Microsoft invests in local programs that benefit people of all ages. In Sweden, our collaborations are organized by our focus areas of Building Digital Skills, Enabling Sustainability, and Empowering Communities. The following program list contains a sample of the kinds of investments Microsoft has made in Sweden.

Building digital skills

Microsoft believes everyone should have access to the skills, technology, and opportunity they need to succeed in a changing economy.

Rädda Barnens Riksförbund is the world’s largest independent children’s rights organization. Its work saves and improves children’s lives around the world. Its goal is to ensure that children have access to healthcare, food, shelter, and essential learning and child protection services when they need them the most. Its commitment is to help every child reach their full potential by ensuring they grow up healthy, receive a quality education, and stay safe.

• Empowering Children Through Music and Tech Skills: Create Sessions for a Better Day takes place in a music studio established by Tim Bergling Foundation (Avicii) that is easily accessible to children to meet on a regular basis. Through Create Sessions, music and creativity tools are used to promote mental health among children.
• Tjej-och killsnack provides weekly discussion groups for girls and boys between the ages of 9 and 16. The purpose of these groups is to empower the participants, enhance their knowledge about their rights, provide opportunities for active and meaningful leisure time, and encourage them to engage in new contexts and environments.
• LillaRB developed a children’s website with the help of children as editors, encompassing subjects identified by the children themselves.
• KRAFT – Youth Empowerment aims at contributing to sustainable livelihoods and integration of youth (15–24 years old) in the labor market. It provides support to improve mental well-being, inclusion, and employment.

Skolidrottsforbundet i Skåne creates a positive athletic environment where both social and cultural aspects are natural ingredients of the activities in which both children and youth are developed into independent people. It achieves this by having the school sports associations (SSAs) offer an enriching after-school activity, giving young people the possibility for a versatile conduct of sports. In addition, various activities are held providing democratic education, knowledge, and self-esteem.

• Developing Young Leaders in Staffanstorp & Skåne will help to establish local SSAs with a starting point in Staffanstorp and nearby parts of the region. An SSA is a platform for young leaders to develop their leadership skills by offering free activities for kids to exercise in a fun and playful environment.

Ung Foretagsamhet Skåne educates and inspires entrepreneurship in students at primary and secondary schools. Its long-term mission is to contribute to skills provision and sustainable societies.

• Ung Företagsamhet Skåne supports the development of entrepreneurship in elementary schools in Staffanstorp and the wider Skåne region. As a collaboration between UF Skåne and Microsoft, the project delivers workshops with an extra focus on the impact technology can have on students through a national Skolhackathon, with Minecraft Education as a technical tool to convert a physical build up to a virtual society.

Kodcentrum introduces youth in Sweden to computer science, programming, and digital skills free of charge, while simultaneously broadening the perception of who can code and what is made up of code. Its purpose is to ensure digital democracy and secure future workforce competency needs by facilitating Swedish youth to learn foundational digital skills and computer science regardless of their socioeconomic background, ethnicity, or gender.

• The EU Code Week STEM Education project is collaborating with NTI-Gymnasiet Lund to provide leadership training to its high school students, who then visit middle school classes in Lund and nearby areas during EU Code Week.
• The AI-Focused STEM Education project is organizing after-school activities focused on digital creativity. To enhance general knowledge of AI, the project has created new educational materials for middle school children to engage with digital creation using AI in free software. For the project, Kodcentrum is collaborating with volunteers from Microsoft and other partners, developing a platform, and testing the materials in school classes. Kodcentrum also hired a part-time student as a content creator.
• The Gävleborg initiative builds sustainable collaborations with organizations, upper secondary schools, and colleges to create interest in programming and STEAM/IT careers for children in Gävle and Sandviken. With support from Microsoft to establish long-term operations, the project offers activities during and after school where children can meet role models who can change their view of future educational opportunities and open up to learning new things such as programming.
• Introducing Swedish children to digital technologies aims to democratize technology education with free programming lessons, tutorials, and coding activities for children ages 9–13. Kodcentrum, with Microsoft funding, offers online training and digital curriculum support, including online hackathons and expert mentorship for coding projects.
• Leadership program for young women introduces them to IT/tech as a possible future career path. The program aims to inspire women that they are essential for future innovation through workshops, basic programming skills education, mentorship by female role models, as well as volunteering with younger children to empower them in their own role as leaders.

Rapatac provides children with a meaningful environment for their upbringing. The center serves as a piece in the puzzle needed in the community to complement the home environment and school by giving children support with their homework and offering educational courses including the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM).

• The TechBridge project in Rapatac’s Gävle and Sandviken centers empowers local families with access to STEAM education through technical activities and open public lectures conducted by representatives of leading innovation companies. The project also organizes the TechChallengeX: Elevate Innovation for schoolchildren, in which students learn to program aerial drones and demonstrate their learning through drone shows. The project creates a holistic approach to STEAM education by integrating additional try-outs of technical activities into school environments and Rapatac’s outdoor summer program.
• Rapatac NPO Digital enabled Rapatac to digitally reimagine and transform its business process through Microsoft technology products, services, and solutions.

Stiftelsen Uppåkra Arkeologiska Center will be northern Europe’s most boundless, vibrant, and innovative place for archaeology, relevant in the present for many people. In Uppåkra, the past is not finished and arranged, it changes with every spade, before our eyes, and forces us to rewrite history. Through research, evaluation and pedagogy, the Center wants to develop this multidimensional place into a meeting place for everyone.

• Time Travel at Uppåkra Model Minecraft Skill Builder & World Development brings history to life with Minecraft. Researchers at Uppåkra Foundation have collaborated with Microsoft to develop a Minecraft version of the archeological site. The game lets students interact with real scientists and follow the excavation as it progresses, learning about history and archeological methods along the way.

NTI Gymnasiet Lund is a not-for-profit organization that delivers community training programs to support the development of digital skills in the region.

• CompTIA Teacher Training Grant ensures that students at NTI Gymnsiet Lund have the best conditions to be able to certify themselves and become employable in the IT industry. The members were also trained in running a nonprofit association within the framework of gaming (both data and board games) and certification in IT.

Sandviken Datacenter Academy (DCA) works for an increased digital level of competence in the region, improved integration, and a positive and sustainable social development. By creating a world-class datacenter, Sandviken DCA strengthens the region’s attractiveness and competitiveness through increased digitalization and social development.

• Educational and development initiatives collaborate with the libraries in Gävle and Sandviken during E-citizens Week for lectures and activities, and with Young Entrepreneurs in Sandviken and Gävleborg County for scholarships to encourage IT careers.
• Sandviken DCA Expansion – Server & Networking Courses provided digital skills to the next generation of IT technicians. This involved classroom practical training in the lab provided by Microsoft. The participating students received expert level training with the information needed to become certified by CompTIA.
• Digital Inclusion & Summer Camps at Sandback Science Park provides numerous programs to reach all ages. A three-week camp for children and young people is intended to increase interest in technology, problem solving, and coding, regardless of prior knowledge. For seniors, a program provides support and knowledge in using digital technology and digital services. And for adults who have difficulty with language, economics, or for some reason have ended up outside the digital world, another program provides basic computer skills.

ReDI School of Digital Integration is a nonprofit tech school providing migrants and marginalized locals with free and equitable access to digital education. The school offers high quality coding and basic computer courses in combination with a unique career and mentorship program, which includes the chance to collaborate with tech companies, startups, and digital industry leaders. It provides learners with valuable digital skills, a growth mindset, strengthened career skills, and a strong network of tech professionals to help create new opportunities for all.

• AI-powered Learning for Inclusion cultivates responsible and ethical usage of AI in professional settings. These educational sessions aim to enlighten and empower the community about the intricacies and impact of AI within the workplace. By elevating awareness and understanding of AI’s responsible utilization, this initiative seeks to equip individuals and organizations with the knowledge to navigate the evolving landscape of technology, ensuring not just proficiency but also ethical and conscientious engagement with AI.

Stiftelsen Läxhjälpen supports students and schools where it is needed most. The Homework Help Foundation’s vision is that all children should grow up with the conditions to cope with school and shape their own future. It works locally for national results.

• The Läxhjälpen & STEAM Inspiration program provides a Homework Study Program for pupils with the highest risk of failure by connecting them with part-time employed university students. In collaboration with Microsoft and the University of Gävle, this project aims to create better conditions and inspiration for the youth in Gävle and Sandviken to invest in a career in STEAM.

The University of Gävle wants to make a difference and contribute to change in society. It does this together with others, both through its education and its research, which focuses on societal challenges. Serving 19,000 students, the university offers around 60 degree programs and postgraduate programs and 330 freestanding courses in the humanities, social and natural sciences, and technology.

• The Exploratory Learning Lab, located within the University of Gavle’s library, serves as a vibrant, hands-on educational space that promotes curiosity and experimentation across all ages. With support from Microsoft, the lab now will incorporate dedicated zones for media and music production, enriching the STEAM approach by adding layers of creative and audiovisual components to integrate artistic expression with technology. The lab also will introduce a new focus on home automation and smart home technologies, equipping students and community members with the knowledge and skills to understand and innovate in the rapidly growing field of smart home technology.
• The AI Robot to Promote Children’s Reading project utilizes AI and modern technology to create an engaging and interactive experience that draws young visitors into the world of reading. This initiative is part of the university library’s broader mission to promote media and information literacy and increase understanding of AI among young people aged 10–14.

Enabling sustainability

Climate change requires swift, collective action and technological innovation. We are committed to meeting our own goals while helping communities to do the same.

Stiftelsen World Forest Forum promotes positive local and global development of human use and management of forests. Its long-term goal is to be a catalyst and a platform for utilizing and developing all forest resources and pursuing issues that yield clear results. It engages individuals, forest owners, companies, and organizations that see forests as a sustainable and eternally renewable resource.

• The Butterfly Road project increases the availability of habitats for butterflies along forest roads by changing the maintenance of forest roadsides. The project includes an area of already high butterfly diversity of national importance for threatened butterfly species. By increasing the amount of roads with similar maintenance, the availability of butterfly habitats will increase. Support from Microsoft will be used to perform additional adapted forest road management, species monitoring, increased handicap accessibility and signage for visitors, and increased local engagement for biodiversity conservation through local NGOs.

Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) advances the science, practice, and policy of ecological restoration to sustain biodiversity, enhance resilience in a changing climate, and re-establish an ecologically healthy relationship between culture and nature. SER’s goals include building the knowledge base needed to implement effective ecological restoration, supporting on-the-ground (and in the water) standards-based ecological restoration implementation, and ensuring ecological restoration delivers beneficial outcomes for both nature and people, including addressing the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.

• The White Stork: An Advocate for Wetland Restoration in Southern Sweden is restoring a viable population of white stork and its wetland ecosystem habitat. White stork populations will be augmented and supported, and wetland conditions will be assessed for future restoration, focusing on maintaining and developing their carrying capacity, with the goal of revitalizing the white stork population and other native wetland plants and wildlife.

Future Position X (FPX) is an independent digital innovation hub based in Gävle. FPX supports development and growth to promote health and well-being for the citizens of the smart, sustainable, viable community. FPX provides both technology and expertise to contribute to data-driven community solutions.

• Hack4Gävle was designed in collaboration with Microsoft and Gävle Municipality for participants to devise practical solutions for a real challenge to climate neutrality. The participants worked in groups to come up with suggestions on how and in what way the group thought a problem should be solved.

Empowering communities

Microsoft is committed to strengthening communities and empowering the organizations that help them thrive. Whether affected by a recent emergency or decades of challenges, we use data, technology, and strategic investments to restore and support them for future generations.

Stromsbro Idrottsforening is a sports club with a wider vision for the impact the club can make in society. Strömsbro IF wants to be involved in influencing, improving, and making a difference in society.

• Vårabarnsframtid promotes social inclusion, healthy lifestyles, leadership skills, and access to club programs for a wider community. The project includes Sommarglädje, a series of annual summer camps for 900 children, and Responsibility Modell, which connects 200 young people for a year to develop their leadership skills while promoting the integration of communities, which normally may not connect, through program activities and workshops.

SAIK Bandy is an organization for exercising the sport of bandy and other activities that contribute to good health and well-being.

• Sandvikens AIK/BK increases mobility and well-being among young people, particularly girls, by providing new opportunities for them to get involved in physical activity, develop their leadership skills, and engage with role models in the community that can promote their ambition and overall well-being. The project also has a special focus on children of refugees to improve integration into society.
• Sandvikens AIK/BK develops SAIK Bandy’s aims to be a club for both men and women from all parts of the community. It provides support for a range of activities to create opportunities for new community members to meet and integrate into the community.

Gefle IF Fotboll is the football club of Gävle, featuring teams for men’s, women’s, and youth leagues. Its “A better Gävle” initiative is about focusing on sustainability issues in society based on its three global goals of life, health, and the environment.

• A First Responder Staff Tournament was held in November 2022 to create meetings between blue light staff and teenagers that would increase understanding between the groups and facilitate the blue light staff’s work in the districts. Night football games for youths aged 13 to 18 in Andersberg and Sätra were held every Saturday during the 2022–2023 season. Additional free activities for Gävle’s children were held for a day during the autumn school break.

Matakuten works for a more sustainable society without hunger. It collects food from stores, wholesalers, and restaurants that is then distributed to those most in need in society. In 2024, Matakuten distributed just over 52,500 well-composed food and bread bags in Gävle and Sandviken, created from about 275 tons of collected food.

• Matakuten Sandviken opened its operations in 2024, building on its sister organization in Gävle. Funding from Microsoft helped secure suitable kitchen equipment, protective clothing, and other food handling equipment.

Riksforbundet Städa Sverige has a vision of a litter-free Sweden cleaned by enthusiastic young athletes on their way to fulfil their dreams. Its purpose is to contribute to the existence of active sports for youths done by organizing environmental clean ups. Its ambition: clean all of Sweden.

• Clean Up Staffanstorp organizes outdoor litter cleanup events with sport clubs around Staffanstorp. Youths learn about littering and a change in behavior is established in a relatively early age. For their commitment, the associations receive a donation to support their sport activities. The cleanup activities take place in the youths’ neighborhood and always with local connection.

ChangeX International helps to create thriving communities everywhere by democratizing change, ensuring proven innovations and finance are accessible to everyone, everywhere. ChangeX is a community engagement platform that, with Microsoft’s support, has funded more than 500 groups in communities across Europe and the United States since 2015.

• Microsoft Community Fund for Malmö and Gävleborg uses funding from Microsoft to launch local projects around environmental sustainability, digital skills, and community prosperity, contributing to more sustainable and livable communities.