business, law, and education. About two-thirds of the recipients are undergraduate students. . In calendar year 2008, 59 scholarships were awarded to 41 new recipients and 16 previous recipients. The fund is available to affected children irrespective of their nationality or the location of their academic institution.