Why inclusion is good for everyone

Why inclusion is good for everyone

Our commitment to social inclusion has led us to support a number of initiatives around the world, and within the company itself. This is because a just energy transition is social, as well as environmental.

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At the Enel Group we are deeply committed to a just energy transition for all, and we believe that it entails both social and environmental sustainability. For this reason, the issue of inclusion is of great importance, both in terms of our employees and in the communities where we operate. We actively promote the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, Gender Equality, as well as SDG 10, Reduced Inequalities.

 

On the move

This interest in inclusion has led us to support inspiring initiatives in Latin America, specifically in Colombia and Brazil. The project in Colombia is for the country’s large migrant and refugee populations. Over the years, Colombian citizens have had to flee from natural disasters and civil war, while more recently the country has taken in more than a million people escaping from Venezuela. The International Organization of Migration (IOM) has therefore been operative in Colombia for several decades. Since 2021 it has been running a series of reference and orientation points, which are truck-like vehicles that travel around the country providing orientation and referral services, as well as humanitarian aid, to an estimated 45,000 people a year.

The vehicles are active in Bogotà, as well as in Bucaramanga and Pamplona, near Venezuela, and Popayán and Ipiales, near Ecuador, from where a number of Colombian refugees have returned. Enel X and the Enel Colombia Foundation are both involved in the project, providing a photovoltaic system consisting of solar panels that are installed on the trucks’ roofs. These power their medical and computer equipment. Previously, the trucks used portable generators which were not only powered by fossil fuels, but were also noisy. The solar panels, on the other hand, have a capacity of approximately 1,260 kWh per month.

In addition to providing Affordable and Clean Energy (SDG 7), the project is in line with SDG 3, Good Health and Well-being and at the same time it creates shared value by generating benefits for the communities and strengthening institutional capacity in operational areas. This is in addition to promoting another important principle, the right to freedom of movement. It also creates value for Enel by enhancing its reputation at both local and regional level. It’s a social and environmental sustainability inclusion project that benefits all stakeholders.

 

Reintegrating into society

Similar values and benefits apply to the Egressas do sistema prisional (Former female prison inmates) project in Brazil, specifically in the northeastern state of Ceará. The Enel Shares Entrepreneurship initiative, which involves the state government, SENAI (Serviço Nacional de Aprendizagem Industrial, the National Service for Industrial Training) and our local subsidiary, Enel Ceará, helps former inmates reintegrate into society by providing them with professional training in several areas. More than 130 women took part in a 356-hour course that ran from November to February, and which was designed to empower them by developing entrepreneurial and practical skills. In addition to the afore-mentioned SDGs 5, 7 and 10, the initiative also relates to SDG 8, Decent Work and Economic Growth. As is the case in the project in Colombia, this initiative creates shared value by empowering people and encouraging both social inclusion and economic growth.

 

Closer to home

The values of inclusion and diversity are key for Enel. We endeavor to make sure that 50% of our recruits are women, and we actively encourage female students (and potential recruits) to focus their attention on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects. We also have an inclusive approach in terms of minorities. This is because we believe that the life on this Planet, like the just energy transition, belongs to everyone.