- Adepsi, Aesleme, AFES Mental Health, Apanate, Fasican, Gull Laségue, and Pichón Trail Project Association were presented their trophies
- The winning social programs will benefit some 9,500 people from disadvantaged groups over the course of this fiscal year
- These now well-established grants have enabled 69 social projects in the Canary Islands to be carried out to date
The event was attended by the Deputy of the Common and president of the jury, Rafael Yanes, and the head of Fundación Cepsa in the Islands, Belén Machado, who were accompanied by a broad cross-section of the rest of the jury: the Minister of Social Services of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria, Isabel Mena; the Councilor for Social Action of the City Council of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Rosario González; the head of the Tenerife Isla Solidaria program, Beatriz Sicilia; and Natalia Domínguez, who represented Cepsa workers.
This year, the jury focused its awards on autism, sclerosis, hearing impairment, eating disorders, disability caused by spinal cord injury, and mental health problems.
In addition, in this edition Cepsa professionals from areas where the Foundation is well established (Canary Islands, Madrid, the province of Huelva, Campo de Gibraltar, Portugal, and Colombia) have once again recognized, for the second year running, an entity from the Canary Islands with a Special Employee Award, in this case the Pichón Trail Project Association. With this, the economic contribution of the latest edition of these Awards amounted to 79,000 euros in the Archipelago, a figure very similar to that granted in the previous edition, where one of these special awards also went to the Islands.
Thanks to this endowment, nearly 9,500 people will see their quality of life improved through the seven distinguished projects, which will be carried out throughout this year and visited by representatives of Fundación Cepsa and by the solidarity sponsors themselves, who act as a link with the entities.
During the ceremony, Belén Machado highlighted the value of these awards, as they are "one of our most important social actions at Fundación Cepsa, the one that undoubtedly brings us most satisfaction, and which we celebrate every year with great enthusiasm in events such as this one that brings us together today to celebrate solidarity and to award those who deserve it most: the social entities that are so committed to making our society a more egalitarian and inclusive place," she said during her speech.
She pointed out that "what is truly remarkable about these awards, beyond the economic contribution that allows the projects of the winning entities to be launched or maintained, is the link established between Cepsa's professionals and the NGOs, as the former act as sponsors of the projects presented, an essential condition to be eligible for an award."
For his part, Rafael Yanes highlighted the work of Fundación Cepsa through these "awards that have stood the test of time for many years, supporting so many associations that have in turn provided so much help to vulnerable people at risk. They are committed to social justice and recognize the immense work done by the third sector in the Canary Islands," he emphasized.
"Without the role played by social entities, the welfare state would not exist, as they're able to reach areas that the public administrations can't, striving every day to support the most vulnerable in our society," he said.
Projects awarded in 2022 in the Canary Islands
The ‘AMAR-T’ project carried out by the Adepsi Association will train 33 people with disabilities in the performing arts, who will take part in an integrated cultural festival of the living arts. To this end, a theater workshop will be created where they will be able to develop their verbal and non-verbal expression, as well as a workshop on communication and social networks, giving them the opportunity to share what they have learned. The trophy was collected by its manager, Natascha García, from Isabel Mena, with Luis Barrios as solidarity sponsor.
Through the Association for the Study of Spinal Cord Injury (Aesleme)’s initiative 'Te puede pasar,' a group of people affected by spinal cord injury as a result of a road accident will offer free lectures to young people from the Canary Islands, to change their attitude towards safe and responsible mobility values. The project is structured in three phases where, after receiving free psychological and legal assistance, they will be offered road safety training and trainer education. The project will directly benefit approximately 8,900 people, with José Manuel Fernández-Sabugo, Cepsa's director in the Canary Islands, as a solidarity sponsor. The award was presented by Rosario González, and collected by Aesleme’s delegate in the Canary Islands, Juana Ramírez.
AFES Mental Health, with its project ‘Intercambios de Ida y Vuelta,’ will promote the process of recovery and social integration of 150 people with mental health problems by practicing craftsmanship. To this end, specialized training will be offered in their occupational centers, so that they can participate in all stages of the process of creating handmade products in activities such as bookbinding, ceramics, laser cutting and engraving, textiles, and handmade printing. Rafael Yanes presented the award, collected by María Cristina Acosta, president of the Association, who was accompanied by Nauzet González as solidarity sponsor.
The Canary Islands Association of Autism Spectrum Disorder (Apanate) will implement the ‘Programa Respiro familiar,’ to meet the needs for rest of family caregivers of people diagnosed with ASD in a situation of social or economic vulnerability. The program, which seeks to improve the quality of life of both those affected and their families, will offer 16 people with ASD four two-day stays in accessible hotels throughout the year, always accompanied by caregivers, while their families have that time off. Beatriz Sicilia presented the award, which was collected by the president of Apanate, María Delia Díaz. José María Pérez, sponsor of this initiative, accompanied them at the event.
The Federation of Associations of Deaf People of the Canary Islands (Fasican) will undertake the project 'SVils FASICAN', an innovative remote video interpreting service, by creating a mobile application and hiring a sign language interpreter. It will help 200 deaf people to access face-to-face services of both the public administration and private entities, guaranteeing them personal autonomy in their daily lives. Sponsored by Gonzalo Foronda, the award was collected by Rony Ramos, Secretary of Fasican's Board of Directors, from Belén Machado.
The Gull Lasègue Association for the Study and Treatment of Anorexia and Bulimia in the Canary Islands (GullONG) will promote the improved quality of life of people with eating disorders through the project ‘Energía Terapéutica: apoyo a personas afectadas por TCA.’ The initiative, which will have 126 direct beneficiaries, includes psychosocial care through weekly individual sessions, and groups of affected people will be created to avoid isolation and loneliness. Natalia Domínguez was in charge of presenting the trophy to Julia Castellano, member of the Board of Directors of the entity, with the support of the solidarity sponsor Antonio Ballester.
Finally, the Pichón Trail Project Association (PTP) was honored with an award in the 'Special Employee Awards' category, chosen by Cepsa professionals from among the projects shortlisted for this purpose by the various juries in the areas where the Social Value Awards are held (Canary Islands, Madrid, the province of Huelva and Campo de Gibraltar, Portugal, and Colombia). Its project 'EMejórate: therapeutic intervention plan for people with multiple sclerosis', will provide individual physical therapy and physical training to 20 people affected by this disease. The trophy was presented by Rafael Yanes to the president of the Association, José Marino Álvarez, in the presence of the solidarity sponsor Dinorah Darias.
There has been a total of 18 editions since the Social Value Awards were launched in 2005. During this time, they have enabled more than 460 projects to develop in the areas they are carried out in (Canary Islands, Madrid, Huelva, Campo de Gibraltar, Portugal, and Colombia), distributing 4.4 million euros and benefiting more than 73,000 people, who have seen their well-being improved in one way or another.
In the Canary Islands, where the awards have taken place for 15 years, a total of 69 projects have been carried out to date thanks to these awards, with a contribution of around €650,000 from Fundación Cepsa.
