«In addition to the ambition to do good, we should also have the ambition to solve the problem of the economic sustainability of social projects. I can say I tried». Paola Caporossi in life deals with public administration, participatory processes, anti-corruption. But also of inclusion and social cohesion. Co-founder of Fondazione Etica, she chairs the Public Rating Agency, while at Luiss she leads the research laboratory on local governments.
His passion and his free time, however, for at least three years now have poured into the creation of Luci Aps, a pilot project that has seen the birth of a "RistOsteria", with a space dedicated to music and a school of civic innovation , inside an abandoned public building, in the Maremma nature park. Property owned by the "Terre Regionale Toscane" institution which granted it to the association through a public notice in 2018. A new reality which has, in turn, created new jobs and returned a recovered asset to the community.
«Luci Aps is the acronym of “Common Places with Social Impact Association of Social Promotion”. Not yet another "beautiful project", one of many in which Italy, fortunately, is rich: my idea was to create a replicable model of social impact investment, for the benefit of the entire community", tells. Certainly easier said than done. But even more beautiful, Paola confesses, was making it in the province where she was born, «that of Grosseto, beautiful but the poorest in Tuscany» and in the heart of the Uccellina Park.
«I was tired of going with my hat in my hand in front of the philanthropist on duty, participating in a sort of "battle between the poor". We need a broader look that allows us to systematize social planning and make it more effective, to give concrete economic tools to support the Third Sector".
After having thoroughly studied the innovative models of funding for international and national non-profits, Paola reveals in her research that, unlike abroad, no project in Italy has been financed entirely by citizens except through crowdfunding. "ANDYet in Italy we have at least 4,600 billion in private savings. We can use it to leverage projects. It's not the solution to all problems, but we have to learn to use it and activate it." she says with conviction.
With the reform of the Third Sector, starting in 2016, he explains to us, the possibility arises of financing one's activities with "solidarity bonds". «A term that is not too happy but which tells us that innovative and social financial instruments can also be activated, such as this type of bonds or certificates of deposit, issued by banks and financial institutions. The subscriber is guaranteed up to 100 thousand euros by the Interbank Guarantee Fund. A part of its annual profit goes as a donation not to an association but, as in our case, to a real project with a social and economic impact in support of a community. And in addition, he has the right to the 30% tax deduction".
A new possible path, therefore, but also a complex one. Both to bring together actors and partners, and to convince institutions and banks to do their part. An experience which, however, has allowed her to bring supporters and potential investors closer to the concrete need for fully sustainable environmental, economic and social development for the Rispescia area. By developing an experimental organizational model in which the promoters and the manager work for the common good.
«Luci Aps is a collective and choral project, initially promoted by the Ethics Foundation and Caritas, but we have involved Confindustria, Legambiente, trade associations such as traders and the park authority among the promoters. In addition of course to the Tuscany Region and the municipality of Grosseto». All in the name of transparency. «Citizens and investors are constantly informed about what we are doing. In two years we have raised 300 thousand euros against 35 million euros of "solidarity bonds" subscribed by over 600 investors, gradually paying all the suppliers. Expenditure reports are timely and available so that those who participate can actively monitor progress», underlines Paola.
A project that has lived up to expectations, on the contrary, is attracting new supporters. «It is already a lived-in, lively place where you can eat good food prepared with short-chain raw materials from local producers, in the shade and cool of the pine forest. An abandoned part of the park brought back to life. And in July we also start with the musical program. The social cooperative that manages the restaurant has hired new staff, even among disadvantaged people, who now have a new chance»says Paula.
"We are in the testing phase. The idea is to have this model replicated. This is also why we will start with our training school, to spread it both among municipal administrators and non-profit organizations, still reluctant to use these financial instruments, which are not "dirty" but neutral. You have to learn to know them and use them», he reiterates.
Today Paola is satisfied, but she doesn't hide the difficulties of the enterprise. «Thanks again for my stubbornness. I've met a lot of people who have discouraged me over the years. And that was the hardest thing to deal with.". But in front of the results all bitterness disappears. "LWe have already created a social and economic impact through work». These days, of course, that's not a small thing.
For information on Luci Aps, you can visit their website, the Facebook page of the RistOsteria Luci nel Parco and their Instagram profile.
from the online journal Valori.it
