Tag: UNICEF

Spotify Extends Existing Partnership With UNICEF and Donates to UNICEF’s Global Emergency Fund

October 18, 2023

Spotify is deeply saddened by the recent terrorist attacks in Israel and troubled by the growing catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Our hearts are with all of the people caught in the conflict. We acknowledge the important work of UNICEF and its partners, who are doing all they can to help the most affected children and their families.

In June, Spotify announced our three-year partnership with UNICEF to help ensure that young people, including refugees, displaced people, and migrants, can access evidence-based and engaging mental health audio content on Spotify. The initial partnership was focused on helping young people affected by the war in Ukraine, with a long-term goal to extend our work globally both in and outside of times of emergency. 

We are extending this partnership for another two years to continue supporting UNICEF in reaching children and young people exposed to conflict and natural disasters by providing them with tools to promote mental health and well-being.

Spotify is also making a donation to UNICEF’s Global Emergency Fund to help UNICEF and its partners provide immediate humanitarian support—including medical supplies, fuel, mental health—and psychosocial support in response to the conflict.

Finally, we’re matching employee donations to support additional funds for UNICEF’s global humanitarian efforts. We hope that those in harm’s way find peace and safety soon.

This World Mental Health Day, Take a Beat With Spotify

October 10, 2023

World Mental Health Day, observed today, offers people everywhere a chance to reflect, discuss, and destigmatize conversations around mental health and well-being.

Mental health has been a priority here at Spotify since 2018, when we launched our Heart & Soul initiative. For us, mental health is a state of well-being where we are able to cope with the daily stresses of life, function productively, and make meaningful contributions. Heart & Soul’s focus is to create an open and caring environment around mental health issues, an environment where we can do our best work and belong. Heart & Soul aims to raise awareness, enable support, and normalize the conversation to reduce mental health stigma at work. 

We also know our platform can provide a place for listeners to find moments of inspiration and healing through music, podcasts, and audiobooks. We are always seeking new methods to leverage the power of Spotify to break down stigma and raise awareness around mental health and well-being. This World Mental Health Day, we’re encouraging people around the world to take a beat. 

Go ahead and ‘Take a Beat’

On Spotify, listeners can find our Take a Beat global content hub, which includes a collection of podcasts and playlists that promote mental health and wellness. Whether you’re looking to find audio around relaxing, resting, or releasing good vibes, the curations give listeners a refuge from the intensity of our noisy world and provide a chance for them to tune into themselves.

Don’t forget that ‘Our Minds Matter’

Earlier this year, we announced the launch of a new partnership with UNICEF to support the mental health of young people. Focusing on those affected by the ongoing war in Ukraine, we plan to scale this initiative over the next two years to aid in other emergency and nonemergency scenarios. 

As a part of this partnership, we created the Our Minds Matter content hub on Spotify. This destination is designed to support those in Ukraine and Poland, in particular, and also features music and talk playlists to support sleep, study, and relaxation. We also cocreated On My Mind with UNICEF, a podcast available in multiple languages, including Ukrainian, Polish, and English, that provides practical, evidence-based mental health resources.

Making moves with Nike

In the U.K., we’ve taken on a different challenge: partnering with Nike to inspire girls to get more active using the power of music—and in turn, improve their mental well-being—through the Make Moves Fund. Together, we’ll invest in community initiatives that inspire girls to get moving while leveraging the power of music to improve their well-being. With British girl group FLO serving as the fund’s ambassador, we’re hoping to create lasting change by awarding multiple £20K grants to U.K.-based community organizations that propose pioneering and girl-first programs that use music and movement to inspire girls to get active.

Mental health starts with ‘Heart and Soul’ 

This World Mental Health Day at Spotify, we’re acknowledging the occasion a little differently. We’re inviting teams to come together to participate in a mental health–centered workshop led by their managers.

This will bring our teams together in new ways—all with the goal of reducing stigma and encouraging conversations about mental health.

We want to ensure teammates are genuinely looking out for one another, and to do that, it’s important for us to build emotionally aware teams. Creating healthy and thriving workplaces starts with our leadership. When leaders prioritize employee well-being and lead with compassion, the well-being of the collective is elevated.

At Spotify, it’s important for us to come together to cultivate collective care.

Whether within our company or on our global platform, we are finding new ways to highlight the importance of mental health and well-being. If you’re looking to kickstart your mental wellness journey with podcasts, mindful meditation suggestions, or relaxation playlists, check out our Take A Beat destination for everything you need.

Looking to hear more about experiences of mental health within the artist community? Catch this special episode of Best Advice to hear from Hayley Kiyoko, Troye Sivan, Big Freedia, Laura Jane Grace, Princess Nokia, Lykke Li, Rina Sawayama and more. 

Spotify and UNICEF Partner To Support Mental Health by Bringing the Power of Audio to Millions

June 28, 2023

At Spotify, we know that music and audio can help support mental health, so we’re dedicated to using the power of our platform to bring resources to people directly where they are. Today, we are embarking on a three-year partnership with UNICEF to help ensure that young people, including refugees, displaced people, and migrants, can access trusted and engaging mental health audio content. 

To start, our focus will be on responding to the urgent mental health needs of young people who have been affected by the war in Ukraine. UNICEF has been supporting mental health and psychosocial support interventions for over 2.6 million Ukrainian children and caregivers since before 2022. Going forward, we’ll explore opportunities to expand our impact across other emergency and nonemergency contexts around the world.

“Our goal in partnering with UNICEF is to help young people, including refugees and migrants, find the support they need to optimize their mental health and well-being online and offline,” says Elizabeth Nieto, VP, Global Head of Equity and Impact at Spotify. “Our collaboration will particularly focus on harnessing the power of music, audio, and other innovative digital content to deliver trusted and engaging mental health content for young people, their caregivers, and communities.” 

Evidence-based resources for mental health and well-being 

Our partnership will kick off with the youth mental well-being destination Our Minds Matter on Spotify, where listeners will be able to access a combination of existing music and talk playlists. These engaging playlists can provide support for a wide range of mental health and well-being needs—and give young people resources right at their fingertips. 

Understanding the everyday mental health needs of young people directly affected by the war in Ukraine is key to being able to support them. That is why UNICEF, with our support, has been collaborating with a group of Ukrainian and Polish youth to cocreate a new youth-informed, evidence-based mental health podcast called On My Mind. Season one will initially be available in Ukrainian, Polish, and English, with new languages coming online later. 

From episodes on breaking down the stigma around mental health to nurturing healthy relationships, to coping with grief, stress, and loss,​ this co-created podcast will support tangible progress in improving access to mental health services and fostering a nurturing environment for young people. 

Going forward, Spotify and UNICEF will work together to cocreate, adapt, digitize, and translate additional mental health content. We’ll also continue to curate new music and talk playlists that support mental health and well-being and can be featured on this platform.

Leveraging the Power of Our Platform to Support Ukrainian Refugees

April 28, 2022

Over the past two months, unprovoked attacks have continued across Ukraine. The subsequent devastation has affected millions of individuals who have fled their homes in search of safety for themselves and their families. Throughout this time, the global community has sought ways to aid Ukrainian refugees and help them find necessary safety, shelter, resources, and peace. 

Spotify aims to use the power of our platform to further assist in this endeavor. We also know that those in our worldwide network of artists, podcasters, and listeners have been looking for ways to help those affected by war, as have our employees. So, we have taken part in several initiatives to start lending a hand, and we aim to continue this vital work as long as the crisis persists.  

Working with UNICEF

Starting today, Spotify and UNICEF are embarking on a multiyear partnership that will explore innovative ways to use digital media and the power of music and audio to support the mental health and well-being of children, young people, and their caregivers, including those affected by war. 

Together, we’ll also explore ways in which these innovative approaches can alleviate the mental health distress of Ukrainian children and refugees and promote their psychosocial well-being in the long term. Over the course of our collaboration, we will also provide financial support to UNICEF as their partner in this vital work. 

Tech for Refugees

Earlier today, we announced our participation in a new initiative called Tech for Refugees. As a part of this initiative, Spotify Premium will be offered to Ukrainian refugees displaced by the war at no cost. We believe that our platform plays a critical role in providing our users around the world with trusted news and in the beginning of the crisis launched The Source for News and Info on the Spotify platform to do just that. 

We also know how connected music is to memory, healing, and hope. Through Spotify Premium, we can help ensure that Ukrainians have access to both vital information and the music that soothes them wherever they are throughout this time.

It is an understatement to say that we hope this war comes to an end very soon and that peace is restored to Ukraine and the millions of refugees. Until then, we will continue to work with our partners, and on behalf of our employees, creators, and listeners, to use the power of our platform to aid and assist Ukrainians in the many ways we can.

The Sounds of UNICEF’s Giving Tuesday Snowflake Ball

November 27, 2018

For many, the holiday season can be a time of abundance. As we gather with family and friends to reflect on the past year, it’s also a great opportunity to give back to our communities. That’s why Spotify is teaming up with UNICEF USA to highlight Giving Tuesday and the annual Snowflake Ball, UNICEF’s largest event of the year. UNICEF is the world’s leading humanitarian organization for children, working in more than 190 countries and territories to help save and protect the world’s most vulnerable youth.

This has been a hard year for many children around the world. With a famine looming in Yemen, disasters crippling places like Indonesia, and a global refugee crisis sending millions on the move, UNICEF’s work has never been more important.

The Snowflake Ball, tonight in New York City, celebrates the humanitarian and charity efforts that UNICEF and its partners accomplish throughout the year by bringing together philanthropists and supporters from near and far. The gala coincides with Giving Tuesday, a national awareness day that encourages all Americans to give to charity at the start of the holiday season.

This year marks the 14th annual Snowflake Ball, which will be hosted by attorney and journalist Sunny Hostin. The event will feature a headline performance by Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow and a special performance by triple threat actor-comedian-singer Wayne Brady.

2018’s gala will honor drummer and former Beatle Ringo Starr with the George Harrison Humanitarian Award for his longtime commitment to humanitarian and environmental causes.

UNICEF USA supports UNICEF’s work through fundraising, advocacy, and education. This year’s goal is to raise $4 million, adding to the $34 million raised over the past 13 years.

To highlight UNICEF’s event and initiatives, we created a Giving Tuesday playlist, complete with plenty of Sheryl and Ringo, as well as other feel-good songs from the Beatles, P!nk, Bob Marley, and Sarah Bareilles. So as the holidays pick up and the year winds down, hit shuffle and take time to celebrate the season of giving.

Feeling moved? You can be a part of the cause and donate here.