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1 year of successful partnership in Romania

The Alstom Foundation celebrates 1 year of successful partnership with the NGO NESsT together with portfolio social enterprise Concordia Bakery. 

In March 2017, the Alstom Foundation selected NESsT to help scale social enterprises in Romania. Consequently, NESsT Romania, the Alstom Foundation and the humanitarian organization Concordia, a member of NESsT’s portfolio since 2014, signed a one-year partnership with the purpose of supporting Concordia’s Bakery, a social enterprise that employs and trains young people from vulnerable backgrounds.

Concordia received a grant for infrastructure development from the Alstom Foundation and advisory services from NESsT to increase the performance of its operations. The social enterprise purchased a new transportation vehicle and a wrapping machine which enables a variety of clients to be provided with freshly baked, individually wrapped sweet products.

“The support offered by NESsT and Alstom helped us acquire equipment which contributed to operations efficiency, decreased direct costs and freed up production capacity. We are now able to service larger orders, and we can aim to sell more as our capacity level permits. Our increase in sales means more employment opportunities for at-risk youth.”  

As a scaling social enterprise, Concordia faced challenges in increasing its sales levels. The social enterprise manager, Alice Stavride, considered that selling the bread made by Concordia requires a different set of skills: “We are not selling merely bread. We are selling a bread with a story. We need to learn how to craft and tell the story.” NESsT acknowledged and understood this need, hence Concordia was given the opportunity to invest a part of the grant in storytelling and public speaking workshops. The training program helped the social enterprise manager formulate a clearer story of social impact to appeal to a wider audience.  

In June 2017, 7 young people graduated from the Concordia bakery vocational school. The entire batch found employment in the industry. The social enterprise currently employs 3 young people in the bakery who will graduate in 2018.

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Supporting innovative education in Chile

Over the past year, the Alstom Foundation has been supporting the NGO EducaciÓn 2020 to undertake a pilot project at the Liceo Comercial Puente Alto in Santiago, Chile. This project aimed at testing the efficacity of a new learning technique when applied to students from a disadvantaged part of town.

The overall goal of the project was to bring an innovative transformation to the school through the implementation of the “Tutorial Relationships” methodology, providing students with improved interpersonal and professional skills and the necessary tools to learn autonomously and the improvement of the physical learning environment to better meet student needs. Volunteers from Alstom Chile played an important role in the process, participating in the training of students and teachers, attending learning festivals, and working with both the school and EducaciÓn 2020 on school improvement initiatives.

The Tutorial Relationships model is an alternative learning method that emphasizes the development of autonomous learning skills. The model comes to life through the “tutorial relationship,” in which a tutor guides a student in the process of learning through reflections and questions. Students themselves then become the tutors and the knowledge transfer continues. Studies show that students who learn via the Tutorial Relationships model build self-confidence and significantly improve academic performance. Dropout rates also fall dramatically.

Learning festival at  Liceo Comercial Puente Alto - Photo courtesy of  EducaciÓn 2020.

During the year 30 students benefitted from exposure to this innovative teaching methodology. Their testimonies demonstrate how much they have enjoyed teaching others, developed confidence in their own abilities, and have become motivated to continue their own learning process, all of which will serve them well through adulthood.

The results of this pilot project, together with those from pilot at several other schools in Chile, will be presented to the Chilean Government later in the year in the hope that the methodology will gain acceptance as a legitimate teaching method for wider application in specific environments.

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The projects selected for support by the Foundation will benefit from funding coming from its 2018/19 budget. As previously, all submissions have to be made by an Alstom employee in the role of “Promoter” acting hand-in-hand with a partner organisation – normally an NGO –which is responsible for delivering the project. All Alstom employees are eligible. The deadline for submissions will be June 30th, 2018. This year, for the first time, all submissions must be made on-line through a new link available through the Foundation website. The axes of the Foundation projects remain the same: Protection of the environment; access to energy and water; access to mobility; and socio-economic development. In the past, 80% of submissions have been in the socio-economic category which has had a very broad definition. Therefore, this year, the category will be refocused on two distinct project types: 

a) the development of skills and employability amongst disadvantaged populations; 

and b) those involving disadvantaged children, including those living on the street, in orphanages, etc. The Alstom Foundation spends €1 million per year supporting philanthropic projects that directly benefit communities located near the company's presence around the world. To date, the Foundation has supported 168 projects in 52 countries across all 6 of Alstom’s Regions.

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Door to the Future: Contributing to the upgrading of educational facilities in Panama

Close to metro line which Alstom is involved in building in Panama City is a school where the education is good but the facilities were poor – the Reino de los Paises Bajos school which educates around 1,500 primary level students in 2 shifts per day.

The Alstom Foundation, working in partnership with the local NGO Fundacion Unidos por la Educacion, committed to helping this school to upgrade its facilities focusing on the sanitary amenities; the kitchen and canteen; the library and part of the garden.

The project, which commenced in 2015, is nearing completion – as witnessed by the Secretary General of the Foundation on his visit there at the end of November. The classroom renovation is yet to be finished and further work is to be done on the green space around the school buildings, but these should be finished early in 2018.

Beyond the Foundation’s support, the project has benefitted from focused volunteering activity from the local Alstom team, together with their families, who spent a day, on a weekend, cleaning and painting classrooms. 40 people can do a lot in a day and the net result was much appreciated by pupils and teachers alike. The team plans to return to do more in the New Year.

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The virtuous circle of improved cookstoves & micro-entrepreneurship in Cambodia

In Cambodia, an Alstom Foundation-supported project initiated in May 2016 with GERES NGO comes to a successful conclusion!

Together with NGO “Group for the Environment, Renewable Energy and Solidarity” (GERES) , we set out to deliver a project entitled “Micro-enterprise development and community empowerment in natural resources management in Cambodia”. The main goal of this project was to address the environmental challenge presented by the non-sustainable use of wood fuels as a primary energy source. Moreover the use of inefficient stove and the scarcity of firewood were compromising the off-season income-generating potential of farmers and their families. The idea was to tackle this issue through the market-based dissemination of energy-efficient, multi-fuel productive stoves (IMEPS) along with renewable fuels.  

Three village-based farmer associations/rural communities were engaged in identifying the most representative villages to be involved in a pilot scheme. Following this, the project set out to stimulate -through awareness training- sustainable demand for IMEPS among local food producers and to provide tailored access to eco-stoves installers and renewable biomass fuel suppliers. Thereafter, the aim was to create the conditions for a further scale-up and replication of the solution.

The pilot scheme proved the potential for the improved cookstoves usage among Palm Sugar producers in the province of Kampong Chhnang. All the elements are now in place to allow the entrepreneurs to start the cookstove production business which should take off after the rice harvesting season and before the sugar production season (i.e. between September and December). Viable business plans have been established for each IMEPS entrepreneur and supporting documentation (construction manuals; users notices etc.) has been prepared for the benefit of both supplier and user.

Photos courtesy of GERES NGO

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Reconstruction in Guiuan, Philippines, after Typhoon Haiyan

This is one of the 126 shelters that Alstom Foundation together with AFD (Agence française de développement) sponsored to build in Guiuan city, Philippines, as part of the multi-sectorial assistance to local communities in   Eastern Samar affected by Typhoons. French NGO ACTED implemented this project.

An inauguration was organised last week with presence of local authorities the first secretary of French Embassy in Philippines, AFD Country Director, and Simon Cordier, Alstom Project Director in Manila.

This project was selected by Alstom Foundation in March 2016. Other successfully achieved milestones for this project are:

Beneficiaries’ livelihoods have been sustainably reinforced as a result of an integrated approach which leads to an improved access to local markets and an increase in agricultural production.

Local capacities for disaster management have been reinforced and a targeted and quick humanitarian response capacity has been set up.

Photos courtesy of Simon Cordier & ACTED

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Alstom Foundation projects announced

The Alstom Foundation will support 17 new projects this year. 

The projects that were selected for funding by the Board of the Foundation on 21 September 2017 are spread across all six Alstom Regions and all four of the Foundation’s axes, with a particular focus on social-economic development. An abbreviated list is below.

Professional integration for young people – Cambodia

Addressing welfare gaps in Madhepura – India

“Resourceful women” micro-enterprise development – India

“Small Homes, Big Dreams”: homes; healthcare and education for street kids – India

Faecal sludge management system – Philippines

Rain water tanks – Vietnam

Improving farm commodity transportation – Vietnam

Giving a holiday to child victims of Chernobyl – Italy

Improving social mobility for young people in Liverpool – UK

Housing and employability for disadvantaged young adults – France

Reforestation with native trees – Chile

Empowering indigenous communities to conserve the Papaloapan River watershed – Mexico

Green spaces and recreation areas for a shanty town – Peru

Solar energy for Draria SOS Children's Village – Algeria

Sustainable mobility for human development and labour insertion  – Morocco

Renewable energy for women through micro-finance – Senegal

Renovation of Hornell area youth centre – USA

Now in its 11th year, the Alstom Foundation has supported a total of 168 projects across 52 countries. With a budget of €1 million per year, it supports and funds projects proposed by Alstom’s employees, who team up with local partners and not-for-profit organizations to carry out initiatives aimed at improving living conditions in communities located near the Alstom’s facilities and project sites around the world.

For more information on how the Foundation works: http://www.alstom.com/foundation/ More information on the projects above will gradually be added to the website in the coming weeks.

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Solar energy, water and biomass to improve living conditions of poor rural families

Tropical forests are in decline which causes poor living conditions for rural families in the area of the Papaloapan River in Mexico. A project, which started in May 2016, is being implemented by the EcoLogic Development Fund and supported financially by the Alstom Foundation is seeking to empower these families in indigenous communities to conserve the river.

The aim of the project is to solve the issues of a shortage of electricity, water and proper sewage systems and to train the population on how to use wood saving stoves, which will reduce the amount of wood needed and smoke emissions (CO2). To achieve these goals, several activities have been set up which all together support the communities to improve their living conditions.

Renewable energy and local group savings bank

The installation of 20 photovoltaic systems has been completed and they now provide electricity to the community. This has been achieved by setting up a savings bank which generated resources to purchase photovoltaic equipment. Dedicated workshops were conducted with a group of participants who have been trained on the commitments of saving money and the idea behind a group savings bank.

Water

Eleven cisterns are built through “tequio” (an indigenous tradition of creating groups to help each other) to provide water storage. Workshops were conducted on how to construct cisterns and the groups were helped in the day-to-day construction.

Sewage system

Because regular toilets need a lot of water, 3 dry toilets have been installed to solve this issue. This activity is still ongoing and more toilets are being built at the homes of families.

Wood saving stoves

A workshop was organised on the construction of 4 Patsari stoves. 19 participants from the surrounding communities participated and gained knowledge on the advantages of a Patsari stove and how to build one. More stoves will be built in the future as the training continues to include more families.

All these activities together have already made a big improvement to the living conditions of these rural families and this will continue as several projects are still ongoing and more people will be trained. The next and final step in this project is to complete the installation of 20 Patsari stoves and composting toilets which should be done by the end of this year.

All photos courtesy of our partner NGO, Ecologic Development Fund.

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The Steenberg pavilion will hopefully help disadvantaged young South Africans to develop their musical talents and give a positive change in their lives! A great outcome for this project initiated in 2014.

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A great Alstom Foundation project shaping up!

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Alstom Foundation submissions hit new high

The Alstom Foundation submissions period has closed with a new record of 135 proposed projects from 36 different countries.

“Considering that there were 105 submissions last year, which is already an excellent result, 135 is really outstanding,” said Barry Howe, Secretary General of the Foundation. “Furthermore, a lot of effort, both on the part of Alstom people and NGOs, has gone into the proposals. No two are the same.”

The next step? The Foundation Board will review the projects to make the selection in September 2017 to be supported with next year’s budget. 

More information here

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First steps in Rivadavia: improving water and energy availability

More than half of the Argentinian schools and families touched by this project are located in rural areas where there is a lack of drinking water, gas and electricity due to the inadequacy of the infrastructure.

The area of influence of the project is within the dry Chaco region which has a very low annual rainfall (500-600 mm), concentrated in the summer period (November-March). Studies show that the impact of climate change for the Chaco region will increase the volume of rain, but that this would be over shorter time periods (heavy rainfall). Therefore, it is vital for the future of Chaco families to achieve efficiency in the collection and management of available water.

The project, which was selected by the Alstom Foundation in 2015, and is being implemented by the NGO Fundacion Escolares, aims at developing infrastructure to improve the availability of water, gas, and electricity, thereby improving the living conditions of the families and the quality of the school buildings. These improvements will help to decrease poverty, unemployment and malnutrition.

The first step is to install adaptable roofs to capture rainwater and to install cisterns to conserve the water for consumption during the dry season. The installation has now been completed for two schools, and another six others are underway. The next step will be to install solar panels on the schools to produce electricity for the village.

Kitchen area awaiting new roof.

Restored cistern. 

Photos courtesy of  Fundacion Escolares

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Great achievement in Vietnam: almost double amount of households helped!

After three years the project Enhanced Homestead Food Production (EHFP) in Son La, Vietnam, has supported 415 households, along with 18 successful Village Model Farms. Program activities included gardening and homestead food production, appropriate nutrition practice and cooking demonstrations, gender equity training and household economic management training.

In Vietnam, certain groups and areas are considered to be food and nutrition insecure, especially in the Northern Mountainous and Central Highlands regions where many minority ethnic groups reside. Food shortages and limited access to diverse foods contribute to the high prevalence of malnourished children in these areas.

The last three years the NGO Helen Keller International made an impressive progress with the project. The project’s ultimate goal was to improve the overall nutrition and micronutrient status of at least 200 households, particularly mothers and children. This number has been doubled as 415 households have been reached and received training on how to prepare more nutritious meals for their families.

Training of household economic management in Tan Lang and Muong Lang

A pregnant women from Muong Lang Commune received ultrasound checkup and counselling.

Several events were organised to inform the community and to bring more awareness. Also, additional income is now been generated through the creation of Village Model Farmers which provide agricultural input such as poultry, vegetables and organic fertilizers. A part of the production is being sold to surrounding households thus benefitting the community as a whole.

Supporting techniques of raising pigs in Muong Lang commune.

Photos courtesy of HKI

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Improved living conditions in the suburbs of Lima

Families in Los Jazmines, a community in the suburbs of Lima, now live in an improved environment thanks to the hard work of the ‘women workers’.

Los Jazmines is a community of 97 families living on a hillside in the impoverished Lima suburb of Puente Pietra. Unable to afford ready-built homes, these families live in homes built from whatever materials they can find. Whilst the men go off each day in search of employment, it is the women who work to create a community environment that is safe and suitable for the raising of their children. 

Since 2007, the NGO Mano a Mano has been teaching building techniques to the women with the help of professional workers and dedicated training programs. The Alstom Foundation has been providing funding across two phases of the project for the procurement of construction equipment and materials in order to help secure the community against landslides, create family gardening areas and create green spaces for the community to gather, and generally improve the local environment. The community can now produce its own vegetables thereby improving the daily diet.

The construction of the main square has a positive effect on the community as it now provides space to organize local events and the children are safer in the kindergarten thanks to a fence which has been build all around it. The families now identify strongly with the community that they have created with the result that violent behavior has significantly reduced.

The second phase of the project was successfully completed last month. But there is always more that can be done.

The arch and the square give the impression of being in an Andean village and remind people of their origins. Furthermore, the construction of the cavity which hosted  the Saint of the village gives to the people a place for praying.

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Indeed, damages to homes and infrastructures were huge. Some 270,000 houses were destroyed. Furthermore, the impact of Lawin was particularly severe on livelihoods: many municipalities reported that 100% crops were damaged, especially rice, corn, root crops, fruit trees, etc. OCHA evaluated the damages to agriculture at $212 million USD. Finally, the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) situation was alarming for 25% of households in the affected areas due to damaged infrastructure. In addition, there was a critical lack of sanitation facilities, with notably 157 schools whose facilities had been damaged by the typhoon. With Alstom Foundation support, ACTED provided portable toilets to the Province of Cagayan to support evacuees in evacuation centre who do not have access to latrines. […]  Moreover, the municipalities and Province will keep the portalets after the emergency situation in order to use them if a new disaster strikes the area.

The Foundation’s Natural Disaster Fund supported the ACTED NGO in the Philippines following Typhoon Haima (Lawin) last November. We are delighted to learn that this financial support was useful and contributed to the overall response of ACTED. 

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2017 Project submissions: 3 months to go!

We are at the midpoint of this year's project submissions period for the Alstom Foundation. Submissions close the 30th of June, leaving just three months for you to apply for funding, or to volunteer to promote an existing project.

The Alstom Foundation spends roughly €1 million per year supporting philanthropic projects that directly benefit communities located near the company's presence around the world. For the Alstom employees who would like to support the Foundation, please contact the Foundation & Barry Howe: alstom-foundation@alstom.com There are currently a number of potential projects suggested by NGOs but still requiring an Alstom promoter. They are from such countries as India, Senegal, Colombia and Vietnam.

For more information on how the Foundation works & download the project submission form: http://www.alstom.com/foundation/the-foundation/what-is-the-alstom-foundation/