Percorsi di secondo welfare
Observatory on "second welfare" in Italy
Percorsi di secondo welfare is a two-year research project started in April 2011.
It is structured as a partnership, led by Dr. Franca Maino as director and Prof. Maurizio Ferrera as scientific supervisor, both academics at the University of Milan, and hosted by the research centre Centro Einaudi in Turin. The venture has been funded and actively supported by our partners: Compagnia di San Paolo, Fondazione Cariplo, Fondazione con il Sud, ANIA, KME and Luxottica. Corriere della Sera, in the person of Dario Di Vico, also deserves to be mentioned for its active support and for the paternity, together with Maurizio Ferrera, of the whole idea behind our study.
Percorsi di secondo welfare is committed to enhancing the common understanding of what has recently come to be known as “second welfare”. The term, initially coined by Dario di Vico and Maurizio Ferrera by means of their contributions on the Corriere della Sera, refers to “a mix of social protection and social investment programs which are not funded by the state, but provided instead by a wide range of economic and social actors, linked to territories and local communities, but open to trans-local partnerships and collaborations (including the EU)” (Ferrera and Maino, 2011). Through the collection and evaluation of new initiatives and best practices, the study seeks to promote a “virtuous nesting” between first and second welfare, that will ultimately be able to tackle the challenges posed by future demographic trends and the emergence of new social needs, and worsened by the present financial situation. Our research encompasses several areas of the social provision, with a specific focus on the non-public actors that increasingly play a role in the welfare arena, and the dynamics that determine their growing involvement. These players are private companies, trade unions, insurance companies, foundations, grant-making associations and the “Third Sector”, professional associations, and the local governments and public institutions that build partnerships together with those private actors. Occupational welfare, venture philanthropy, industrial relations and impact investment are, among others, fields of interest of the project.
The website www.secondowelfare.it collects the most significant “second welfare” experiences at mostly national but to some extent international levels, and attempts to spread them for purposes of evaluation and, hopefully, emulation. Our research also seeks to build a comprehensive database of what already exists in terms of “second welfare” practices, and to build a strong conceptual framework for future reference. The final report, to be produced during the second year, will elaborate on these experiences and best practices in order to offer a more extensive view on developments and perspectives for “second welfare” in Italy, and to ultimately help grow the capacity of the actors who take part in its advancement.