Jayme Garfinkel: "We cannot be indifferent"

"Anyone who is able to invest in social causes should do so more than ever. We have this duty as human beings," writes the controller of Porto Seguro.

As I drove along Faria Lima Avenue, one of São Paulo's main financial centers, I saw a man lying on the sidewalk, two meters from the bus stop. He appeared to be one of the thousands of people currently living on the streets of the São Paulo capital. I don't know if he was alive, dead, sick, or just sleeping.

I continued on my way, but then it dawned on me: 'I saw that scene and did nothing.' It was a human being who was there and didn't know their condition. I simply passed by them. Just like other drivers and the woman who was sitting at the bus stop. I remember this incident because that day I couldn't sleep properly due to the general apathy, including my own, and I continue to reflect on the high degree of indifference in our country.

It's not necessary to cite studies to say that, unfortunately, we live in an unjust, inhumane, and violent society. How can we remain calm in this situation? It's time to join forces to change our country. Those who are able to invest in social causes should do so more than ever. We have this duty as human beings, as a people.

In 1991, when I felt I had achieved some financial stability, I sought to invest in one of my dreams: improving education. After studying the subject extensively, the idea arose to partner with a public school to try to increase the quality of teaching. The project was expanded and became the non-profit organization Crescer Sempre, which today includes a regular early childhood education school, a full-time high school, a program for after-school tutoring in Portuguese and mathematics, vocational courses, a library open to the community, and various other activities.

One day, businessman Jair Ribeiro visited our work serving the community of Paraisópolis, in São Paulo. He liked the idea so much that he decided to partner with a school as well. But he went much further. He managed to convince a group of businesspeople who committed to supporting other schools. As a result, the Partners in Education, which has directly impacted around 600 public schools in 15 years of operation.

That seed planted in 1991, with the idea of ​​establishing civil society partnerships, has borne much fruit. The Crescer Sempre initiative served as inspiration for the emergence of Parceiros da Educação (Education Partners), which, in turn, can influence other entrepreneurs and executives, regardless of their field of activity. It's a domino effect that keeps forming and allows for more effective actions. One can learn from the other, forming a spiral of solidarity that never stops growing.

I also became involved in actions to improve the prison system. I was very bothered by the situation in prisons; many (not all) were inhumane. As a citizen, I felt I needed to do something and helped create, in 2015, the Action for Peace Institute, whose mission is to support public authorities and civil society in initiatives that contribute to reducing criminal recidivism.

Throughout my journey, I have unfortunately heard questions like: "Are you going to help criminals?". My answer is that we should help people. They made mistakes, they are serving the sentences determined by the Justice system, and afterwards they will regain their freedom. Viewing prisons as "human warehouses" contributes to an inhumane worldview and to the escalation of violence in the country.

The first time I visited a prison, I was scared and didn't really know what to expect, but I found myself face to face with human beings just like me. I think that when we seek to better understand a social problem and adopt an empathetic perspective, we tend to become more intensely involved in changing the situation.

In these complicated times for the country, I have been participating in meetings and conversations about what we can do differently, how we can mobilize more people to leverage social impact. In order to unite efforts, I made the decision to join the Bem Maior Movement, an organization that aims to strengthen the philanthropic ecosystem and shares a similar vision to mine.

It is very important that groups like this grow. A broad mobilization is needed in society, with general participation and a culture of giving, to address the serious problems we face today. We cannot wait or be indifferent!

Jayme Garfinkel, associated with the Bem Maior Movement and controlling shareholder of Porto Seguro

This article was originally published on the Exame magazine website. 

Image Credit: Press Release/MBM