Because the best solutions are the result of teamwork, the Roubaix community has banded together to find new ways of solving the area’s social challenges.
Roubaix is a city committed to the social economy and community values and keen to promote social innovation. The big challenge is to engage all local stakeholders (including firms, entrepreneurs, charities, local authorities, students, higher education institutions and citizens) in a joint project to create new social startups and help existing organizations to grow and scale.
The project is organized by SoBizHub (Social Business Hauts-de-France) in partnership with the Town of Roubaix, Réseau Alliance and Humanis and focuses on three main areas: urban wellbeing, young people and the circular economy. The project will kick off with six months of dialogue (from November 2017 to April 2018) followed by an action phase.
As a longstanding member of the community with our head office in the old Okaïdi factory in Roubaix, and as partner to the Réseau Alliance (a network of CSR entrepreneurs in the Hauts-de-France region), we are excited to be part this venture.
At the planned brainstorming workshops on the city’s challenges we will choose the projects that will shape our future. This worthwhile initiative will bring social innovation one step closer!
ÏDKIDS has chosen to focus on two areas:
- The ÏDKIDS foundation will be part of the circular economy stream with a community shop project.
- Our CSR division will make its skills available to young people based on the premise that help with parenting promotes wellbeing in parents and helps children become accomplished citizens of the future (open, tolerant, invested in the city and responsible). The success of this project requires concrete solutions that make families’ lives easier (e.g. journey sharing and childcare arrangements), training development for childcare professionals and the promotion of social diversity. With our brands Rigolo Comme La Vie, N’Joy and Cmabulle already involved in these sectors, this project is yet another way to contribute to the common good by bringing our expertise to bear.
Look out for an update in May!
More about SoBizHub: SoBizHub connects local key players to promote shared synergies and enable the development of social business projects in the Hauts-de-France region. Its aim is to design new socioeconomic models to address regional weaknesses.
