The Naturgy Foundation's plan for DANA is comprehensive and will benefit more than 40,000 people

Fundación Naturgy has worked for three decades to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable people in the search for a more supportive and sustainable society, and has consolidated itself as a reference institution in energy and environmental dissemination and awareness. Among its objectives are the promotion, development and support of initiatives in the areas of energy, social action, environment, sustainability, education and dissemination, with special emphasis on actions aimed at alleviating energy vulnerability and promoting initiatives aligned with its mission of training, disseminating and raising awareness among society as a whole.

The foundation has launched the initiative Sumando energías por Valencia, in which it has concentrated all its tools and programs in the territories affected by the DANA. This action plan will benefit some 40,000 people, hand in hand with social entities and institutions, with the aim of contributing to the recovery of the territory.

— How did the project Sumando Energías por Valencia come about?

— It is the materialization of the conviction that everything could not be limited to attending to the emergency or the first needs, but that we had to somehow think of a medium or long-term plan that could provide a comprehensive response to all the damage that occurred with the DANA. With Sumando Energías por Valencia we contribute all the knowledge and experience of Fundación Naturgy in the last 30 years to the service of the community. But we do not do it alone: we carry it out hand in hand with public administrations, social entities, educational centers and local companies, who share our commitment to a just, sustainable and lasting recovery.

— How is it concretized?

— We have transferred our knowledge, both from our educational programs and social programs, and we have applied it to a territory that needs it. Our objective is to work on the recovery of the territory with initiatives and solutions that last over time. The plan is fundamentally articulated around four lines of action: people, education, employment and environment.

— People, what does it mean?

— We want not only to repair material damages, but also to rebuild and improve the lives of those who need it most through initiatives that combine sustainability, energy efficiency, and savings. We support the energy rehabilitation of homes, and through our Escuela de Energía program, we offer workshops where we fundamentally teach how to read a bill, how to contract supplies, and how to acquire consumption habits that allow for permanent savings in energy expenditure.

— Is this work coordinated with social entities?

— We work very closely, as social entities are our eyes on the ground, and they are the ones who identify the real needs of the territory. For this reason, we want to give them our support: in Valencia, we are going to donate and install photovoltaic solar systems in 15 centers that serve people in vulnerable situations, so that the savings they achieve can be allocated to their care work or to expand their social programs. In addition, for the first time, we have opened a call for grants for social entities, which closes on October 17, for the energy rehabilitation of buildings damaged by the DANA.

— How does this call work?

— We will subsidize various projects to carry out the energy rehabilitation of their facilities so that they can continue to dedicate their resources to their social activities. We will select the centers with the technical support of Energía sin Fronteras, and the damages caused by the DANA will be taken into account, as well as the number of people they serve and the social impact they generate. This is the first time that the foundation grants direct subsidies through calls. Given the situation after the DANA, we saw that this formula could be helpful.

— The plan also includes actions in education.

— Here what we want is to bring the foundation's entire educational program, linked to energy and sustainability, to the affected territory. We work on these issues from very early ages until the end of ESO, and we have also incorporated vocational training centers. It is a way of bringing energy closer to young people, with initiatives that awaken their curiosity, such as contests, workshops, and visits to spaces like power plants and solar or wind installations. We also have programs like Efigy Girls, which seeks to awaken interest in STEAM in girls aged 9 to 13, through which some 500 girls have passed.

— And how is all this transferred to the area affected by the DANA?

— We are deploying our educational program in the Valencian Community. With it, we will reach 130 centers in 38 municipalities affected by the DANA. In addition, we are promoting a new initiative: 40 of these centers will receive the donation of a photovoltaic solar installation. This will allow them not only to be more efficient but also to see how it works in real-time. The idea is for the school, teachers, and students, even families, to participate in the installation as community learning.

— Is this initiative linked to the employment aspect?

— In the territory affected by the DANA, we will offer professional training that will reach some 300 people, who will also have the possibility of carrying out professional internships in actions related to the foundation's plan. This aims to improve the employability of those affected with training, career guidance, and official certifications. This is part of the work we have been doing for years in vocational training associated with green jobs, such as the installation and maintenance of solar panels, digitalization of gas networks, maintenance of wind farms, or energy rehabilitation of homes.

— In the end, is the entire plan interconnected?

— Everything is a win-win, an integral plan, with installations in the community and people from the same community who are trained through them. It is a plan that feeds back into its various axes to maximize the number of beneficiaries. Our goal is to accompany the community and reactivate life in the affected municipalities.

— Does the plan give any role to the university?

— With the Polytechnic University of Valencia, we are working on two studies: one on the resilience of energy infrastructures, and another on waste management after the DANA, to promote debate on aspects that, as a result of the emergency, deserve particular analysis. In turn, some of the training sessions are also carried out in collaboration with the UPV.

— And for the volunteers?

—They are a fundamental part, especially in the area of environment and territory recovery. We will organize volunteering sessions, which will be carried out with Naturgy employee volunteers and local citizens, focused on waste removal, restoration of affected areas, and collaboration with more vulnerable people.

— Again, everything feeds back into itself.

— Yes, and all this we do in the Valencian Community is, in a concentrated way, the same as what we do throughout the territory. For example, in Catalonia we have rehabilitated more than 2,000 homes; we train social services technicians and city councils so they can advise families on energy-related issues, and we have promoted initiatives with facilities such as hospitals.

— In what sense?

— With our initiative Receta Energía (Energy Recipe), we donated a photovoltaic installation to the Hospital Universitari Sagrat Cor, which generates savings for the center, and which is allocated to aid for patients who depend on an electronic device for their care, to alleviate the extra burden on their bill.

— Will you take the initiative to more hospitals?

— For now, we are doing it in one center here and another in Seville, but we want to reach more hospitals.

— What role does Catalonia play within the foundation's work?

— We have very important activity points within the foundation's global activities, and Catalonia is one of those activity centers.