“Anyone who is able to invest in social causes is more than necessary to do so. We have this duty as human beings”, writes the Porto Seguro controller.
As I drove my car along Avenida Faria Lima, one of the main financial centers in São Paulo, 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 capital of São Paulo. I don't know if he was alive, dead, sick or just sleeping.
I continued on my way, but then there was a flash in my conscience: 'I saw that scene and I didn't do anything'. It was a human being who was there and didn't know what his condition was. I simply walked past him. So, as other drivers and the woman who was sitting at the bus stop passed by. I remember this case because that day I couldn't sleep well due to the general apathy, including mine, and I continue to reflect on the high degree of indifference in our country.
It is not necessary to point to studies to say that, unfortunately, we live in an unfair, inhumane and violent society. How can you stay calm like this? It's time to join forces to change our country. Anyone who is able to invest in social causes is more than necessary to do so. We have this duty as human beings, as a people.
In 1991, when I felt that I had some financial stability, I sought to invest in one of my dreams, which is to improve education. After studying the topic extensively, the idea of forming a partnership with a public school came up to try to increase the quality of education. The project was expanded and became the non-profit association Crescer Semper, which today has a regular early childhood education school, a comprehensive high school, a tutoring project in Portuguese and mathematics in the after-school hours, vocational courses, a library open to the community and other activities. diverse.
One day, businessman Jair Ribeiro went to visit our work that serves the community of Paraisópolis, in São Paulo. He liked the idea so much that he also decided to form a partnership with a school. But, he went much further. He managed to raise awareness among a group of businesspeople who committed to supporting other schools. Education Partners program was born , which directly impacted around 600 public schools in 15 years of operation.
That seed sown in 1991, with the idea of establishing civil society partnerships, produced many fruits. The Crescer Semper initiative served as inspiration for the emergence of Parceiros da Educação, which, in turn, can influence other businesspeople and executives, regardless of their area of activity. It is a domino that is being formed and that allows us to carry out more effective actions. One can learn from the other, and form a spiral of solidarity that never stops growing.
I also started to get 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 to create, in 2015, the Instituto Ação Pela Paz, whose mission is to support public authorities and civil society in initiatives that contribute to reducing criminal recidivism.
Throughout my journey, I unfortunately heard questions like: “Are you going to help criminals?” My answer is that we should help people. They made a mistake, they are serving the sentences determined by the courts and then they will be free again. Viewing prisons as “deposits for people” contributes to an inhumane view and the escalation of violence in the country.
The first time I went to visit a prison, I was scared and didn't really know what I was going to see, 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 view, the tendency is for us to become more intensely involved in changing the situation.
At this complicated time in 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 join forces, I made the decision to join the Movimento Bem Maior, an organization that aims to strengthen the philanthropic ecosystem and has a similar mindset to mine.
It is very important for groups like this to grow. A broad mobilization needs to be carried out in society, with general participation and a culture of donation, to face the serious current problems. You can't wait or be indifferent!
*Jayme Garfinkel, associated with Movimento Bem Maior and controlling shareholder of Porto Seguro
This article was originally published on the Exame magazine website .
