Social innovation in the South forms a cluster alongside Yunus
An agreement has been launched to establish 14 social enterprises in Naples, Palermo and Potenza, inspired by the principles of the Nobel Peace Prize
Key points
The streets of the Quartieri Spagnoli are engraved on the surface of the chocolate bar. This marking symbolises the cultural identity of the product, which is the result of the work of people with autism and intellectual disabilities in Naples. It is one of 14 businesses that are being set up now or will be established over the next three years within the newly formed Mediterranean Social Innovation District – the first of its kind in Italia, inspired by the social business model of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus.
These are organisations that are establishing themselves as fully economically sustainable businesses focused on making a positive impact on their communities. On the other hand, they have emerged as an expression of the very social fabric supported by Foqus (Fondazione Quartieri Spagnoli di Napoli) and other social enterprises in Naples, Potenza and Palermo, which have signed an agreement with the Yunus Centre in Dhaka.
The vision of economist Yunus
“Disadvantaged communities should not be viewed merely as places of need or dependency, but as hubs of creativity, initiative and untapped human potential,” said the Bangladeshi economist speaking in Naples - ‘Social enterprises can help unlock this potential, enabling people – especially young people, women, migrants and vulnerable communities – to become creators of solutions, rather than passive recipients of aid.’”
The model is that of a self-sustaining social enterprise, as outlined by the economist Yunus: an enterprise capable of operating in the market, generating revenue, creating jobs and reinvesting its profits in its social mission, without distributing dividends to investors.
Quaglia: ‘Moving beyond the logic of singularity’
In Italia, the social enterprise model is already one of the pillars of the civil economy. “With the district model, we now want to move away from the logic of individual initiatives: we want the various organisations to learn by collaborating with one another and sharing practices, knowledge and relationships within a district where our product is social innovation and change,” explains Renato Quaglia, director of Foqus, who will be sharing the experience gained in the heart of Naples. Since 2014, in fact, the former Montecalvario Institute has been transformed into an ecosystem of schools, social enterprises, health services, welfare, culture and training, which today employs around 660 people and welcomes thousands of children, families, students and citizens every day. In addition to Foqus, the Genera – 3Zero consortium, the City of Peace Foundation and Per Esempio Ets signed the agreement yesterday.
