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INSIEME SOCIETA' COOPERATIVA SOCIALE A R.L. (SOCIAL COOPERATIVE INSIEME)
The Social Cooperative Insieme was
formed in 1979 by a group of citizens who felt the need to have a deeper
discussion and a shared approach on quality of life, and especially on
work-related issues, social exclusion and youth disadvantage. According to
its statute, the cooperative “does not pursue any profit-making policy;
its objective is human promotion, to be achieved through mutual cooperation.
The cooperative has around 90 worker-members and some
volunteer-members; there are about 40 places available for individuals
taking part in work-integration and support programmes.
The cooperative Insieme is a
recognised social cooperative (according to the Italian Law ex L.381/91) and
it is legally defined as ONLUS -organizzazione non lucrativa di utilità
sociale- (Non-profit Organisation for Social Effectiveness).
Together with
local municipalities of the Vicenza province, the Social Cooperative Insieme
has been promoting initiatives in order to establish direct contact with
citizens.
The main objective is that of promoting and develop two
fundamental aspects of social cooperation:
-production activities aimed at the
creation of educational programmes for disadvantaged people, through the
involvement of such people in work experiences. The services provided in
these year have been recycling, re-usage and retrieval of materials; such
activities have developed into a work training programme where tasks,
schedules, contact with citizens and the working environment have served as
“a means to develop people’s working skills and ability to establish
social relationships”.
- Services provided directly to the
citizens; this has been possible thanks to the efforts made by
cooperative in order to intertwine with the local community. The
cooperative’s market sector, which is the separate waste collection,
carries with it a raised awareness on the issue of waste reduction, and
contributes to the development of important civil values as the protection
of the environment.
With these objectives in mind, the
cooperatives provides separate waste collection services and runs
second-hand retail shops. Material is collected, selected, restored and
reused, since it is sold to the public. Separate waste collection services
have turned into a well-established activity, especially with AIM Vicenza
Spa (local Utility whose services range from energy to waste collection
etc.) and with the Municipality of Arzignano.
Services are managed by the
cooperative members themselves, and the direct relationship with the
community is guaranteed through a tried and tested organisation system. The
cooperative provides the following services:
- management of recycling centres
(“eco-centres”, ecological islands );
- removals and clearance;
- bulk
waste collection at home; - re-usable materials reclaim and
object repair; - retail selling (in shops);
- antique furniture restoration and
selling; - clothes reclaim; - counselling on social and
ecological issues; - environmental education projects
in schools; -
organisation of events and cultural activities for the general public.
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