Fundación ACCIÓN CONTRA EL HAMBRE

Fundación Acción Contra el Hambre (Action Against Hunger Foundation) is an independent and neutral international humanitarian organization, that fights malnutrition while ensuring water and secure livelihoods for vulnerable populations. Action Against Hunger Spain is part of ACF INTERNATIONAL which have also headquarters in France, United Kingdom, United States, and Canada. Action Against Hunger Spain have around 1.630 employees, 106 of them in the headquarters in Madrid. In 2013, in response to the economic crisis situation that Spain is experiencing and after merging with the Luis Vives Foundation, Action Against Hunger-Spain implemented a new work area based on Social Action. Its objective is to facilitate access to the professional world for people at risk of social and labour exclusion by strengthening programs that offer access to employment and ventures by NGO's and other actors that work towards social and labour inclusion for those in need. This innovative challenge for Action Against Hunger contributes to the strengthening of the ecosystem of social and labour inclusion for people in need, and also benefits the forging of alliances with public, private and social organizations at national and European level which will give value to the specificity of each in serving people in need. The intervention strategy of Action Against Hunger within the area of Social Action takes into account the following actions that would strengthen the Third Sector of Social Action: • Promote the professionalism of human resources in the sector. • Advice and accompaniment in the strengthening of programs that improve employability and entrepreneurship. • Facilitate the work in a network of actors in the ecosystem of social inclusion to share information and create spaces of cooperation between the entities. • Encourage social transformation through the contribution of solutions to social problems. Once said objectives are achieved it contributes through the development of four main areas of activity: Information and awareness: providing a series of tools and channels of communication to approach entities in the ecosystem of social inclusion, current and relevant information about the policies on social inclusion. This line is developed mainly through social media and the websites of Action Against Hunger and Luis Vives Center of Social Studies. Training: handling the request for formative needs identified among the professionals from Social Action organizations that operate within the area of employment. Among them are technical skills in different areas of management and cross-curricular skills and competencies related to the advancement of programs that improve employability through access to jobs and entrepreneurship. Counselling and Technical Assistance: supporting the entities in the improvement and strengthening of its entrepreneurship and employability programs, promoting the implementation of improvements in the systems, techniques and processes of management, as well as innovative methodology that responds to the current needs of social and labour inclusion. Analysis, research and discussion: setting up initiatives to generate and exchange knowledge about the reality of the ecosystem of social and labour inclusion in Spain. The activities that we develop are focused on issues related to entrepreneurship, employment, the Third Sector, management of its organizations or the areas in which they work (social policies, economic factors, etc.). VIVES PROJECT The strategy and the activities of the Social Action area of Action Against Hunger is articulated through Vives Project, having three areas of intervention. See video about VIVES PROJECT here See video about the work done in VIVES PROJECT during the first year here VIVES NGO: Support of third sector entities of Social Action, which offers specialized training geared towards entrepreneurial techniques of participating entities, and technical assistance aimed at strengthening and developing the counseling department for entrepreneurs of these social organizations. See a video about one example of our intervention here. VIVES UNDERTAKE: Support and opportunities for different collectives at social risk exclusion, to increase their employability level and to develop a life project through entrepreneurship. See a video about one example of our intervention here. VIVES ECO-SYSTEM: Sensitize the society and introduce initiatives related to jobs and entrepreneurship and benefit the inclusion of at risk groups through self-employment measures. Within the Vives eco-system, Vives project is recognized and associated by the Estrategia de Emprendimiento y Empleo Joven (Entrepreneurship Strategy and Youth Employment ) of the Ministry of Employment and Social Security, which aims to promote the integration of young people in the workplace and improve their position in the labor market. Enterprise 2020 is the European movement for companies committed to developing innovative business practices that, working together with their stakeholders, provide solutions to existing and emerging societal needs. Vives Project was one of the selected entities recognized as good practice in the thematic “Skills for Jobs”. Fundación Acción contra el Hambre has the Luis Vives Social Studies Center. This is a pioneer and innovator center within the third sector, which generates information and knowledge of interest mainly for the third sector, business and higher education. The Social Studies Center publishes two scientific magazines, one dedicated to Corporate Social Responsibility and other to the Third Sector in Spain.