15 / 68
ato un immobile che
stava crollando, dato lavoro a centinaia
di persone, riattivato l’economia di quel
territorio, e se ci pensate... l’investimen-
to è stato importante ma non esagerato.
Spesso tutto dipende dalle scelte e dalla
capacità di aggregare le forze che opera-
no sul territorio”.
Philanthropy at the
service of business
There was a time when philanthropy was
practiced by the few and aimed above all
at cultural activities. Today, in its modern
form, it has become a real flywheel for the
economy. The most significant example is
the Cariplo Foundation. “We are really
achieving social innovation. Philanthropy
nowadays is not simply the availability of
economic resources, I realize that we are
increasingly becoming key interlocutors,
and to be honest, this makes me proud”,
says Giuseppe Guzzetti, president of
the Foundation. “When we started 25
years ago, we were considered like a cash
machine, and now there are even those
who say that we impact the guidelines
for the social and cultural policies of
Lombardy and our country. Maybe that’s
a bit of an exaggeration, but in some
cases it’s true that we have opened roads
that others have chosen to follow, such
as in scientific research, public housing,
welfare. We’ve realized 30 thousand
initiatives with three billion euros, which
is really a lot, I don’t think there’s anyone
else who can match that. But it’s not
these numbers that explain what we do,
but how. For example, more and more
collaboration with companies. More
and more businesses are turning to us to
develop social responsibility projects, and
this is a great source of pride”. Examples
of this are Cariplofactory, which aims to
create 10,000 job opportunities for young
people starting from new occupations,
and Como Next, a technology hub
where dozens of cutting-edge companies
set up by young start-ups with great
ideas and skills. Along with traditional
philanthropic activity, the Cariplo
Foundation has launched venture
philanthropy initiatives such as theTT
venture, the fund that supports new
initiatives.
In Cariplofactory Fondazio-
ne Cariplo ha investito 10
milioni di euro: l’obiettivo
sono 10 mila opportunità di
lavoro per i giovani, parten-
do dalle nuove occupazioni.