What to Know
- Nike is taking action to help create a better world and a more equitable future for athletes by accelerating our efforts to support a more inclusive community in our key cities and employee backyards: London, Paris, Berlin, Barcelona and Amsterdam.
- Nike is partnering initially with 12 community organizations that are working to create a world where equal opportunity exists on and off the field of play.
- Together with community partners, Nike is removing barriers to play and sport, as well as advancing economic empowerment and elevating pathways to help create the next generation of leaders.
At its best, sport redefines human potential. That’s why Nike invests in creating more equal, inclusive and active communities, starting with the cities and backyards where we work and play. To help remove barriers to play in Europe, NIKE, Inc. is partnering with 12 community organizations that address inequities across race, gender, sexual orientation and disability. These Inclusive Community grants will initially be given to organizations in London, Berlin, Barcelona and Amsterdam.
The community partners for the more than $1.5 million investment include Disability Sport Coach, Sporting Equals and Not a Phase [London]; Les Hijabeuses [Paris]; Special Olympics and Seitenwechsel [Berlin]; and Superaccio [Barcelona]. Nike’s employee-led networks, collectively known as NikeUNITED, helped direct grants to the following community organizations in Amsterdam: Mentelity, The Black Archives, Casa Migrante, COC Nederlands and She Matters.
Intersectionality is a key consideration in NIKE, Inc.’s grantmaking. A diversity in partnerships helps Nike increase its impact on communities by lifting up multiple communities at once. The selection was based on extensive research, helping prioritize communities with the greatest need as well as those partners who are in the best position to help. These new investments in London, Paris, Berlin, Barcelona and Amsterdam are part of Nike’s 2025 Inclusive Community target to invest $125 million to support organizations working to level playing fields and addressing inequality.
“The Inclusive Community portfolio represents a collective of incredible community leaders and organizations across Europe,” says Jannine Bardouille, Director, Inclusive Community Portfolio, EMEA. “Each one committed to using the power of sport to both uplift and empower those from non-dominant and marginalized communities. We believe these strategic investments have the ability to provide both access and opportunity, to truly change the game for those who have previously not believed they had a place and a community within sport.”
The European grants build upon Inclusive Community grants across North America. Those grants helped support nonprofits working to advance equality in communities represented by Nike’s eight North America–based employee networks.
