Cariplo celebrates its 25th Anniversary
25th anniversary of Fondazione Cariplo, Italy’s largest philanthropic organization. Some 30,000 initiatives supported with €2.8 billion since 1991. Adding to calls for proposals, 4 broad impact programs are major novelties for 2016: city suburbs, rural areas, social entrepreneurship and Jobfactory, a new Foundation’s initiative to boost youth employment. Without forgetting welfare. A budget of €152 million. 9,000 visitors to the Foundation’s website in just few hours of the publication of the new calls for proposals on Friday January 29.
2016 PHILANTHROPIC ACTIVITIES KICKED OFF
Punctual for #25years, Fondazione Cariplo has kicked off its program of philanthropic activities for the current year. The budget is significant, €152 million for projects in Lombardy, Novara and Verbano-Cusio-Ossola in the Foundation’s traditional four program areas, i.e. Arts & Culture, Social & Human Services, the Environment, and Scientific Research. Returns from the usual wise management of its assets - now worth over €8 billion (marked-to-market value) - have enabled the Foundation to keep the financial resources for its philanthropic activities stably at a high level.
2016 novelties: 4 broad impact programs focused on city suburbs, rural areas, social enterprises and Cariplo Factory, the latter due to be launched in Milan in the spring. Without forgetting welfare. Within hours of the publication of the Foundation’s 2016 calls for proposals there had been some 9,000 visitors to the Foundation’s website.
A MILESTONE ANNIVERSARY
2016 marks a milestone anniversary for Fondazione Cariplo. On December 16 it will blow out the candles of its 25 years of philanthropic activities. Dedicated to helping the vulnerable, promoting and supporting projects in the fields of arts & culture, the environment, scientific research and in the social realm since 1991. Over these 25 years, with its philanthropic action the Foundation has enabled the accomplishment of over 30,000 projects of nonprofit organizations with more than €2.8 billion. Since 1991 Italy’s largest philanthropic organization has funded over 1,000 projects with €110 million annually. Most notably, in recent years the average value of philanthropic funds provided annually by the Foundation has surpassed €150 million.
Here is the analysis by program area:
Environment: 1,835 projects funded with €145 million in total
Arts & Culture: 11,212 projects funded with €948.4 million in total
Scientific Research: 1,764 projects funded with €421 million in total
Social & Human Services: 14,094 projects funded with €955 million in total
Plus 778 projects funded with €368 million to establish 15 community foundations and support their local philanthropic activities.
“Moments like this are important to take stock. Numbers are fundamental to understand the scope and reach of our philanthropic action, but I never forget the greater value of the social innovation we have been capable of bringing about nor the stories of the numerous people who have worked with us or benefitted from projects in the social sphere, in the fields of scientific research, arts and culture, and the environment. But the greatest value of all lies in those children, men and women, younger and older people, in health or in sickness, who have personally experienced the common good generated through the philanthropic efforts we have deployed together with associations, local authorities, NGOs and other foundations. I am proud of what we have done, and yet we know there is still a long way to go” - said Giuseppe Guzzetti, President of Fondazione Cariplo since February 5,1997.
“In its 25 years history our Foundation has morphed from an organization that simply awarded funds to select worthy projects into a competent player taking an active role in projects, a full-fledged partner for the organizations we support” – continued Guzzetti – “We are doing social innovation, something whose value goes well beyond the classic economic value of the activities that we conduct or support. A greater value that has been increasingly recognized within the communities we serve. That has been the case with social housing, a revolution in the concept of living together in communities sharing spaces and services; with community-based welfare; with culture as a way to boost economic development and individual wellbeing; with scientific research that changes the lives of people; with the environment that we contribute to conserve and is fundamental for our wellbeing. Our calls for proposals are opportunities to work together with other organizations and people, to bring to light emerging issues and seek tangible satisfactory responses.”
Fondazione Cariplo will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a series of initiatives throughout the year. In particular, there will be a tour bringing the Festival of Philanthropy that started last October in Milan to the main squares in cities across Lombardy to be together with people and tell what our Foundation has done over these past years together with local nonprofit organizations. The tour is scheduled to take place in the second part of the year through December 16, the Foundation’s anniversary.