Fuertes Razones " Powerful Reasons" is a European non-profit organization with an international vocation, founded at the end of 2020 with the aim of creating a global citizens' movement inspired by the defense of the International Charter of Human Rights and the fulfillment of the Sustainable Global Goals of the United Nations Agenda 2030.
Its founder and president David Ramil Eiriz was born in Chantada (Galicia) 38 years ago, but since 2017 he has been living in Cyprus where he works for a financial company.
Graduate from the University of Santiago, in Political Science and with a Master in Local Administration from the same institution, jurist and specialist in foreign trade and international marketing from the Polytechnic University of Madrid, he is currently studying at Harvard, after having lived in countries as diverse as Sweden, Italy, and Malta. It is a pleasure for Rankia to be able to interview him exclusively.
First of all, tell us where the idea of Fuertes Razones came from and what is its mission?
It is an initiative that former university colleagues and different people of great capacity and experience had been considering, but it was during the period when more freedoms were restricted, at the peak of COVID-19, when we thought it was the right time to launch it. Its mission is to help people and communities in vulnerable situations, at local, European, and international levels.
What are the SDGs and how do you think they will change the international financial landscape?
The Sustainable Development Goals, also known as the SDGs, were adopted by all UN member states in 2015 as a universal call to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. The concept of "sustainable finance" aims to leverage new resources and engage the financial system in achieving the SDGs. The concept of sustainability is key; indeed, the scientific community is unanimous that the current production model is in decline. According to various sources, oil will run out in 40 to 80 years at the current rate of consumption, but more dramatically, fossil fuels are causing serious damage to ecosystems without any international organization acting directly to stop it. To sum up, if this generation does not do something immediately, future generations will face an unprecedented environmental catastrophe that will threaten the survival of millions of species, including humans.
You are the first non-profit organization in the world to use Blockchain technology in your own ecosystem, what is the benefit of using this technology? what direct impact does it have on the economy and on the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals?
Blockchain technology enables the generation of value and the transfer of different assets between two or more parties in a transparent, secure, and inexpensive way. It is already being used successfully at the state level in Estonia, which is considered the world's first digital country. If the full potential it offers is used correctly, we will be able to promote the change towards cleaner decentralized solutions that help to preserve our resources to a greater extent, especially non-renewable ones, unlocking natural capital and making all members of the community, without exception, active participants in this great change.
I am convinced that the revolution that has begun with Blockchain and smart agreements, combined with a global movement that finally assumes its social responsibility, will help to the development of a new era of global well-being, security, progress, and sustainability.
What is the EFQM Management Model?
It is an instrument that was born with the creation of the European Foundation for Quality Management and that helps organizations to establish an appropriate management system, measuring at what point they are on the path to excellence, identifying possible shortcomings in the organization, and defining actions for improvement.
t has become a reference for many public companies in the different member countries of the European Union, especially in those with a more developed welfare state, such as the Nordic countries. By applying this kind of solutions, in combination with technologies that guarantee maximum transparency, we are trying to turn Fuertes Razones into an example of an organization that shows the way forward for many others in which citizens do not trust, due to the institutionalized corruption that is inoculating a large part of the countries of southern Europe.
Rankia is a large financial community, how do you think the Sustainable Development Goals can be aligned with entities in the world of finance?
The financial world is highly dependent on natural resources and the preservation of the planet. It is likely that in a few decades we will see the children of the owners of large international corporations more concerned with finding places where they can breathe without oxygen machines or where they do not receive solar radiation that causes serious illnesses, than with business. In the end, although they know perfectly well how to collaborate, in most cases they do not do so because their great obsession is to become the richest. Thankfully there are exceptions and Rankia being a large financial community, we are calling on financial institutions that are truly committed to the SDGs to join the cause. If they approach us we will listen to them and guide them in the best possible way.
In the last few years, ESG or sustainable investment funds have become quite popular. Do you think this is an important step towards increasing society's awareness of sustainability and responsible consumption, or is there still a long way to go?
Propaganda. The vast majority of ESGs are owned by companies that finance quite the opposite of what they claim. I urge you to stop inventing sounding acronyms for a facelift and take this seriously for once. Do you think it is wise for banks that lend to companies that flood the planet with CO2 to create an ESG with the aim of fighting climate change? Draw your own conclusions.
What social projects does the non-profit organisation currently carry out?
To begin with, we have been accredited by the European Commission as an entity with the legal capacity to implement projects in the EU and we are making alliances with organizations across the continent to advance the construction of a Social Europe, based on equal opportunities. At an international level, we work with Maya Universe Academy supporting their children's education program in Kathmandu, through which they provide educational and employment opportunities for hundreds of children.
In Spain, we have signed collaboration agreements with the UNED (Spanish Distance Education University) and the FEMP (Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces) to work with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Agenda 2030 to promote the Sustainable Development Goals in municipalities throughout Spain by 2022. We also closed an agreement with the Astronomy Federation to begin the construction of the largest observatory in Europe in Galicia.
We are a very young entity, however, we have a team of people located in different parts of the world, from the USA (Washington) to Kenya, from the UK (Liverpool) to Galicia, from Cyprus to Nepal, who understand that we are facing a unique opportunity in the history of humanity to transform declarations of good intentions into reality.
Where are you finding more support?
It is important to emphasise that private equity firms are currently our biggest allies, but we need more of them to join us in order to grow. In return, we help them to promote and improve their Corporate Social Responsibility policies in order to guarantee their economic and environmental sustainability, among many other things. Rankia is a great example to follow in this regard. We are committed to a model that synthesizes the best business practices in the management of resources and attracts business partners with a clear objective: to promote the improvement and success of social projects by generating resources so millions of people can improve their lives.
In relation to Public Administrations, a distinction must be made between those that comply with the law and those that do not. For example, the Autonomous Community of Navarra does its homework correctly. Another public body that complies with the law is the FEGAMP, which has just signed an agreement to start providing training on the SDGs to more than 150 local councils in Galicia from the beginning of 2022. I should recall that the UN General Assembly approved the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development on 25 September 2015, which was an unprecedented resolution, ratified by an overwhelming majority of countries, including Spain. It is paradoxical that some technocrats defend at all costs the fulfillment of laws and that one of the most important regulations of recent decades is ignored by many public administrations.
Finally, how can we collaborate with Fuertes Razones and what advantages will the members/ partners have?
It is very easy. Just go to our website www.fuertes-razones.org where we offer many options for collaboration or send an email directly to [email protected]. To get closer to the goals of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, we are counting on everyone.
