Interview with Martine Cassar Director of Social Investments at Child10 partner Applied Value Group

Our individual support program for each organisation is launched on the 1st of April when we issue a press release on the scaling up of our partnership with our private sector partner, Applied Value. In relation to the launch we have interviewed Martine Cassar, the Director of Social Investments at the Applied Value Group.

Hi Martine!

We at Child10 are so happy that Applied Value has chosen to support us with your time and expertise. Unfortunately, private sectore support to organizations working to end human trafficking and sexual exploitation of children has traditionally been limited perhaps as the subject is too dark and difficult to be associated with. What led Applied Value to support Child10?

Trafficking of children is a heinous act and we should all bare the responsibility to prevent it from happening. It is undoubtedly one of the darkest subjects to address, however that is not a reason to shy away from it. We at Applied Value are not intimidated by this darkness – on the contrary, we find it is imperative to shed light on this monstrous phenomenon in hope that this would urge more people to want to take up the fight to counter trafficking.

Many companies support civil society by only providing financial resources. You on the other hand, have chosen to support us both financially and in kind with your consultants providing direct support to the Child10 Awarded Members as well as supporting Child10 with research and due diligence of potential partners. What would you say are the benefits of this approach, both for Applied Value as well as the consultants themselves? 

There are instances where financial aid is the only aid that could contribute to a beneficial outcome. However there are many other scenarios where the donation of time and talent are even more valuable. As my boss and Chairman of Applied Value Bruce Grant lives by the proverb, ‘..Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’

Through donating our time and talent, Applied Value’s motive is to assist the Child10 Awarded Members to reach their goals in the most cost/time-efficient manner and become more sustainable. In the process of such programs, our consultants also become more knowledgeable and sensitized on matters that would traditionally be out of their scope of work.

What would you like to say to other companies that would like to make a difference through partnerships with civil society actors like us?

I believe every company should seek ways in which it can give back to society – I would definitely recommend a partnership program model with a civil society actor, such as Child10. The benefits exist for both the civil society actors, as well as for the individual private companies, since contributing to CSR, gives back to the social issue at hand; the employee’s satisfaction, as well as the company’s attractiveness and therefore every company should seriously consider doing so.