Best Practices
#1 - FRANCISCO MANUEL DOS SANTOS Fundation; PORDATA
The Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation’s mission is to promote and deepen knowledge of the Portuguese reality, thereby endeavouring to contribute to the development of society, the strengthening of citizens’ rights and the improvement of public institutions. With this fundamental purpose in mind, and without prejudice to carrying out other activities appropriate to the pursuit of its goals, the Foundation will promote studies in various areas, drawing up analyses on selected topics, publishing the results, formulating recommendations and encouraging public discussion on the matters that are the subject of the work.
Its work is guided by the principles of human dignity and social solidarity and by the values of democracy, freedom, equal opportunities, merit and pluralism. In its research activity, the Foundation demands rigour in its analysis. In its conclusions and public debates, the Foundation is particularly attentive to the need for suggestions and recommendations. In this way, it can contribute more effectively to improving institutions and life together.
Special emphasis is therefore placed on dissemination and debate. In fact, the Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation wants the results of the studies it promotes to be discussed as widely as possible in society. To this end, an important part of its resources will be dedicated to disseminating and organising public discussions. The Foundation will be attentive to new forms of communication, including documentaries, cinema, television and the Internet, in order to reach as many people as possible.
The Francisco Manuel dos Santos Foundation takes the initiative and sponsors projects of various kinds. For example, permanent projects (such as PORDATA, the Contemporary Portugal Database or the “Foundation Essays” collection) and projects with a fixed duration. The latter can be isolated, on a specific topic; or they can be part of overall programmes, with a strategy and sequence.
The permanent projects have one essential characteristic: to make available to citizens the widest range of information on Portuguese society. Quantitative information, in the case of PORDATA; ideas and food for thought, in the case of the “Foundation Essays”. During the first few years, the Foundation’s priority was to provide interested parties (i.e. the public who want to be informed: students, teachers, entrepreneurs, company executives, the liberal professions, public institutions, associations, scientific societies, trade unions, journalists, intellectuals, media companies, etc.) with factual data, means of information, elements for studying society and reliable tools for understanding reality.
The Foundation’s contribution must be both realistic and daring, but also with the necessary humility of a true public service. It’s not the Foundation’s job to replace the state, political parties, universities, business groups or scientific and professional societies. The fact is that, in contemporary societies, the state and political parties produce less and less thought: the management of the immediate, electoral agendas and propaganda needs dominate the activity of these institutions. Universities, largely constrained by academic careers and lack of funding, sometimes live far removed from the problems of society. In these circumstances, and in accordance with the founders’ wishes, this Foundation is tasked with “producing thought” that is independent and rigorous.
One of the boldest civil society projects in Portugal. FFMS promotes the creation of value through knowledge and the study of society on an independent basis, and one of its projects, “Pordata”, is a benchmark in the collection and repository of factual data on civil society, available free of charge. The Portuguese report in this CSO Admin project on Civil Society in Portgual had the Pordata project as its data source, revaluing here all the connection with the CSO Admin bases.
#2 - Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
Art, knowledge and science in a fairer, more sustainable and diverse world.
A Portuguese organisation established in perpetuity, the Foundation’s fundamental purpose is to improve people’s quality of life through art, charity, science and education. The Foundation carries out its activities from its headquarters in Lisbon and its offices in Paris and London. It also provides support from Portugal to the PALOP (Portuguese-speaking African countries) and East Timor, as well as in countries with Armenian communities.
The Foundation has a museum, which houses Calouste Gulbenkian’s private collection, and a modern art centre, which brings together the most important collection of modern and contemporary Portuguese art; an orchestra and choir; an art library and archive; a scientific research institute; and a garden, which is a central space in the city of Lisbon, where educational activities also take place.
In conjunction with its cultural activities, the Foundation fulfils its mission through innovative programmes that develop pilot projects and support social institutions and organisations through grants and subsidies.
It helps to reduce inequalities in access to education and care for the most vulnerable and promotes knowledge, scientific research and greater participation and involvement by citizens and civil society in building more sustainable communities.
The Foundation has the financial and operational resources, reputation and decades of experience, convening capacity, independence and flexibility, and the ability to innovate and invest in long-term initiatives.
Recognising the excellent reception he received in Portugal, where he lived until the end of his long life, Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian’s name will live on for posterity in the foundation that bears his name.
The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation has a profound impact on the most diverse sectors of civil society in Portugal and internationally, without ever forgetting its Armenian origins.
An intervention in society that intertwines with the values and essence of CSO Admin.
#3 - Champalimaud Foundation ON SCIENCE VANGUARD
THE FOUNDATION AIMS TO BE A WORLD LEADER IN SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION
The Champalimaud Foundation carries out research in cutting-edge areas and its priority is to stimulate discoveries that benefit people, as well as sponsoring new standards of knowledge.
It is at the Champalimaud Centre in Lisbon that it carries out its activities in the areas of neurosciences and cancer, through research programmes and the provision of excellent clinical services, while also carrying out a programme to fight blindness abroad.
In order to pursue its objectives of achieving significant scientific advances, the Champalimaud Foundation adopts translational methodology, which establishes a direct and interdependent link between basic research and clinical activity. This is one of its basic operating principles and the basis of its differentiation.
Ultimately, it aims to promote the health and well-being of humanity, seeking to actively intervene in the search for solutions that alleviate the burden that illness has on societies and individuals.
Bringing the benefits of biomedical science to those who need it most.
To create and develop, with independence, rigour, dedication and creativity and in compliance with the highest ethical and scientific standards, an environment conducive to the development of advanced biomedical research programmes and the interdisciplinary provision of clinical care, from a translational perspective, resulting in pioneering discoveries in the area of health with a direct impact on people’s quality of life.
Through its work, the Foundation aims to be a world leader in scientific and technological innovation with the ultimate goal of preventing, diagnosing and treating disease, guided by a stance of constant challenge and contributing to a society that is more aware of the health problems affecting humanity.
The Champalimaud Foundation has
– Champalimau Clinical Centre
– Botton-Champalimaud Pancreatic Cancer Centre
– Champalimaud Research Centre
The Champalimaud Foundation is a pioneering institution and a world leader in research and the acquisition of new knowledge in the biomedical field. Because of its relevance to world civil society, it is deeply in tune with the values of CSO Admin.
#4 - Chapitô - Non-Governmental Organisation for Development
Social inclusion through the arts
Chapitô is an NGDO and IPSS whose main objective is the social inclusion of young people. All our skills, arts and crafts are geared towards inventing new ways of counteracting (badly) marked destinies and improving the lot of people in situations of exclusion.
Our mission is the civic, educational, and cultural promotion of young people in particular, prioritising artistic education as an intervention process.
We believe that developing artistic expression and communication skills helps to reduce marginalisation, social exclusion and prevent crime, and increases the desire to build socially recognised and personally meaningful futures.
The Chapitô project maintains a dynamic relationship with society and the cultural milieus in which it operates, guided by principles of solidarity and equity, where the arts play a central and generative role in personal and social development, educational action, civic socialisation and the construction of desirable futures.
The Chapitô Project offers training in artistic education as a path to inclusion, playing an important role in the social and professional development of young people. It is a distinctive project that shares CSO Admin’s values.
#5 - CAIS - Everyone Counts
In May 1994, a non-profit social solidarity association was born with a central project of inclusion, offering marginalised people a means of reintegration through work: Revista CAIS.
Twenty-two years later, we remain true to our principles by continuing to promote social inclusion through various training projects in Lisbon and Porto. We play an important role nationally and internationally by promoting debate and reflection on issues related to the phenomena of poverty and also by participating in international organisations in the construction of a new life project.
CAIS has the following objectives:
Promote the social integration of people in situations of poverty and/or social exclusion, through training methodologies for approaching or returning to the labour market, helping them to regain self-esteem, skills and their rightful place in society;
Promoting partnerships with companies, other national and international for-profit and non-profit organisations, fostering social responsibility through employability, creating and participating in knowledge-sharing, innovation and social entrepreneurship networks;
Promoting reflection and the identification of appropriate and fair social solutions for those most in need, involving local communities and civil society, in favour of a closer, fairer and more supportive society.
The CAIS project focuses on the recovery and integration of socially excluded people regardless of their age or skills. It is a successful inclusion project that is interlinked with the scope of the CSO Admin project, with the CAIS magazine as a reference.
#6 - "O Século" Foundation (“The Century" Foundation)
The “O Século” Foundation was set up in 1998 to continue and develop the social work of the “O Século” newspaper, which began in 1927 with the creation of its Children’s Bathing Centre. A year later, the “O Século” Foundation was recognised as a Social Solidarity Foundation, obtaining the status of Private Social Solidarity Institution (IPSS).
Support for children at risk, help for the elderly and the most dependent and disadvantaged are part of the Foundation’s daily and permanent action, which is divided into 13 different social areas, with a vast social intervention.
Currently, the children’s holiday camps are just one of the different services that make up the Foundation’s extensive and relevant social work, to which are added social sustainability services such as “O Século” Tourism, “O Século” Kitchen and the rental of spaces that have since been created with the aim of financing and developing the diversified social work.
An average of 600 users (children, young people, and the elderly) benefit from this action every day, in addition to the 800 or so annual beneficiaries of holiday camps and other initiatives.
The “O Século” Foundation social action is focussed on young people, ranging from emergency reception to support throughout the life cycle of citizens. Its bathing colony is a benchmark in the Lisbon region and connects to the CSO Admin as a reference and disseminator of good practice.
#7 - operation RED NOSE - we prescribe joy
It is a Private Social Solidarity Institution, with no political or religious ties, officially set up on 4 June 2002.
Its main purpose is to provide an ongoing intervention programme within the paediatric services of Portuguese hospitals, through the visit of professional clowns. These artists have specialised training in the hospital environment and work in close collaboration with health professionals, putting on performances adapted to each child and each situation.
It is the organisation’s responsibility to train and guarantee the high quality of the artists whose work is paid for. Operação RED NOSE provides hospitals with visits, raising the necessary funds through private and corporate donations, campaigns and merchandising.
We currently guarantee weekly hospital visits for 42 weeks a year to the 19 hospitals covered by the programme. The team of artists is made up of 35 Clown Doctors and 21 professionals work behind the scenes.
Operation RED NOSE is an NGO with a relevant and innovative intervention within the paediatric services of Portuguese hospitals, bringing joy and comfort to hospitalised children in Portugal through the visit of professional clowns, often having a greater impact on the adults themselves. An exceptional project that was born out of civil society and has become a benchmark organisation in Portugal.
#8 - Frente Cívica – Civic Front
The Civic Front is a network of collective thought and action that seeks to combat the chronic problems of Portuguese society by denouncing the underlying mechanisms and those responsible, identifying solutions and ways of implementing them.
The Civic Front is a citizens’ movement for citizens that rejects party ideologies and only accepts principles of action. Frente Cívica wants to promote reflection on the social and political problems affecting Portugal and strive to resolve them for the benefit of the collective.
The Civic Front is governed by the following principles:
1. The Civic Front defends the dignity of the human person, strives for human rights and chooses freedom, equality, solidarity and justice as its fundamental vectors.
2. The Civic Front respects the democratic rule of law and Portuguese sovereignty.
3. The Civic Front promotes the principle of participatory democracy, recognising every citizen’s right to participate in debate, deliberation and decision-making regarding the government and fate of the country.
4. The Civic Front supports the defence of the constitutional principle of freedom of expression, a principle it honours by fighting fear and all attempts to curtail free debate and the right to opinion.
5. The Civic Front defends a society of solidarity and inclusion, seeking to involve citizens of any socio-economic status in its actions, especially those who do not have the resources to participate in democratic processes.6. The Civic Front safeguards the general interest in all its actions, seeking solutions that benefit citizens and the national community, as well as its future generations.
7. The Civic Front strives for transparency in public life, fiscal fairness, probity in public spending and environmental sustainability.
8. The Civic Front defends a healthy, participatory public space that is open to discussion on issues that truly affect the quality of life, safety and comfort of the Portuguese.
9. The Frente Cívica uses all the legitimate means at its disposal to defend the causes it fights for without looking at borders, from public denunciation to the courts, through to questioning political and administrative leaders.
10. The Civic Front strives for the active mobilisation of the Portuguese in defence of collective causes, combating indifference and political alienation.
Frente Cívica is a non-partisan association dedicated to the defence of causes in the public interest whose aim is to identify the chronic problems of Portuguese society, denounce those responsible and fight for their resolution.
It has a direct impact on the principles of the CSO Admin, in the sense that it is an NGO that is vigilant and active in pursuing the principles of transparency and fairness in civil society.
#9 - House of Music
The Casa da Música Foundation is the result of a partnership between the Portuguese State, the Municipality of Porto and private entities, with the aim of managing the Casa da Música building and developing an artistic and educational project in the field of music: staging musical performances, promoting new creation and access to music.
In the year in which Casa da Música comes of age, the Education Service presents a programme that combines new and vibrant challenges with the retrospective look that 18 springs justifies. The guiding principles of our mission haven’t changed: to guarantee a variety of offers that give everyone access to music; to involve society across the board; to have multiple activities aimed at different types of audiences; to open up the Casa to underprivileged communities and citizens on the margins of exclusion; to provide general and specialised training for musicians and non-musicians; and to strengthen research in the field of new technologies, at the service of the previous purposes.
With Our Concerts, we aim to reach families and the general public, offering shows with pedagogical and educational roots, while projects such as A Casa Vai a Casa (The House Goes Home) reach out to those who, for many reasons, can’t get to the Casa da Música; and with Orelhudo! we want to have a daily presence in primary school classrooms (1st cycle). With Formar na Casa we involve a community of musicians, trainers and teachers who find here the tools to be better in their activities; if Ao Alcance de Todos seeks the inclusion of people with special needs, either through artistic projects in which they participate or through the creation of new instruments and musical interfaces adapted to their specificities, in the First Concerts we offer an initiatory musical experience to babies and children who are thus stimulated to create and enjoy.
Because of its profound impact on civil society in Porto, the Casa da Música Foundation promotes and manages a range of activities involving workshops, schools and choral groups of young and not so young people, promoting the musical arts to all kinds of audiences.
#10 - ANJE - National Association of Young Entrepreneurs
ANJE – Associação Nacional de Jovens Empresários (National Association of Young Entrepreneurs) is an association of private law and public utility which, since 1986, has institutionally represented young Portuguese entrepreneurs and supported them in their business activities. It was also a pioneer in promoting young entrepreneurship in Portugal and, in recent years, has made a name for itself in encouraging the adoption of business models based on innovation, research and development.
ANJE has focussed its efforts on so-called qualified entrepreneurship, in order to create the conditions for young people to convert their knowledge into business value. To this end, the association makes incubators available for technology-based companies and provides specialised support in training, management, financing and business innovation processes.
ANJE is an association focussed entirely on supporting the creation of companies for young people. Amongst its various valences, we can highlight training, structures for incubating companies and support in accessing funding.
The association is driven by the desire to contribute to the country’s progress, based on an economic model founded on private initiative.
ANJE is an NGO that meets the objectives of the CSO Admin, because it focuses on supporting business projects exclusively for young people, guaranteeing the opportunity to materialise high-value projects.