La Caixa makes autism visible through social theater

The great social work carried out by the people who are part of the Caixa Volunteer Program is known to everyone, this foundation is part of the bank and its primary objective is to help those groups most in need in our society. Non-profit, it was created in 1904 and since then it has not stopped carrying out initiatives and reaching millions of people.
Among its main fields of action are the labor integration of those groups at risk of social exclusion, study grants, the integration of children with educational problems, active aging and a long etcetera.

Normalizing the differences

One of the current programs that it has seeks to integrate people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), mainly Asperger syndrome, into society. In collaboration with the project “You are also here”, they seek to give visibility to this type of disability through social theater.
The latter is also part of la Caixa, in particular its project of social insertion through the performing arts Art For Change, an initiative that unites art and culture, and in which all kinds of people participate, with special integration those with exclusion problems.
The artists invite the audience to reflect on the disease and to do this they distribute tests before and after the performance so that they can see how their perception of the disease has changed. With this work they want to reach all corners of society, that everyone knows what it is really to have ASD and normalize the situation, making the population understand that autism education is everyone's job and responsibility.
With a very participatory representation, it seeks the inclusion of the entire audience in it, reaching the emotion of the entire stalls, making them know other realities and be able to listen to them, trying to put themselves in their shoes and come to understand what it is to live together day to day with these types of diseases.

Vulnerable seniors

Today, in the society in which we live there is a very vulnerable group that is very lonely, those are the oldest. La Caixa, in its social work, offers them a friendly voice so that they feel accompanied during this summer.
A group of volunteers, organized by Adopt a Grandfather, provides a telephone company to those elderly people who live alone or are in residences and cannot go outside.
The project establishes that at least one call is produced weekly, giving them the security of accompaniment and that they have a certain socialization with someone. Currently, it is the elderly who have suffered the most from the latest changes, some of them becoming isolated at home out of fear, which is why this initiative has been created, to give them peace of mind, support and show them that they are not alone, creating bonds of friendship and finding someone to share their experiences or memories with.
The number of volunteers does not stop growing, it is already working with 85 older people in different autonomous communities such as Catalonia, Andalusia, Castilla y León, Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, Aragon, Madrid, Galicia, Cantabria and the Valencian Community. Anyone can sign up to participate, you just have to fill out a form to have control on both sides and thus achieve a similar and lasting relationship on the part of the organizers.
All those who participate have received special training for this task, especially the way in which they have to carry the conversation, with special emphasis on active listening and making the older person feel good about continuing to speak, encouraging them to keep active. They are the ones who have many things to tell. Calls are made through a platform specially enabled for this purpose, where volunteers call and contact the older person assigned to them, always being the same subjects and using factors such as proximity to the person to create these relationships. greater and availability of both parties.
According to estimates, there are more than 300,000 older people living in residences and more than 2 million who live completely alone in their homes. Both organizations encourage young people to continue joining the initiative, one of the positive points of this activity is the union of different generations, making them find themselves in a very special situation and come to empathize with the person they have. to the other side.