Frédérique Bedos was a guest of honor at the 30th anniversary of the European Foundation Center in late May, and then went on to Brazil to meet Edenred employees for The IdealDay.

Happy Anniversary
to the European Foundation Center (EFC)!

From 22 to 24 May, the European Foundation Center (EFC), which includes 650 European foundations, associations and institutions, organized its annual congress in Paris in rather exceptional circumstances. The fact is that the organization came back to the French capital for the first time in 20 years for its 30th anniversary. Organized by the Fondation de France, which is also celebrating its anniversary this year, its 50th, this event was exceptionally prestigious: it brought together some 850 members in a symposium for a theme that was directly inspired by the motto of the home of human and citizens’ rights: “LIBERTY, EQUALITY, PHILANTHROPY”.

For three days, prominent figures such as Robert Badinter (former Minister of Justice and former President of the Constitutional Council), Plantu (press cartoonist and President of the association Cartooning for Peace), Lionel Zinsou (former Prime Minister of Benin), Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah (Director General of Oxfam, Great Britain) and Ghada Hatem (Ob-gyn and founder of the House of Women) took to the podium to discuss all the issues that European foundations are engaged in: freedom of expression, the migration crisis, new forms of solidarity and inclusion… Many workshops and plenary sessions gave delegates an opportunity to share, debate and reflect on new ideas and approaches to address the challenges of our time: inequality, climate change, the rise of populism…

Frédérique Bedos was given the privilege of delivering the closing speech for the event. In front of this audience of committed actors, she presented Le Projet Imagine, the Humble Heroes Project, recalling in particular the importance of journalism as a pillar of democracy. The audience, being particularly attuned to the topics that our NGO is committed to, namely otherness, social justice and world peace, was enthusiastic, giving her speech a prolonged standing ovation.

See you next year in Vienna, for the 31st edition!

Ideal Day in Brazil with Edenred

Every year, Edenred’s 8,500 employees in 46 countries dedicate a whole day to supporting local communities to help improve their quality of life: it’s called “Idealday”. Replanting trees, helping underprivileged youth or developing digital inclusion programs for the elderly… there’s no shortage of ways to help! Above all, the aim for employees is to engage in solidarity actions by contributing their skills to serve the community. An initiative that the Humble Heroes Project warmly supports.

As part of the three-year partnership we signed last April with the world’s leading payment solutions company in the world of work, Frédérique Bedos was invited this year on IdealDay to meet the Edenred teams in Brazil, which account for almost a quarter of the Group’s employees.

This stay in Sao Paulo was particularly intense: Idealday here lasts three full days! Not only did Frédérique speak to various audiences, but she also went along with different Edenred teams as they engaged in their charitable activities.

For instance, some had chosen to provide support to young people in need of social integration at the Instituto Familia Barichello, a karting track created by the famous Brazilian Formula 1 driver by the same name. Frédérique met William Boudakian De Oliveira, the Institute’s Executive Director, a wonderful person who has worked for more than 20 years with young people in serious difficulty (to the right, next to the image).

Several talks by Frédérique were organized both within the company – with the presence of Edenred Brazil’s Senior Management in their premises in Sao Paulo, and the employees of the Repom site in Alphaville – and outside of the company.

Our founder was invited to speak on gender and diversity issues at the University of Sao Judas, and met with keen interest with the members of the Instituto Ser (Be More), an NGO that helps young people (16/25 years) who are socially vulnerable to pursue specific studies and training in order to develop their potential and promote their professional integration.

Find out more (article in Portuguese)

On this occasion, she was able to experiment with a board game that was especially developed by the Edenred Brazil CSR* and Innovation Teams in order to raise awareness of gender equality. A great way to talk about sensitive issues in a relaxed environment.

*Corporate Social Responsibility

A video of this Brazilian trip: