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    How We Work

     

    The Human Safety Net for Families

    Parents have the greatest impact on their children’s development. The Families program supports parents in the first six years of their children’s life to lay the strongest possible foundations for their future, contributing to early childhood development (ECD).


     

    The Human Safety Net for Refugee Start-Ups

    Refugees have the talent and resilience to build successful businesses – but they need dedicated support. The Refugee Start-Ups programme helps refugees flourish as entrepreneurs to integrate them into their host countries


     

    HOW WE WORK

    The Human Safety Net is a net bringing together the expertise and experience of dozens of NGOs, social enterprises and experts worldwide. It is a community acting together to amplify each organization’s impact.
    The foundation acts as a competence center on programmes and provides an additional source of funding to Generali business unites in the countries. It assesses partners through a robust selection and due diligence process, coordinates programme design and implementation, monitors progress and shares lessons learned as part of a global Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning system.

    All programmes depend on a strong, eye-level partnership between The Human Safety Net’s NGO partners and Generali companies active within the same communities. This is how we can add the greatest value to NGO partners and have a greater impact on our beneficiaries.

    Today, The Human Safety Net manages programmes and activities in 23 countries on 3 continents: Europe, including Austria & CEE Region, South America and Asia.

    VOLUNTEERING

    In 2021 we saw the greatest level of volunteer engagement with The Human Safety Net since its launch in 2017. Volunteering increased from 9,000 in 2020 to 35,000 hours in 2021, a dramatic fourfold rise.

    This is the complete opposite of a global trend reported by The Business for Societal Impact’s Global Annual Review 2021, which revealed that 78% of businesses reported a decrease in volunteering due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    A highlight of 2021 was the launch of the Ambassadors programme, involving 500 employees and agents, including from our Region, who committed to amplifying The Human Safety Net and its projects in their communities for a period of 12 months. The Ambassadors divided into four teams: ‘reporters’ telling the human stories from the programmes in their countries; ‘internal communicators’ creating ideas or activities to keep The Human Safety Net visible; ‘fundraisers’ coordinating fundraising activities in their countries; and ‘agents’, who defined activities for the Generali sales networks to activate and engage customers.

    In 2022, The Human Safety Net will continue to bring new and innovative approaches to volunteering with our NGO partners. The aim is to build on the momentum of the previous 12 months by inviting all Generali employees to join the movement of people helping people.

    VENICE, FUTURE HOME OF THE HUMAN SAFETY NET

    Generali shares a small part of Venice’s long history: founders of the insurance group first established their offices in Venice in 1832, right in the Procuratie Vecchie in St Mark’s Square. After renovation, this building will become the home of The Human Safety Net.

    Find more information about the Procuratie Vecchie here.

    All over the world, Venice is a city famous for its imagination, ingenuity and openness, welcoming millions of visitors every year. For the first time in 500 years, Procuratie Vecchie will be open to the public. Tourists and Venetians will discover the challenges that vulnerable people face, learn about the social impact of The Human Safety Net programs and how they can help, through an interactive journey. Our home will symbolically bridge the gaps between open and closed spaces, ancient institutions, social issues and future challenges.

    With this open spirit, we’ll welcome Venetians and visitors alike, inviting everyone to explore, get inspired, exchange ideas, and amplify the impact of The Human Safety Net together. The area around St Mark’s Square will come alive as a place to act in the spirit of our movement.

    Philippe Donnet, CEO Generali Group: “The beauty of Venice is a source of inspiration for the world, and Generali is very proud to enrich the city’s heritage by restoring the area of Piazza San Marco. By opening these iconic spaces to the public for the first time in nearly five centuries, we are creating new and vibrant spaces where people can meet to discuss some of today’s most pressing social and global issues. We are grateful to the Venetian authorities for their support in this endeavour. Venice has long been a crossroads of different cultures from around the world, and we hope to build on this tradition through The Human Safety Net and our movement of ‘people helping people’. David Chipperfield Architects was a natural choice due to his love of Venice and shared vision for an architecturally and socially coherent restoration.”

    Visit TheHumanSafetyNet.org to learn more.