bnp paribas prize · provide role models and act as mentors for them. in accepting the prize, he...

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EVENT | 2012 award ceremony Creating concrete and sustainable change through the lives of young people CASE STUDY | Greenhouse A young life transformed through basketball BNP PARIBAS WEALTH MANAGEMENT | Philanthropy services Providing expertise on how to transform the desire to give into concrete action BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy 2012 was produced by the IHT Creative Solutions department and did not involve the newspaper’s reporting or editorial departments. It was sponsored by BNP Paribas Wealth Management. Text by HEIDI ELLISON. For information on the IHT Creative Solutions program: www.nytimesglobal.com T he winners of the fifth BNP Paribas Prize for Indi- vidual Philanthropy were announced at a cere- mony held in Paris on the evening of June 20. The grand prize went to Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli of the Instituto Ayrton Senna for her work with the Brazili- an educational system, while the special prize was awarded to Michael de Giorgio, founder of Green- house, an organization that uses sports to help im- prove the lives of disadvantaged children in London. Grand prize In accepting the award from Jean-Laurent Bonnafé, chief executive officer of BNP Paribas, Senna da Silva Lalli said: ‘‘I feel particularly grateful because with this prize we had the opportunity to high- light the need to offer children and young people who study in public schools real opportunities to fully develop their potential.’’ The Instituto Ayrton Senna was foun- ded by Senna da Silva Lalli in 1994 a few months after her brother, the three-time Formula One champion Ayrton Senna, died in a racing accident at the age of 34. Having prospered from his career, the charismatic Ayrton Senna, a beloved fig- ure in Brazil and renowned throughout the world, had often given money privately to help Brazilian street children, but he wanted to create something more struc- tured and permanent for his country. Not long before he died, he asked his sister to look into setting up an organization that would provide better educational op- portunities for Brazilian children. While the idea originated with her brother and the Instituto Ayrton Senna was created with funds from his legacy, it was Senna da Silva Lalli who turned it into the thriving organization it is today and keeps it going with the added help of outside fund-raising to supple- ment its endowment. The institute, which provides teacher-training programs as well as teaching materi- als and methods to schools all over Brazil, boosts the quality of the national educational system and helps millions of children stay in school and live better lives thanks to the improved quality of their schooling. Special prize Michael de Giorgio, founder of Greenhouse, also wanted to do something to help disadvantaged chil- dren on his home turf. In 2002, the retired financial consultant had the idea of reaching out to kids in poor neighborhoods by involving them in sports and per- forming arts through their schools. His charity, Green- house, hires and trains coaches who not only get the young people involved in sports activities, but also provide role models and act as mentors for them. In accepting the prize, he said that winning the prize was an ‘‘endorsement that sport, when used in the right way, can make a real difference to the lives of young people in disadvantaged communities.’’ The prizes were awarded at a ceremo- ny held at the headquarters of BNP Pari- bas in the heart of Paris, in the presence of high-profile international philanthro- pists and experts on the subject. This year, jury members were Professor Suz- anne Berger, Yann Arthus Bertrand, Mi- chael Golden, Lorenz von Habsbourg, Anand Mahindra, Maria Nowak, Jacques Rigaud, Louis Schweitzer, Professor Am- artya Sen, Rahmi Koç (representing the Koç family, the 2011 grand prize winner) and Peter Carey (the 2011 special prize winner). Says Berger of this year’s grand prize winner: ‘‘Vivi- ane Senna da Silva Lalli represents a shining example of all the best and deepest impulses that motivate in- dividual philanthropy: recognizing a burning human problem, realizing that you have the will and resources to bring about change on that problem and commit- ting to making that difference.’’ As it is each year, the ceremony was preceded by a debate. This year’s topic, introduced by BNP Paribas Wealth Management Senior Consultant François Debiesse, was ‘‘Can Philanthropy Be Inherited?’’ The discussion, moderated by Anne-Claire Pache, holder of the Philanthropy Chair at the French business school ESSEC, took place between Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière, who created the Fondation Culture et Diversité in 2006 to help provide art education to special-needs students, and his daughter, Eléonore The prizes were awarded at a ceremony held at the headquarters of BNP Paribas in the heart of Paris P hilanthropy, literally ‘‘love of humanity’’ in its original Greek meaning, is a broad, all-encom- passing concept. Those who really want to help humanity through philanthropic action must not only narrow down their free-flowing goodwill to target spe- cific causes, places and times, but must also find practical, effective ways to channel and implement their assistance. Sparked by demand from its clients for just that kind of help, BNP Paribas Wealth Manage- ment started offering philanthropy services in 2008, at the same time that it founded the BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy. One part of the two-pronged offer is the Fondation de l’Orangerie for Individual Philanthropy, which pro- poses an array of prevetted and carefully monitored philanthropic projects for clients to choose from, dis- tributed among such fields as health, education and culture, and based in different parts of the world. This option is suitable for those who are looking for a turn- key solution that will not require a major time invest- ment. Those clients who have concrete ideas about how they want to give or even those who have no idea where to start but want to be more personally involved can turn to the Philanthropy Advisory for tailor-made assistance. Both services are headed by Nathalie Sauvanet, whose role takes her into a surprising multiplicity of fields and areas of expertise. No matter how specific or technical a client’s request, she is ready to reach out to one of the bank’s experts in the right department in the right part of the world, from Europe to Asia. If the topic hasn’t yet been covered by the bank, she may research it herself or ask one of her special- ists to do it. Recently, for example, she took an in- depth plunge into the subject of autism because a cli- ent wanted to give to the cause. ‘‘Cus- tomer service comes first,’’ she says. ‘‘Setting up a philanthropic project is a very personal step. My job is to under- stand the needs of the client and find the most relevant solution to respond to them.’’ The pertinence of these services can be measured by their success. Since their introduction, the number of clients of the Fondation de l’Orangerie has grown by one-third every year, and that of the Philanthropy Advisory has doubled every year. Sofia Merlo, co-chief executive officer of BNP Pari- bas Wealth Management, notes that the bank ‘‘was the first to propose such a complete philanthropic of- fer in the euro zone.’’ She adds that more and more philanthropists today are taking an entrepreneurial approach to giving. ‘‘That means not just making a fi- nancial commitment,’’ she says, ‘‘but also putting their managerial skills to work and measuring the so- cial return on investment.’’ These ‘‘philantrepreneurs’’ are not yet in the major- ity, however. Many donors are more likely than not to take a more emotional approach to giving to a cause close to their hearts and are less interested in meas- uring results. ‘‘The major change in philanthropy at the beginning of the 21st century is the awareness that it is not easy to ‘give well,’’’ says Merlo. With the help of Wealth Management’s philanthropy services, some clients realize they are better off with a simple solu- tion. She cites the case of a Belgian client of BNP Pari- bas Fortis Private Banking who wanted to create a foundation to award a prize in a medical field. The Phi- lanthropy Advisory’s analysis showed that creating the necessary structure would cost as much as the scholarships themselves and found another solution: an existing foundation operating in the same field that was willing to give prizes in the donor’s name. The entrepreneurial philanthropist is also becom- ing more common in Asia, where the bank is seeing a growing interest in philanthropy, according to Vincent Lecomte, the other co-chief executive officer of BNP Paribas Wealth Management. ‘‘Awareness of social needs is increasing,’’ he says, adding that Asians are taking a greater interest in lo- cal issues and becoming more involved in shaping their philanthropic actions. They are also more actively promoting causes and seeking exchanges with peers. ‘‘More widely,’’ he adds, ‘‘the trends suggest that philanthro- py is growing and will play an increasing role in society as the recession hits public finances in many coun- tries.’’ The future of the prize therefore looks secure: ‘‘The prize has now existed for five years, and we are proud of its ability to more widely showcase all of these remarkable initiatives.’’ As part of its complimentary philanthropy services, BNP Paribas Wealth Management helps encourage those exchanges internationally by bringing philan- thropists together to share experiences and best practices at a conference held every June in Paris on the day the BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthro- py is awarded. The bank also puts clients with like in- terests in touch with each other. For example, Sauvanet recently brought a client who wants to work with disabled children in India together with one of the former prize winners, Amina Laraki-Slaoui, who was behind the building of the first rehabilitation center for the disabled in Morocco. SPECIAL PRIZE WINNER | Michael de Giorgio, Greenhouse Enlisting the power of sports as an agent for social change M ichael de Giorgio, a sporting man and a sup- porter of England’s Chelsea soccer team, has long believed in the power of sports as a vector for social change. ‘‘It’s something that has helped me and given me support,’’ he says. ‘‘And for foreigners in England, it’s an important way of making friends and breaking down barriers.’’ That belief had laid the ground for the moment of inspiration that occurred one day when de Giorgio picked up his son from a private school in London and noticed its playing fields lying empty. Why not put them to use for the benefit of other kids, he thought, who are not as fortunate? After selling his financial consultancy, Portman Consultants, in 2002, he had been looking around for a cause to sup- port and had been donating to other people’s programs, but he was dissatis- fied with the way they were run. ‘‘I felt like I was paying for expenses without seeing good outcomes,’’ he says. He saw those empty playing fields as an oppor- tunity to set up his own charity, which he named Greenhouse. He persuaded the school to let young people from poorer parts of London use the sports fields during the summer. The idea caught on, and other schools volunteered their fields, but transporting the kids to the different parts of town proved too complicated and time- consuming, so de Giorgio eventually changed the model, choosing other sports that could be played in facilities in the participants’ own schools. Greenhouse also began to hire and train its own coaches, who work in the schools during both the school year and holidays and see the same kids on a regular basis, acting as mentors to them. ‘‘That’s how you can have an impact on these young people,’’ he says. ‘‘If you say, come and do some extra math, no one wants to come, but if you say come and play table ten- nis with our cool coaches, that’s a different story.’’ Be- cause the coaches, some of whom are Olympic cham- pions, are trained by Greenhouse and have a permanent presence in the schools, they are also more likely to influence other aspects of the kids’ lives. ‘‘Sports is a great carrot for young people,’’ de Giorgio says. ‘‘Once you can get them in, you can help them with their health, diet, education, discipline and more.’’ Greenhouse now has 45 programs in London — 38 in secondary schools, eight in special educational needs schools and five community programs — as well as outreach programs to 20 primary schools. The schools are located in areas where 70 percent of young people live in poverty. The 10,000 children coached by Greenhouse annually show not only im- proved self-confidence, self-discipline, motivation and happiness at school, but also score a full grade higher than their fellow pupils in English and mathematics. Compared with their peers, they also have better school attendance and fewer poor behavior reports. Greenhouse also uses performing arts as a way of involving young people, and is trying to reach out to N ii Bruce-Tagoe, 18, is a shining example of Mi- chael de Giorgio’s belief in the power of sports to create social change. Bruce-Tagoe joined Greenhouse when he was 12, and when he was ‘‘14 going on 15,’’ he says, his coach, Predrag Krneta, named him to the Greenhouse Gi- ants basketball team, making him the youngest player not only on the team but also in the league, which plays all over England. He made a vow to himself, which he kept, to never miss practice or a single class from then on. ‘‘During the year I would play a few minutes of each game, traveling to different cities and getting ex- perience,’’ he says. ‘‘I took more responsibility for my- self and matured a lot during this year.’’ He also met other players from different countries and backgrounds and ‘‘learned a lot about the world,’’ he says. As he got stronger and healthier, his grades improved. He notes wryly that he didn’t think his teach- ers ‘‘would have predicted this a few years ago’’ and credits those opportunities with helping him ‘‘stay away from the negativity around my neighborhood.’’ More opportunities soon arrived. His coach made him coach of the under-13s basketball team. ‘‘This re- sponsibility made me more mature,’’ he says, ‘‘and I hope that I managed to pass on my experience to those younger kids.’’ He was also made prefect at his school and was sent by Greenhouse to a basketball camp in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Through his sporting activities, he got to meet a number of ‘‘amazing people’’ from the sports world, including a sports commissioner, the former world heavyweight champi- on David Haye and the former Chicago Bulls player B.J. Armstrong. Bruce-Tagoe, who grew up in south- east London and still lives there, is now finishing secondary school and will go to Southampton Solent University next September to study sports journalism while continuing his career as a basket- ball player. He stays in close touch with Krneta, speaking to him every week and asking him for advice on everything from basketball to his education. ‘‘He’s a very cool guy,’’ he says. Bruce-Tagoe says, ‘‘My life is truly transformed,’’ noting that a few years earlier he had been ‘‘skipping class and hanging out with the wrong people. Now I have big hopes for myself and work hard every day to reach my ambitions. This would not have been possi- ble without the help from Greenhouse. For me, Green- house changed everything.’’ GRAND PRIZE WINNER | Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli, Instituto Ayrton Senna A race-car driver’s lasting positive legacy M any philanthropic enterprises are born of tragic circumstances, but the seed for the In- stituto Ayrton Senna, the grand-prize winner of the 2012 BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philan- thropy, was planted during a conversation between the famed 34-year-old Formula One driver Ayrton Senna and his sister, Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli, just two months before he was killed in a racing accident in 1994. ‘‘He told me that he wanted to give something sig- nificant back to his country by helping Brazilian chil- dren,’’ she says, ‘‘and he asked me to help him devel- op something.’’ They planned to continue their discussion when he returned from the Formula One race in Europe, but they never saw each other again. Viviane, who was a psychologist and enjoyed working with children, decided to carry out his wish with the help of their close-knit family. Ayrton Senna was a wildly popular figure in Brazil at the time. Just a few months before his death, he had introduced a cartoon character called Senninha, an eight-year-old who dreams of becoming a racing driver, which became a great success. The family de- cided to donate all profits from this franchise, today Michael de Giorgio’s Greenhouse project now has 45 programs in London schools. Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli runs the foundation inspired by her late brother, the Formula One driver Ayrton Senna. Ladreit de Lacharrière, the foundation’s executive di- rector. They talked about the tricky business of passing on a foundation to one’s heirs, who may or may not be interested in continuing its work. The BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy was created in 2008 by BNP Paribas as a way of drawing attention to the sustainable achievements of exemplary philanthropists and, at the same time, CASE STUDY | Instituto Ayrton Senna Through dance, a path to university and Paris T he Instituto Ayrton Senna has helped educate nearly 16 million Brazilian children since it was founded in 1994. That impressive but dry figure omits the fact that each one of those millions of chil- dren has a story. For many in Brazil, extreme poverty and the schools’ inability to retain children (only 50 percent finish their basic education) mean that the story may well end in school failure, drugs, prostitution, infor- mal jobs or violence. ‘‘That’s what hap- pens when they don’t have the opportuni- ty to help themselves and develop their potential,’’ says the institute’s director, Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli. Thanks to the institute’s Education through Art program, Jamila Lopes was one of those who was given that opportunity and seized it. Now 20, she was born in Icapuí, in the state of Ceará in northeastern Brazil, the daughter of a lob- ster fisherman and a seamstress. When she was a little girl, she had the chance to go to Edisca, a dancing school in Fortaleza, Ceará, which has a partnership with the Instituto Ayrton Senna. Her talent quickly shone through, and when she was only 10 years old, she was whisked off on a tour. ‘‘Just imagine!’’ she says. ‘‘A 10-year-old child from Icapuí being able to fulfill her dream of being on a stage, and not just any stage, but in Paris!’’ Now a beautiful young woman with a crooked smile and a bright light in her eyes, Lopes worked hard at school, deter- mined to get good grades. ‘‘Now that I had this chance, I knew I must grab it,’’ she says. She managed to finish at the top of her class and was awarded a computer for her efforts. She won a scholarship, and now studies dance at the Ceará Federal Universi- ty and teaches dance to children. Her appreciation for the chance she has been given is boundless. ‘‘If dan- cing were not part of my life,’’ she says, ‘‘then I would have a much more difficult path to tread.’’ Prize-winning philanthropists share their advice for success Basketball opened the doors for this participant in Greenhouse’s sports programs. more girls through such activities as dance and by re- cruiting more female coaches. Says jury member Suzanne Berger: ‘‘This year’s award to Michael de Giorgio shows how innovation in philanthropy can come about through identifying new and efficient ways of meeting great need: it takes an innovator like Michael de Giorgio to see that the under- utilized sports facilities in some privileged schools in London could, with the proper organization, be used by many other children.’’ In addition to contributing his own money to Greenhouse, de Giorgio works full time as its unpaid chief executive of- ficer. Aware that charities often have a reputation for being poorly managed, he runs Greenhouse like a business, ensur- ing that every penny is spent properly. He is also concerned about the sustainability of the organization and is building a management team that will enable it to survive after he leaves. With the Olympics coming to London, de Giorgio is hoping that the power of sport as an agent for social change will not be overlooked during the excitement of the Games. De Giorgio runs Greenhouse like a business, ensuring that every penny is spent properly Nathalie Sauvanet, head of Individual Philanthropy at BNP Paribas Wealth Management. There are as many ways to give as there are needy people, ranging from the simplest — giving a coin to a beggar in the street, say — to what may be the most complicated: setting up a full-fledged foundation. For a budding philanthropist, the plethora of options can be confusing. What better place to start than to ask the advice of someone who has been there? Professor Odon Vallet, the 2009 winner of the BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy, who created the Fondation Odon Vallet in France in 1999 to offer scholarships to deserving young people in Vietnam, Benin and France, does not hesitate when asked for tips on getting started in the world of philanthropy. ‘‘First of all, remember that it always takes more time and money than expected,’’ he says. He strongly advises philanthropists to stay within their own area of expertise. ‘‘If you are a doctor, create a medical foundation; if you are a teacher like me, an educational foundation. Never venture into an area in which you have no competence.’’ Tip number three: ‘‘Don’t spread yourself thin. Have a fairly precise and realistic goal.’’ For those who have children, he recommends trying to interest them in what the foundation does so that it can continue its work, adding: ‘‘Remember that a foundation is not perennial — you are not obliged to keep it going forever.’’ On the other side of the world, a very different type of philanthropic enterprise, the Cambodia Trust, which works with people with disabilities in Cambodia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Philippines, is headed by Peter Carey, the 2011 winner of the BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy’s special prize. Carey gets straight to the point with his advice: ‘‘Trust in the Lord, but always tie up your camel!’’ and, quoting the British-Indian Staff College Manual (Quetta 1942), ‘‘Time spent in reconnaissance is seldom wasted.’’ He explains: ‘‘Yes, Providence will make things possible for you if the time is right and the need self-evident, but remember that the smallest things will be the making of the success or failure of your project, e.g., securing the right visas and official operating permissions. Never take yourself too seriously, because everyone is dispensable. At the same time, remember the devil is in the detail, so never take anything for granted; do your research carefully; choose your partners wisely — you need people who are genuinely committed and don’t carry a lot of ideological or bureaucratic baggage. Always plan for the worst-case scenario.’’ Echoing Vallet, he cautions that nothing lasts forever. ‘‘All projects, however noble, have a life span of their own,’’ he says, concluding: ‘‘Remember, the quicker you can work yourself out of a job, the more successful and well rooted your project.’’ to provide role models for its clients and other philanthropists. The grand prize winner is chosen for laudable dedication, professionalism and results, and is awarded a photography book produced by the bank and dedicated to his or her philanthropic activities. The special prize award is based on strong personal involvement in a local project and includes a cash prize of ¤50,000 ($62,000). worth $70 million, to the newly formed Instituto Ayrton Senna, which later began to attract donations from private enterprises as they became aware of the ef- fectiveness of its programs. For Senna da Silva Lalli, education was the natural focus for the foundation. ‘‘Our country has many needs in social areas,’’ she says, ‘‘but we made the strategic choice to focus on education.’’ In Brazil’s no- toriously inadequate public education system, she adds, ‘‘almost all children are in school, but only five out of 10 of them finish their basic education and, of the 10 who graduate, only two speak Portuguese well and only one is proficient in math.’’ After its first two years in operation, the institute, which works in partnership with the public education system to supplement teacher training, had already as- sisted 40,000 children, a number that would impress most people, but not Senna da Silva Lalli. ‘‘I came back from the field concerned, because I felt that 40,000 was a small number compared to the need,’’ she says. ‘‘I wanted every child who needed it to have opportunity.’’ She set her mind to the challenge of attacking the problem on a large scale, and after two years had worked out a plan. Taking the work of Freud and Jung as her inspiration, she created a paradigm, a small- scale model that could be applied on a wider scale. She sees the institute as a kind of laboratory where she developed a formula for a vaccine to prevent the wider social problems caused by the lack of a good education. Now the institute works within schools in every state in Brazil, training 70,000 teachers a year, ment- oring them, creating educational programs and for- mally evaluating results. Since it was founded, it has reached nearly 16 million children and 694,000 edu- cators in 1,530 cities. It claims a 95 percent success rate in terms of students completing their education, compared to the national average of 30 percent. While Senna da Silva Lalli sees some improvement in the Brazilian public education system, it still has a long way to go. ‘‘We don’t have the necessary human infrastructure,’’ she says, ‘‘because the country didn’t build it.’’ Her life is now entirely devoted to the institute, for which she works long, hard days as its president and spokeswoman. She runs the institute like a corpora- tion, establishing goals, finding people with the right skills and monitoring results closely. ‘‘Our focus is not on good intentions,’’ she says, ‘‘but on results. We want the children to learn, and to learn to love to study.’’ ‘Now that I had this chance,’ says Jamila Lopes, ‘I knew I must grab it’ ‘This responsibility made me more mature,’ says Nii Bruce-Tagoe BNP PARIBAS PRIZE FOR INDIVIDUAL PHILANTHROPY 2012 GREENHOUSE CHARITY GREENHOUSE CHARITY BNP PARIBAS WEALTH MANAGEMENT JUAN GUERRA / INSTITUTO AYRTON SENNA ‘Customer service comes first. Setting up a philanthropic project is a very personal step’ The BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy, now celebrating its fifth consecutive year, honored two new laureates at a ceremony in Paris on the evening of June 20 The 2012 awards ceremony The awards ceremony for the BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy on June 20 was attended by over 200 people, philanthropy opinion leaders and clients of BNP Paribas Wealth Management.A word that came up many times during the speeches and the debate preceding the prize-giving was ‘‘values,’’ in reference to BNP Paribas’ strong commitment to social responsibility and in response to one of the questions posed by the debate: ‘‘Can philanthropy be inherited?’’ In accepting the award, the special prize winner, Michael de Giorgio, put the spotlight on some of the youth helped by his charity, Greenhouse, and the coaches who inspired them. The most emotional moment of the evening came when the grand prize-winner, Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli of the Instituto Ayrton Senna, spoke about the importance of providing hopeful opportunities to underprivileged Brazilian children. Jamila Lopez has turned an interest into a career path, thanks to the Instituto Ayrton Senna. INSTITUTO AYRTON SENNA / TIBICO BRASIL Honoring philanthropic values: (from left) Special prize winner Michael de Giorgio; Sofia Merlo, co-CEO of BNP Paribas Wealth Management; Mustafa Koç, representing the Koç family, last year’s grand prize winner; 2012 grand prize winner Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli; Jean-Laurent Bonnafé, CEO of BNP Paribas; Suzanne Berger, chair of the jury; and Vincent Lecomte, co-CEO of BNP Paribas Wealth Management. DOMINIQUE RAULT

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Page 1: BNP PARIBAS PRIZE · provide role models and act as mentors for them. In accepting the prize, he said that winning the prize wasan‘‘endorsementthatsport,whenusedintheright way,

EVENT | 2012 award ceremony

Creating concrete and sustainable changethrough the lives of young people

CASE STUDY | Greenhouse

A young life transformed through basketball

BNP PARIBAS WEALTH MANAGEMENT | Philanthropy services

Providing expertise on how to transformthe desire to give into concrete action

BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropy 2012 was produced by the IHT Creative Solutions departmentand did not involve the newspaper’s reporting or editorial departments. It was sponsored by BNP Paribas WealthManagement. Text by HEIDI ELLISON. For information on the IHT Creative Solutions program:www.nytimesglobal.com

T he winners of the fifth BNP Paribas Prize for Indi-vidual Philanthropy were announced at a cere-mony held in Paris on the evening of June 20.

The grand prize went to Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli ofthe Instituto Ayrton Senna for her work with the Brazili-an educational system, while the special prize wasawarded to Michael de Giorgio, founder of Green-house, an organization that uses sports to help im-prove the lives of disadvantaged children in London.

Grand prize

In accepting the award from Jean-LaurentBonnafé, chief executive officer of BNP Paribas,Senna da Silva Lalli said: ‘‘I feel particularly gratefulbecause with this prize we had the opportunity to high-light the need to offer children and young people whostudy in public schools real opportunitiesto fully develop their potential.’’

The Instituto Ayrton Senna was foun-ded by Senna da Silva Lalli in 1994 a fewmonths after her brother, the three-timeFormula One champion Ayrton Senna,died in a racing accident at the age of 34.Having prospered from his career, thecharismatic Ayrton Senna, a beloved fig-ure in Brazil and renowned throughout theworld, had often given money privately tohelp Brazilian street children, but hewanted to create something more struc-tured and permanent for his country. Not long beforehe died, he asked his sister to look into setting up anorganization that would provide better educational op-portunities for Brazilian children.

While the idea originated with her brother and theInstituto Ayrton Senna was created with funds fromhis legacy, it was Senna da Silva Lalli who turned it intothe thriving organization it is today and keeps it goingwith the added help of outside fund-raising to supple-ment its endowment. The institute, which providesteacher-training programs as well as teaching materi-als and methods to schools all over Brazil, boosts the

quality of the national educational system and helpsmillions of children stay in school and live better livesthanks to the improved quality of their schooling.

Special prize

Michael de Giorgio, founder of Greenhouse, alsowanted to do something to help disadvantaged chil-dren on his home turf. In 2002, the retired financialconsultant had the idea of reaching out to kids in poorneighborhoods by involving them in sports and per-forming arts through their schools. His charity, Green-house, hires and trains coaches who not only get theyoung people involved in sports activities, but alsoprovide role models and act as mentors for them.

In accepting the prize, he said that winning the prizewas an ‘‘endorsement that sport, when used in the right

way, can make a real difference to thelives of young people in disadvantagedcommunities.’’

The prizes were awarded at a ceremo-ny held at the headquarters of BNP Pari-bas in the heart of Paris, in the presenceof high-profile international philanthro-pists and experts on the subject. Thisyear, jury members were Professor Suz-anne Berger, Yann Arthus Bertrand, Mi-chael Golden, Lorenz von Habsbourg,Anand Mahindra, Maria Nowak, JacquesRigaud, Louis Schweitzer, Professor Am-

artya Sen, Rahmi Koç (representing the Koç family,the 2011 grand prize winner) and Peter Carey (the2011 special prize winner).

Says Berger of this year’s grand prize winner: ‘‘Vivi-ane Senna da Silva Lalli represents a shining exampleof all the best and deepest impulses that motivate in-dividual philanthropy: recognizing a burning humanproblem, realizing that you have the will and resourcesto bring about change on that problem and commit-ting to making that difference.’’

As it is each year, the ceremony was preceded by adebate. This year’s topic, introduced by BNP Paribas

Wealth Management Senior Consultant FrançoisDebiesse, was ‘‘Can Philanthropy Be Inherited?’’ Thediscussion, moderated by Anne-Claire Pache, holderof the Philanthropy Chair at the French businessschool ESSEC, took place between Marc Ladreit deLacharrière, who created the Fondation Culture etDiversité in 2006 to help provide art education tospecial-needs students, and his daughter, Eléonore

The prizeswere awardedat a ceremony

held at theheadquarters ofBNP Paribas in

the heart ofParis

P hilanthropy, literally ‘‘love of humanity’’ in itsoriginal Greek meaning, is a broad, all-encom-passing concept. Those who really want to help

humanity through philanthropic action must not onlynarrow down their free-flowing goodwill to target spe-cific causes, places and times, but must also findpractical, effective ways to channel and implementtheir assistance. Sparked by demand from its clientsfor just that kind of help, BNP Paribas Wealth Manage-ment started offering philanthropy services in 2008,at the same time that it founded the BNP Paribas Prizefor Individual Philanthropy.

One part of the two-pronged offer is the Fondationde l’Orangerie for Individual Philanthropy, which pro-poses an array of prevetted and carefully monitoredphilanthropic projects for clients to choose from, dis-tributed among such fields as health, education andculture, and based in different parts of the world. Thisoption is suitable for those who are looking for a turn-key solution that will not require a major time invest-ment. Those clients who have concrete ideas abouthow they want to give or even those who have no ideawhere to start but want to be more personally involvedcan turn to the Philanthropy Advisory fortailor-made assistance.

Both services are headed by Nathalie Sauvanet,whose role takes her into a surprising multiplicity offields and areas of expertise. No matter how specificor technical a client’s request, she is ready to reach outto one of the bank’s experts in the right department inthe right part of the world, from Europe to Asia.

If the topic hasn’t yet been covered by the bank,she may research it herself or ask one of her special-ists to do it. Recently, for example, she took an in-depth plunge into the subject of autism because a cli-ent wanted to give to the cause. ‘‘Cus-tomer service comes first,’’ she says.‘‘Setting up a philanthropic project is avery personal step. My job is to under-stand the needs of the client and find themost relevant solution to respond tothem.’’

The pertinence of these services canbe measured by their success. Sincetheir introduction, the number of clients ofthe Fondation de l’Orangerie has grown by one-thirdevery year, and that of the Philanthropy Advisory hasdoubled every year.

Sofia Merlo, co-chief executive officer of BNP Pari-bas Wealth Management, notes that the bank ‘‘wasthe first to propose such a complete philanthropic of-fer in the euro zone.’’ She adds that more and morephilanthropists today are taking an entrepreneurialapproach to giving. ‘‘That means not just making a fi-nancial commitment,’’ she says, ‘‘but also puttingtheir managerial skills to work and measuring the so-cial return on investment.’’

These ‘‘philantrepreneurs’’ are not yet in the major-ity, however. Many donors are more likely than not totake a more emotional approach to giving to a causeclose to their hearts and are less interested in meas-uring results. ‘‘The major change in philanthropy at thebeginning of the 21st century is the awareness that itis not easy to ‘give well,’’’ says Merlo. With the help ofWealth Management’s philanthropy services, some

clients realize they are better off with a simple solu-tion. She cites the case of a Belgian client of BNP Pari-bas Fortis Private Banking who wanted to create afoundation to award a prize in a medical field. The Phi-lanthropy Advisory’s analysis showed that creatingthe necessary structure would cost as much as thescholarships themselves and found another solution:an existing foundation operating in the same field thatwas willing to give prizes in the donor’s name.

The entrepreneurial philanthropist is also becom-ing more common in Asia, where the bank is seeing a

growing interest in philanthropy, accordingto Vincent Lecomte, the other co-chiefexecutive officer of BNP Paribas WealthManagement. ‘‘Awareness of socialneeds is increasing,’’ he says, adding thatAsians are taking a greater interest in lo-cal issues and becoming more involved inshaping their philanthropic actions. Theyare also more actively promoting causesand seeking exchanges with peers. ‘‘More

widely,’’ he adds, ‘‘the trends suggest that philanthro-py is growing and will play an increasing role in societyas the recession hits public finances in many coun-tries.’’ The future of the prize therefore looks secure:‘‘The prize has now existed for five years, and we areproud of its ability to more widely showcase all ofthese remarkable initiatives.’’

As part of its complimentary philanthropy services,BNP Paribas Wealth Management helps encouragethose exchanges internationally by bringing philan-thropists together to share experiences and bestpractices at a conference held every June in Paris onthe day the BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthro-py is awarded. The bank also puts clients with like in-terests in touch with each other. For example,Sauvanet recently brought a client who wants to workwith disabled children in India together with one of theformer prize winners, Amina Laraki-Slaoui, who wasbehind the building of the first rehabilitation center forthe disabled in Morocco.[

SPECIAL PRIZE WINNER | Michael de Giorgio, Greenhouse

Enlisting the power of sports as an agent for social change

M ichael de Giorgio, a sporting man and a sup-porter of England’s Chelsea soccer team,has long believed in the power of sports as a

vector for social change. ‘‘It’s something that hashelped me and given me support,’’ he says. ‘‘And forforeigners in England, it’s an important way of makingfriends and breaking down barriers.’’

That belief had laid the ground for themoment of inspiration that occurred oneday when de Giorgio picked up his son froma private school in London and noticed itsplaying fields lying empty. Why not putthem to use for the benefit of other kids, hethought, who are not as fortunate?

After selling his financial consultancy,Portman Consultants, in 2002, he hadbeen looking around for a cause to sup-port and had been donating to otherpeople’s programs, but he was dissatis-fied with the way they were run. ‘‘I felt like I was payingfor expenses without seeing good outcomes,’’ hesays. He saw those empty playing fields as an oppor-tunity to set up his own charity, which he namedGreenhouse. He persuaded the school to let youngpeople from poorer parts of London use the sportsfields during the summer.

The idea caught on, and other schools volunteeredtheir fields, but transporting the kids to the differentparts of town proved too complicated and time-consuming, so de Giorgio eventually changed themodel, choosing other sports that could be played infacilities in the participants’ own schools.

Greenhouse also began to hire and train its owncoaches, who work in the schools during both theschool year and holidays and see the same kids on aregular basis, acting as mentors to them. ‘‘That’s howyou can have an impact on these young people,’’ hesays. ‘‘If you say, come and do some extra math, no onewants to come, but if you say come and play table ten-nis with our cool coaches, that’s a different story.’’ Be-cause the coaches, some of whom are Olympic cham-pions, are trained by Greenhouse and have apermanent presence in the schools, they are also morelikely to influence other aspects of the kids’ lives.‘‘Sports is a great carrot for young people,’’ de Giorgiosays. ‘‘Once you can get them in, you can help them withtheir health, diet, education, discipline and more.’’

Greenhouse now has 45 programs in London —38 in secondary schools, eight in special educationalneeds schools and five community programs — aswell as outreach programs to 20 primary schools. Theschools are located in areas where 70 percent ofyoung people live in poverty. The 10,000 childrencoached by Greenhouse annually show not only im-proved self-confidence, self-discipline, motivation andhappiness at school, but also score a full grade higherthan their fellow pupils in English and mathematics.Compared with their peers, they also have betterschool attendance and fewer poor behavior reports.

Greenhouse also uses performing arts as a way ofinvolving young people, and is trying to reach out to

N ii Bruce-Tagoe, 18, is a shining example of Mi-chael de Giorgio’s belief in the power of sportsto create social change. Bruce-Tagoe joined

Greenhouse when he was 12, and when he was ‘‘14going on 15,’’ he says, his coach, PredragKrneta, named him to the Greenhouse Gi-ants basketball team, making him theyoungest player not only on the team butalso in the league, which plays all overEngland. He made a vow to himself, whichhe kept, to never miss practice or a singleclass from then on. ‘‘During the year Iwould play a few minutes of each game,traveling to different cities and getting ex-perience,’’ he says. ‘‘I took more responsibility for my-self and matured a lot during this year.’’

He also met other players from different countriesand backgrounds and ‘‘learned a lot about the world,’’he says. As he got stronger and healthier, his gradesimproved. He notes wryly that he didn’t think his teach-ers ‘‘would have predicted this a few years ago’’ andcredits those opportunities with helping him ‘‘stayaway from the negativity around my neighborhood.’’

More opportunities soon arrived. His coach madehim coach of the under-13s basketball team. ‘‘This re-sponsibility made me more mature,’’ he says, ‘‘and Ihope that I managed to pass on my experience tothose younger kids.’’ He was also made prefect at hisschool and was sent by Greenhouse to a basketball

camp in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Through his sportingactivities, he got to meet a number of ‘‘amazingpeople’’ from the sports world, including a sportscommissioner, the former world heavyweight champi-

on David Haye and the former ChicagoBulls player B.J. Armstrong.

Bruce-Tagoe, who grew up in south-east London and still lives there, is nowfinishing secondary school and will go toSouthampton Solent University nextSeptember to study sports journalismwhile continuing his career as a basket-ball player. He stays in close touch withKrneta, speaking to him every week and

asking him for advice on everything from basketball tohis education. ‘‘He’s a very cool guy,’’ he says.

Bruce-Tagoe says, ‘‘My life is truly transformed,’’noting that a few years earlier he had been ‘‘skippingclass and hanging out with the wrong people. Now Ihave big hopes for myself and work hard every day toreach my ambitions. This would not have been possi-ble without the help from Greenhouse. For me, Green-house changed everything.’’[

GRAND PRIZE WINNER | Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli, Instituto Ayrton Senna

A race-car driver’s lasting positive legacy

M any philanthropic enterprises are born oftragic circumstances, but the seed for the In-stituto Ayrton Senna, the grand-prize winner

of the 2012 BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philan-thropy, was planted during a conversation betweenthe famed 34-year-old Formula One driver AyrtonSenna and his sister, Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli, justtwo months before he was killed in a racing accident in1994.

‘‘He told me that he wanted to give something sig-nificant back to his country by helping Brazilian chil-dren,’’ she says, ‘‘and he asked me to help him devel-op something.’’ They planned to continue theirdiscussion when he returned from the Formula Onerace in Europe, but they never saw each other again.Viviane, who was a psychologist and enjoyed workingwith children, decided to carry out his wish with thehelp of their close-knit family.

Ayrton Senna was a wildly popular figure in Brazil atthe time. Just a few months before his death, he hadintroduced a cartoon character called Senninha, aneight-year-old who dreams of becoming a racingdriver, which became a great success. The family de-cided to donate all profits from this franchise, today

Michael de Giorgio’s Greenhouse project now has 45programs in London schools.

Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli runs the foundation inspired byher late brother, the Formula One driver Ayrton Senna.

Ladreit de Lacharrière, the foundation’s executive di-rector. They talked about the tricky business ofpassing on a foundation to one’s heirs, who may ormay not be interested in continuing its work.

The BNP Paribas Prize for Individual Philanthropywas created in 2008 by BNP Paribas as a way ofdrawing attention to the sustainable achievements ofexemplary philanthropists and, at the same time,

CASE STUDY | Instituto Ayrton Senna

Through dance, a path to university and Paris

T he Instituto Ayrton Senna has helped educatenearly 16 million Brazilian children since it wasfounded in 1994. That impressive but dry figure

omits the fact that each one of those millions of chil-dren has a story. For many in Brazil, extreme povertyand the schools’ inability to retain children (only 50percent finish their basic education)mean that the story may well end inschool failure, drugs, prostitution, infor-mal jobs or violence. ‘‘That’s what hap-pens when they don’t have the opportuni-ty to help themselves and develop theirpotential,’’ says the institute’s director,Viviane Senna da Silva Lalli.

Thanks to the institute’s Educationthrough Art program, Jamila Lopes wasone of those who was given that opportunity andseized it. Now 20, she was born in Icapuí, in the stateof Ceará in northeastern Brazil, the daughter of a lob-ster fisherman and a seamstress. When she was alittle girl, she had the chance to go to Edisca, a dancing

school in Fortaleza, Ceará, which has a partnershipwith the Instituto Ayrton Senna.

Her talent quickly shone through, and when shewas only 10 years old, she was whisked off on a tour.‘‘Just imagine!’’ she says. ‘‘A 10-year-old child fromIcapuí being able to fulfill her dream of being on

a stage, and not just any stage, but inParis!’’

Now a beautiful young woman with acrooked smile and a bright light in hereyes, Lopes worked hard at school, deter-mined to get good grades. ‘‘Now that I hadthis chance, I knew I must grab it,’’ shesays. She managed to finish at the top ofher class and was awarded a computerfor her efforts. She won a scholarship,

and now studies dance at the Ceará Federal Universi-ty and teaches dance to children. Her appreciation forthe chance she has been given is boundless. ‘‘If dan-cing were not part of my life,’’ she says, ‘‘then I wouldhave a much more difficult path to tread.’’[

Prize-winning philanthropists share their advice for success

Basketball opened the doors for this participant inGreenhouse’s sports programs.

more girls through such activities as dance and by re-cruiting more female coaches.

Says jury member Suzanne Berger: ‘‘This year’saward to Michael de Giorgio shows how innovation inphilanthropy can come about through identifying newand efficient ways of meeting great need: it takes aninnovator like Michael de Giorgio to see that the under-

utilized sports facilities in some privilegedschools in London could, with the properorganization, be used by many otherchildren.’’

In addition to contributing his ownmoney to Greenhouse, de Giorgio worksfull time as its unpaid chief executive of-ficer. Aware that charities often have areputation for being poorly managed, heruns Greenhouse like a business, ensur-ing that every penny is spent properly. Heis also concerned about the sustainability

of the organization and is building a managementteam that will enable it to survive after he leaves.

With the Olympics coming to London, de Giorgio ishoping that the power of sport as an agent for socialchange will not be overlooked during the excitement ofthe Games.[

De Giorgio runsGreenhouse like

a business,ensuring thatevery penny

is spentproperly

Nathalie Sauvanet, head of Individual Philanthropy atBNP Paribas Wealth Management.

There are as many ways to give as there areneedy people, ranging from the simplest —giving a coin to a beggar in the street, say —to what may be the most complicated: settingup a full-fledged foundation. For a buddingphilanthropist, the plethora of options can beconfusing. What better place to start than toask the advice of someone who has beenthere?

Professor Odon Vallet, the 2009 winner ofthe BNP Paribas Prize for IndividualPhilanthropy, who created the Fondation OdonVallet in France in 1999 to offer scholarshipsto deserving young people in Vietnam, Beninand France, does not hesitate when asked fortips on getting started in the world ofphilanthropy.

‘‘First of all, remember that it always takesmore time and money than expected,’’ hesays. He strongly advises philanthropists tostay within their own area of expertise. ‘‘If youare a doctor, create a medical foundation; if

you are a teacher like me, an educationalfoundation. Never venture into an area inwhich you have no competence.’’

Tip number three: ‘‘Don’t spread yourselfthin. Have a fairly precise and realistic goal.’’For those who have children, he recommendstrying to interest them in what the foundationdoes so that it can continue its work, adding:‘‘Remember that a foundation is not perennial— you are not obliged to keep it goingforever.’’

On the other side of the world, a verydifferent type of philanthropic enterprise, theCambodia Trust, which works with people withdisabilities in Cambodia, Indonesia, Sri Lankaand the Philippines, is headed by Peter Carey,the 2011 winner of the BNP Paribas Prize forIndividual Philanthropy’s special prize.

Carey gets straight to the point with hisadvice: ‘‘Trust in the Lord, but always tie upyour camel!’’ and, quoting the British-IndianStaff College Manual (Quetta 1942), ‘‘Time

spent in reconnaissance is seldom wasted.’’He explains: ‘‘Yes, Providence will make thingspossible for you if the time is right and theneed self-evident, but remember that thesmallest things will be the making of thesuccess or failure of your project, e.g.,securing the right visas and official operatingpermissions. Never take yourself tooseriously, because everyone is dispensable. Atthe same time, remember the devil is in thedetail, so never take anything for granted; doyour research carefully; choose your partnerswisely — you need people who are genuinelycommitted and don’t carry a lot of ideologicalor bureaucratic baggage. Always plan for theworst-case scenario.’’

Echoing Vallet, he cautions that nothinglasts forever. ‘‘All projects, however noble,have a life span of their own,’’ he says,concluding: ‘‘Remember, the quicker you canwork yourself out of a job, the moresuccessful and well rooted your project.’’

to provide role models for its clients and otherphilanthropists. The grand prize winner is chosen forlaudable dedication, professionalism and results, andis awarded a photography book produced by the bankand dedicated to his or her philanthropic activities.The special prize award is based on strong personalinvolvement in a local project and includes a cashprize of ¤50,000 ($62,000).[

worth $70 million, to the newly formed Instituto AyrtonSenna, which later began to attract donations fromprivate enterprises as they became aware of the ef-fectiveness of its programs.

For Senna da Silva Lalli, education was the naturalfocus for the foundation. ‘‘Our country has manyneeds in social areas,’’ she says, ‘‘but we made thestrategic choice to focus on education.’’ In Brazil’s no-toriously inadequate public education system, sheadds, ‘‘almost all children are in school, but only fiveout of 10 of them finish their basic education and, ofthe 10 who graduate, only two speak Portuguese welland only one is proficient in math.’’

After its first two years in operation, the institute,which works in partnership with the public educationsystem to supplement teacher training, had already as-sisted 40,000 children, a number that would impressmost people, but not Senna da Silva Lalli. ‘‘I came backfrom the field concerned, because I felt that 40,000 wasa small number compared to the need,’’ she says. ‘‘Iwanted every child who needed it to have opportunity.’’

She set her mind to the challenge of attacking theproblem on a large scale, and after two years hadworked out a plan. Taking the work of Freud and Jungas her inspiration, she created a paradigm, a small-scale model that could be applied on a wider scale.She sees the institute as a kind of laboratory whereshe developed a formula for a vaccine to prevent thewider social problems caused by the lack of a goodeducation.

Now the institute works within schools in everystate in Brazil, training 70,000 teachers a year, ment-oring them, creating educational programs and for-mally evaluating results. Since it was founded, it hasreached nearly 16 million children and 694,000 edu-cators in 1,530 cities. It claims a 95 percent successrate in terms of students completing their education,compared to the national average of 30 percent.

While Senna da Silva Lalli sees some improvementin the Brazilian public education system, it still has along way to go. ‘‘We don’t have the necessary humaninfrastructure,’’ she says, ‘‘because the country didn’tbuild it.’’

Her life is now entirely devoted to the institute, forwhich she works long, hard days as its president andspokeswoman. She runs the institute like a corpora-tion, establishing goals, finding people with the rightskills and monitoring results closely. ‘‘Our focus is noton good intentions,’’ she says, ‘‘but on results. We wantthe children to learn, and to learn to love to study.’’[

‘Now that I hadthis chance,’says Jamila

Lopes,‘I knew I must

grab it’

‘Thisresponsibility

made memore mature,’

says NiiBruce-Tagoe

BNP PARIBAS PRIZEFOR INDIVIDUAL PHILANTHROPY 2012

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‘Customerservice comes

first. Setting upa philanthropicproject is a verypersonal step’

The BNP Paribas Prize for IndividualPhilanthropy, now celebrating its fifth

consecutive year, honored two new laureates at aceremony in Paris on the evening of June 20

The 2012 awards ceremonyThe awards ceremony for the BNP ParibasPrize for Individual Philanthropy on June 20was attended by over 200 people,philanthropy opinion leaders and clients ofBNP Paribas Wealth Management.A wordthat came up many times during thespeeches and the debate preceding theprize-giving was ‘‘values,’’ in reference toBNP Paribas’ strong commitment to socialresponsibility and in response to one of thequestions posed by the debate: ‘‘Canphilanthropy be inherited?’’ In accepting theaward, the special prize winner, Michael deGiorgio, put the spotlight on some of theyouth helped by his charity, Greenhouse,and the coaches who inspired them. Themost emotional moment of the eveningcame when the grand prize-winner, VivianeSenna da Silva Lalli of the Instituto AyrtonSenna, spoke about the importance ofproviding hopeful opportunities tounderprivileged Brazilian children.

Jamila Lopez has turned an interest into a career path,thanks to the Instituto Ayrton Senna.

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Honoring philanthropicvalues: (from left) Specialprize winner Michael deGiorgio; Sofia Merlo, co-CEOof BNP Paribas WealthManagement; Mustafa Koç,representing the Koç family,last year’s grand prize winner;2012 grand prize winnerViviane Senna da Silva Lalli;Jean-Laurent Bonnafé, CEO ofBNP Paribas; Suzanne Berger,chair of the jury; and VincentLecomte, co-CEO of BNPParibas Wealth Management.

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