The Apheon Challenge: Championing Support for European NGOs

Duo for a Job

Duo for a Job (Netherlands) aims to reduce unequal access to the labour market by organizing mentoring between generations and cultures. Mentors provide support, encouragement, and guidance to mentees, helping them overcome challenges and build confidence in themselves. The organization has facilitated over 7000 duos since 2013, involving 2000+ mentors.

Kiron

Kiron is a nonprofit organization in Germany that offers free online courses and job-readiness programs for refugees and underserved communities. Kiron provides free learning opportunities for forcibly displaced persons to improve their skills, integrate better, get decent jobs and rebuild their lives.

Sport dans la Ville

Sport dans la Ville is France's leading association promoting insertion through sport. It relies on sports to support children’s development and favour positive behaviours. 10,000 disadvantaged young people are currently involved in Sport dans la Ville’s programs, with 1,491 professional experiences offered in 2023.

Teach for Italy

Teach for Italy (“TFI”) is an Italian nonprofit organisation dedicated to strengthening public schools in Italy. TFI’s activity consists in training graduates and/or young professionals to become teachers in disadvantaged schools through its in-house fellowship program.

Asociación Pablo Ugarte

Pablo Ugarte Association (APU) is a non-profit organization created in 2010 after the death of Pablo Ugarte. He died at the age of 10 after almost two and a half years fighting Ewing sarcoma. Since then, APU supports childhood cancer research in Spain and uses 100% of the money it raises to support 27 research projects in hospitals across the country.

Escalpade

Escalpade is a Belgian civic non-profit founded in 1997 in Walloon Brabant, dedicated to promoting and implementing educational, social, and cultural projects for people with physical disabilities. Its mission covers specialised schooling, day care for adults with high dependency, and leisure activities — today supporting over 200 families through a team of 100 staff and 50 volunteers. Beyond the classroom, its "Sports and Leisure" branch organises summer camps for around 120 children and teenagers each year, cycle-dance classes, and inclusive sporting events open to all.

Zahnärzte ohne Grenzen

Zahnärzte ohne Grenzen (Dentists without Limits Federation – DWLF) is a German non-profit founded in 2004 and based in Nuremberg, dedicated to providing free dental care to underserved populations worldwide.

It acts as a logistical and administrative support network, enabling volunteer dentists, technicians, and assistants to operate legally and effectively in countries lacking basic dental healthcare.

With over 1,200 registered volunteers, it has established more than 50 fixed and mobile dental clinics across Africa, Asia, and beyond.

Elles Bougent

Elles bougent is a French non-profit association founded in 2005 to inspire young girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and industry.

Through a network of over 15,000 female mentors, it challenges gender stereotypes and connects schoolgirls with women engineers and technicians as role models.

In 2024 alone, it reached over 45,000 girls across France and internationally through events, school visits, and forums.

Voedselbanken Nederland

Voedselbanken Nederland is the national association of 179 local food banks across the Netherlands, dedicated to providing free food to people in poverty while simultaneously tackling food waste. Run entirely by volunteers, it collects surplus food from supermarkets, manufacturers, bakers, and growers, distributing it through over 500 collection points to around 150,000 people each year — while an estimated 540,000 in the Netherlands still need support. Beyond immediate food aid, it works with local partner organisations to help its clients regain financial independence, because food assistance is always meant to be temporary.

Aspanoa

Aspanoa is a Spanish non-profit founded in 1988 by parents of children with cancer in Aragón, declared of public utility since 1995, dedicated to supporting children with cancer and their families throughout every stage of the illness. Through a multidisciplinary team of psychologists, social workers, physiotherapists, and music therapists, it provides free, holistic care to around 200 children and 400 family members each year — with no need to be a member to receive support. Beyond care, Aspanoa is also the leading funder of childhood cancer research in Aragón, making it the association that combines the human warmth of affected parents with a firm scientific commitment to finding better treatments.

Fondo Filantropico Italiano

Fondo Filantropico Italiano (FFI) is a Milan-based philanthropic foundation and one of Italy's leading intermediary organisations for strategic giving, founded by a group of experienced Italian entrepreneurs. It supports individuals, companies, and foundations in designing and managing their donations through Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs), making philanthropy simpler, more effective, and more impactful. FFI also facilitates cross-border giving as Italy's exclusive partner in an international network, ensuring donors can benefit from tax advantages in their home country while creating lasting social value.

Bärenstark e.V.

Bärenstark e.V. is a German non-profit that supports residential and outpatient care facilities for seriously ill children and young people requiring permanent ventilation or intensive nursing care. In these centres, educators, therapists, doctors, and specialist nurses work together to ensure the holistic development and wellbeing of their young patients. The organisation funds activities and interventions — such as animal-assisted therapy, outings, and educational support — that fall outside what public health insurers cover, with the goal of making these children's lives as fulfilling and joyful as possible.

Apheon Philanthropy

Apheon Philanthropy is the in-house foundation of Apheon, a pan-European private equity firm, launched in 2020 under the umbrella of the King Baudouin Foundation. Its mission is to support youth-focused charitable organisations across Europe, with a focus on education, equal opportunities, and wellbeing. Beyond grant-making, it runs mentoring programmes and career workshops pairing students from underserved backgrounds with professionals from Apheon and its portfolio companies.

Stichting Aynimundo-Nederland

Stichting Aynimundo-Nederland (AYNINED) is a Dutch foundation supporting Aynimundo, a Lima-based NGO dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged children, youth, and families. Through therapeutic, educational, and community programmes, Aynimundo fosters inclusion and personal development for those with fewer opportunities. AYNINED raises funds and awareness in the Netherlands to sustain and grow these efforts in Peru.

Fundación Sobre Ruedas

Fundación Sobre Ruedas is a Spanish non-profit founded in 2008 by two mothers of children with cerebral palsy, dedicated to improving the quality of life of children with this condition by providing essential assistive devices and access to technology that many families cannot afford. For children whose only voluntary movement is their gaze, eye-tracking systems and alternative communication tools are not a luxury — they are the difference between silence and having a voice, between dependence and autonomy. By funding these technologies, the foundation ensures that no child is left behind due to a lack of resources, turning barriers into possibilities and transforming not just individual lives, but entire families and classrooms around them.

Laufschuhhelden e.V.

Laufschuhhelden e.V. is a German non-profit founded in 2021 that turns everyday movement — running, walking, hiking, or cycling — into tangible support for social projects. Its community collectively logs kilometres through challenges and events, converting athletic activity into donations directed transparently towards charitable causes. Built on the values of community, reliability, and openness, it brings together people of all ages and backgrounds around the shared belief that every step can make a difference for others.

The FESPA Foundation

The FESPA Foundation is the charitable arm of FESPA, the global speciality print industry association, launched in early 2025 under the motto "Print For Good."Its mission is to repurpose waste materials from FESPA's international trade events into printed educational resources — posters, guides, and supplies — donated to underserved schools, primarily in South Africa.By combining sustainability with community impact, it uses the creativity of the print industry to improve learning environments for children in need.