On 4 and 5 July, in Cerdeira (Portugal), the EIB Institute will support and participate in the first Aldeia da Inovação Social (social innovation village).

For two days, Cerdeira, a village located in an area devastated by forest fires in 2017, will be transformed into an interactive location where the most innovative social initiatives in Portugal will showcase their projects.  The Institute will have a stand and will support AdoptGrandParents (Spain) one of the laureates of the 2017 Social Innovation Tournament, which was also invited to showcase its initiative.

AdoptGrandParents is a Spanish social initiative connecting elderly people without family with younger people willing to spend time with them.

Active in 20 cities in Spain, AdoptGrandParents has enabled 250 elderly people to enjoy 15,000 hours of the company of 500 volunteers. The initiative won a “residency at IRIS” the first Regional Social Innovation Incubator, in the 2017 edition of the SIT that allowed it to expand into Portugal, targeting Lisbon, Porto and the area of Tamega e Sousa, where IRIS is located.