The Garrone Foundation puts itself to the test of materiality

Between the Apennines and schools, between young people and inland areas, the Edoardo Garrone Foundation continues to write its own story of social and cultural commitment. This is clearly illustrated by the 2024 Social Report that the Genoese philanthropic organization, founded by the Garrone and Mondini families, has just released. This document coincides with the foundation's twentieth anniversary, celebrated last May under the Lanterna , and which VITA has written about extensively .

Not that the foundation failed to account for its commitment; indeed, it commissioned a study from the University of Milan on the impact of the Appennino Project , a historic flagship initiative. However, the Social Report – now a requirement for third sector organizations registered with Runts with revenues exceeding one million – is certainly more in keeping with the very nature of a philanthropic organization.

"A document," the Foundation commented, "that accounts for the daily commitment to younger generations, schools, and communities in inland areas . A transparent and participatory narrative of the results achieved and future trajectories, built around the values that have always guided the Foundation's actions: trust in young people, talent development, active citizenship, social cohesion, and the promotion of the arts and culture as levers of equity and social innovation."

Given that, throughout 2024, the Edoardo Garrone Foundation allocated over €1.5 million to projects and activities , divided between the Genoa area (41.8%) and the inland areas of the Apennines (58.2%), let's focus on the methodology: in Genoa, they worked through dedicated focus groups and structured discussions with their stakeholders , constantly gathering feedback, ideas, and suggestions, with the aim of continuously improving the initiatives. This participatory approach , the Foundation assures, allows them to refine their activities, respond increasingly effectively and innovatively to growing needs and challenges, and, at the same time, seize and interpret just as many opportunities.

«The ongoing dialogue with those we meet on our journey, in various capacities, is a crucial source of renewed perspectives, the cross-fertilization of knowledge, and the opening of new paths for social well-being», explains Francesca Campora , general director of the Foundation and recently appointed deputy vice president of the Italian Association of Foundations and Philanthropic Institutions – Assifero , to VITA.

The 2024 Social Report is also based on an in-depth materiality analysis , "conducted through three focus groups, six interviews, and a questionnaire, enabling us to identify the most relevant content, with the aim of meeting stakeholders' information needs." Among the topics deemed most relevant: the Foundation's future commitments and plans, the economic impact and local development generated by its activities, and the social and cultural impact of ongoing projects.

"For our Foundation," Campora assures, "the Social Report is much more than a formal obligation: it is a tool for accountability, listening, and guidance. Through this document, we share not only numbers and activities, but also visions, learnings, and new challenges. In a time of profound transition, our commitment to education, culture, and local development remains firm and strengthened."

Regarding the areas of intervention, Campora explains how the Foundation believes " in young people and in schools as drivers of change. This is why we are investing increasingly in educational programs for Ligurian students, supporting teachers and administrators with the experience gained over years of work," adding that "entering the classroom means accompanying the new generations in their growth, helping them become aware, responsible people capable of building the future."

In 2023-2024 , the Foundation's educational programs involved 477 students , distributed across 24 classes in Ligurian schools . " 524 hours of training were provided, divided into 206 teaching days , with a methodological proposal that combines experiential tools, creative languages, and multidisciplinary workshops," with the projects Lo Spettacolo Siamo Noi , "a theatrical program that combines civic education, performing arts, and personal development, transforming classes into micro-theater companies engaged in the writing and staging of an original show," Tra le righe , "a reading and writing workshop to strengthen critical skills, imagination, and social awareness," and AppenninoLAB , "an educational proposal that promotes knowledge and sustainable development of inland areas through training, innovation, and intergenerational collaboration."

The other major project of the Genoese foundation is, as is well known, the Appennino Project , which aims to reactivate inland areas through youth entrepreneurship, a long-standing concern of its founder Riccardo Garrone.

" It represents a strategic and distinctive area of intervention for the Foundation. With Progetto Appennino, through young people's entrepreneurial projects, the mountains are not just places to be reinhabited or resources to be reactivated, but also, and above all, spaces and opportunities for experimenting with new economic and relational paradigms," Campora emphasizes.

An initiative that represents a best practice in social innovation and philanthropic cooperation: through a replicable and integrated model of incubation, acceleration, and networking for young mountain businesses, Progetto Appennino has involved numerous regions from Northern to Southern Italy, thanks to a network of public-private partnerships. "Its three main initiatives are the ReStartApp campus, for young people under 40 with business ideas to launch in the Apennines, and the Vitamine in Azienda acceleration programs and Imprese in Rete network creation programs, aimed at strengthening the existing local economic fabric," they recall in Genoa. As of 2024, there have been 14 editions of the campuses, 160 young people trained, 61 new businesses launched, and over 100 businesses supported in networking and acceleration programs .

In 2025, with the final edition in Molise, Progetto Appennino completes its first five-year cycle, confirming the Foundation's commitment to the sustainable and participatory development of mountain areas.

"We are already working on a new format for the Appennino Project , which will be active starting in 2026," Campora anticipates, "based on all the learnings gained by the team and feedback from stakeholders. Regarding the "school and education" area, scenario data and field experiences are leading us to strengthen our commitment to young people, expanding the number of beneficiaries. Scientific evidence on the educational value and social impact of adequate aesthetic, cultural, emotional, and physical stimulation," the general director continues, "is guiding us towards activities dedicated to the 0-6 age group, always with a view to combating educational poverty and supporting parenting for the most vulnerable families."

A work that allows President Alessandro Garrone , son of the founder, third generation of this industrial family, to look with confidence forward: " The Edoardo Garrone Foundation is taking some important steps – increasing resources, broadening its interventions, generational change in Governance – to continue its journey in favor of the most vulnerable young people and to participate in an increasingly active and competent way in the development of the broader national philanthropic sector", he tells VITA, "at the moment, 2025 has not yet brought us, from the world or from our home, the changes that many of us would like, but we have started with an extra year of experience, a greater awareness of what beauty and kindness can generate and an inexhaustible desire to do " .

Overall, this financial report reveals nothing new, compared to what we already knew about this philanthropic organization, one of the most advanced in Italy, which had a strong aptitude for self-expression, but especially for its projects and their protagonists. However, the document offers an interesting overview of the entire effort and, of course, visibility into stakeholders and their feedback on the foundation's activities.

Tags:
• Philanthropy
• Produce Well