Podcast Social Work: Gaudí and Social Work, the Unknown Private Investor

What is the value creation and progress of the social actions of organizations like CECA? Where do their initiatives impact? What does the Catalan architect have to do with it? Listen to the new podcast by Javier Molina

800 million euros, equivalent to what Spain and Morocco have agreed in investment from Spanish companies in the North African country, what AstraZeneca will allocate to a R&D center in Catalonia over five years which will create a thousand jobs, or what last year the social work of CECA allocated to assistance actions for vulnerable groups, education, research, culture, sports, the environment, and leisure.

This initiative to generate value and progress benefited more than 32 million people in over 72,000 activities in 2022. “We must not forget the qualitative contribution of social work,” clarifies Alberto Aza, spokesperson for CECA, in the latest Ideas with Value, referring to the fact that, “due to its very characteristics, it can often address needs that, in general, cannot be met by public policies or, if they are addressed, are done so in a very basic manner. In contrast, social work programs are much more flexible and personalized.”

An example of this private investment, which often goes unnoticed by the general public, relates to architect Gaudí and one of his three buildings constructed outside of Catalonia. This is the revitalization of Casa Botines, located in León, which was purchased by the former Caja de Ahorros y Monte de Piedad of the province to establish its offices, until in 2017 the Fundación Obra Social de Castilla y León (Fundos) decided to convert it into the reference museum in Spain about Gaudí in anticipation of the centenary of his death in 2026.

“It is the enhancement of a first-order heritage asset, which previously had no cultural relevance, nor surely in other areas […] and we have turned it into a cultural asset whose effects or benefits are felt in other areas such as tourism, economy, and science, because a cultural project also promotes research around the work and figure of Antonio Gaudí,” highlights José María Viejo del Pozo, General Director of Fundos.

What are the social work actions of CECA? What does the Gaudí 2026 project consist of? What activities are included? What are the other two buildings by the architect constructed outside of Spain?

This section converges in two forums. Last Thursday, May 31, we celebrated the seventh edition of the Ideas with Value forum, where about twenty experts and managers shared investment proposals to assist in financial decision-making. In November, the sixth edition of the Blockchain & Cryptoassets forum will take place, where experts and entrepreneurs will also share value proposals for companies in the so-called decentralized economy. We will continue to keep you informed.