The competence center for charitable foundations "Helping those in need. That's our mission."

Caritas Geneva has created an independent foundation. What's the purpose and mission of the foundation?

Edouard Crestin-Billet: The foundation's mission is the same as that of Caritas Geneva: to help those in need, regardless of religion, nationality, or race. To do so, the Foundation provides financial support for the activities of Caritas Geneva and other organizations with the same goal.

What prompted the creation of the foundation? 
Edouard Crestin-Billet: The Foundation's mission is to manage Caritas Geneva's financial assets in an effective manner. At the same time, this gives us greater opportunities to do research as well as secure large donations. The foundation enables us to offer personalized solutions to high net worth donors. For example, if a donor wishes to make a substantial donation to a specific cause, the foundation enables us to do this. The money is placed in an independent fund where it's managed and used only for the intended purpose.

Michel Warynski: It's important to note that, although it coordinates its goals with Caritas Geneva, the foundation is completely independent. The various funds held by the foundation are always managed by different teams within the association. 

What do you gain from collaborating with Credit Suisse’s Competence Center Charitable Foundations?

Edouard Crestin-Billet: This is a very valuable collaboration. As far as I know, there’s no similar offer in Switzerland specifically dedicated to foundations. The Competence Center provides assistance not only with managing donations but also in other areas such as governance matters. The costs are also very attractive from our perspective.

In your opinion, how important is social commitment these days?
Sophie Buchs: It's extremely important, especially with economic and social inequalities on the rise. Through their involvement, private companies as well as organizations like Caritas can contribute to building a more supportive society that's better aligned with the specific needs of the less fortunate. 

How do you identify the areas where Caritas Geneva's involvement will have the most impact?
Sophie Buchs: We always try to leverage our expertise. Our goal is to continue to make progress in areas where we've already built up experience over the past decades. I'm thinking, for example, about our work with migrants, debt counseling, as well as our second-hand stores.

At the same time, we're always looking for opportunities to collaborate with other organizations. This enables us to share our skills and innovative capacity, and therefore improve what we offer. 

How have the major crises of the past few years, including the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, affected Caritas Geneva's work?

Michel Warynski: We had to redefine our priorities very quickly and obtain additional resources. This is especially true of the COVID crisis. Take the following example: Caritas helps people in financial difficulty by paying some of their bills directly. When the pandemic broke out, we had to quadruple the budget for this type of assistance. More money was needed, but also more personnel.

Sophie Buchs: When the Ukraine crisis began, we took charge of arranging shelter for refugees. This brand-new mission put a massive strain on the organization's resources. However, we've tried to limit its impact on the rest of our activities as much as possible and have been trying to get out of crisis mode since early 2022. The goal is to be able to focus as much as possible on our core competencies as well as on medium and long-term projects.

To conclude, let's look to the future: What will be the role of nonprofit organizations in the years and decades to come? Will we ever get to the point where we no longer need organizations like Caritas?
Sophie Buchs: We always say that we hope the day will come when Caritas no longer serves a purpose. That would mean no more poverty in Switzerland. In the meantime, however, nonprofit organizations will continue to play a big role in improving life for those in need.