Fundación MAPFRE Social Outreach Awards, a benchmark in solidarity and transformation
We explain the details of our awards ceremony
Awards
“Never before have we been so necessary and our actions so urgent”. After the opening of the ceremony, the President of Fundación MAPFRE, Antonio Huertas, took the floor and outlined the spirit of our Social Outreach Awards, which is to “send out messages of solidarity and testimonies from people and institutions that never give up”. In his speech, he also highlighted the inclusive work of Fundación MAPFRE and other institutions in the fight against the inequalities that plague the world today.
The four winners in this year’s edition contribute to this same task through their daily work. In their speeches, when receiving the awards from Her Majesty Queen Sofia, they told us about their motivation and thanked us for the recognition.
The first award presented was for the Best Initiative in the Agriculture and Livestock Sector, which recognizes social vocation and the creation of opportunities in rural and less populated Spain. In this edition, the award went to Cárnicas Joselito, a company notable for its commitment to responsible production and rural development. Upon receiving the award, its president and CEO, José Gómez Martín, said: “This recognition is not only for our passion for Iberian pork. It is also for our dedication to caring for the land that makes it possible. Because, as we say at Joselito, regenerating nature is regenerating life.”
The Award for the Entity with the Best Track Record in Social Causes was presented to Special Olympics, an organization that has been transforming the lives of people with intellectual disabilities through sport for more than 50 years. David Evangelista, president of Special Olympics Europe Eurasia, noted in his remarks: “This award represents a powerful symbol of what can be achieved when a community comes together to promote inclusion, equality and dignity for all people of all abilities, without distinction.” The athlete Valentina García Lluch shared her experience with everyone present: “Sport helped me get out of my comfort zone, and discover that, with effort and dedication, the limits we think we have only exist in our minds.”
The Award for the Project with the Best Social Impact went to Moda re-, an initiative from Cáritas that manages the complete cycle of used clothing, creating employment for more than 1,400 people, many of whom are at risk of social exclusion. Manuel Bretón, president of Cáritas Española, stressed: “Moda re- is much more than a textile recycling project. It represents a comprehensive vision in which sustainability, human dignity and solidarity are intertwined in each recovered garment.”.
Finally, Núria Espert received the Lifetime Achievement Award for her brilliant artistic career and commitment to social causes: “This honor that I have received, with great affection and respect, from Fundación MAPFRE, recognizes the work of my entire professional career and, at the same time, without knowing it, is rewarding many other people. There are two drivers that have governed my career and my life: my ambition to continue growing artistically and the strength that has given me the love that I have always found around me and which has pushed me to this very day to follow a path that, according to the poet, does not exist: Walker there is no path, the path is made by walking.”
The ceremony was closed by the Secretary of State for Social Rights, Ms. Mª Rosa Martínez Rodríguez, who emphasized the importance of continuing to work together to make our society more inclusive and supportive.