About Us

Founded in May 2016 by lastminute.com Group and his founder, Fabio Cannavale, lastminute foundation is an independent foundation under Swiss law, based in Chiasso.

The foundation was created with the purpose of:

  1. Promoting social and cultural innovation through the development or the support of projects with high technological value.
  2. Support, through targeted initiatives, institutions, organisations, projects or companies whose goal is to promote sustainable development from both an environmental and social point of view, through innovation.
  3. Promoting public utility activities in international development cooperation and international solidarity (especially in the health sector, environmental protection, social services and activities in particular towards minors and disadvantaged people).
  4. Carrying out charitable activities, indirectly as well, through the support and partnership with other nonprofit and public utility organisations, entities of the third sector and of social economy.

In the context of its activities, the foundation is attentive to principles of sustainable development, corporate social responsibility and philanthropy.

Lastminute foundation has been registered and received the fiscal exemption by the Swiss Authorities.

i nostri
valori

BE BOLD:

Everyone can act and dare to create opportunities for those who are at the margins. We facilitate everyone's commitment to supporting social causes, their own and those of others, whether they are well-known or less so.

BE THE OWNER:

We believe in a factual and scientific approach. Education that leads to reasoning, as well as the ability to select and interpret information sources and make rational decisions, is fundamental for us. We believe in the value that error brings and how fundamental it is to one's cognitive and human development.

BE TRANSPARENT :

Honesty and good faith are fundamental principles for all the Foundation's activities, initiatives and relationships. All the relationships we have, at all levels, are based on criteria and behaviours of fairness, integrity, collaboration, loyalty, and mutual respect.

BE RESPONSIBLE:

We are aware of the social role we have in our area of work, including economic and social development, and we do all we can for the well-being of the community in which we operate.

BE RESPECTFUL:

We promote and respect the fundamental rights of people by protecting moral integrity and ensuring equal opportunities. We do not tolerate any form of harassment, including gender, race, age, nationality, religion, sexual orientation or any disability, nor any misconduct and physical or moral violence, as these undermine trust and the ability to work together.

BE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY:

The world is our home or all of us to protect and preserve. We are therefore committed to protecting the environment and promoting sustainability at all levels.

BE RELEVANT:

Everyone can and should be a leader for change and contribute to a world of greater justice. We strive to achieve a positive social impact and we are indeed committed to having everyone benefit from it not just non-profits, but also companies and entrepreneurs alike, no matter how big or small, young or old.

BE YOURSELF:

We value the diversity of each person. In all of the Foundation's activities, we value the unique contribution of each individual. We also believe that it is important to give everyone space and create the conditions for their talents to emerge and find expression; better decisions and greater social impact come from the contribution of diversity and talent, as well as the acceptance of different points of view.

I nostri
obiettivi principali

Investments for sustainable development

There are some investment in innovation that could not reply the initial capital soon enough to be considered good business opportunities. They could, however, break even pretty soon and have a strong social impact. This is the kind of project we like as a foundation.

Social Entrepreneurship

We want to support high impact entrepreneurs who develope solutions aiming at bringing concrete benefits to people and society, through training activities and the building of an effective positive impact entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Education

We want to create educational ecosystem that cultivates and spreads entrepreneurial culture starting from the eary childhood. In an ever-changing society like ours, entrepreneurship is a crucial topic of key importance, that should be dealt with young children since early childhood.

Corporate social responsibility

We want to rewrite the way of doing business by making sure that the economic activities carried out by the companies can be regenerative and create a positive impact on people and the enviroment. We, therefore, support the development of corporate social responsibility activities of partner companies and we also develop partnerships with organizations and institutions that work in this field.

Il board

Our board is responsible for managing the foundation. It’s currently composed by the four members listed below. The activity performed within the Foundation Board are honorary.

Fabio Cannavale

Chairman of the Board of Trustees

Entrepreneur in technological innovation and CEO of lastminute.com group. Two sons and three great passions: sailing, traveling and active participation in emerging sectors, as one of the major shareholder in seed capital in Italy.

Paola Abondio

Vice-Chairman of the Board of Trusteee

Successful marketing manager, Paola has been working for many years for international renowned fashion brands. Born in Brescia now living in Ticino, has a strong passion for food and wine, better if shared with friends. She is mother of 3 children.

Andrea Grassi

Member of the Board of Trustee

Andrea has 25 years of investment experience, almost half of which with Ultra High Net Worth clients. From 2011 to 2021 he led UBS's team of Ultra High Net Worth advisors serving clients domiciled in Ticino and in his position he was also a member of the UHNW / GFO Switzerland Management Team and the Local Governance and Risk committee. Since September 2021 he has been a founding partner of Legacy CAM (Consulting and Asset Management) in Lugano as Managing Partner.

Paola Garzoni

Member of the Board of Trustee

Paola Garzoni heads investments of her real estate family businesses encompassing a construction company, Garzoni SA headquartered in Lugano, Switzerland, student housings, an hotel, and several other ventures in the real estate development and investment field in Switzerland, Italy , UK, Poland and USA. She has a keen interest in philanthropy.

il team

Susanna Sguera

Managing Director

With a degree in Comunication sciences, she has been working as documentary producer for many years and she participated in some international cooperation projects overseeing the production of video and books for fundraising purpose in benefit of non profit organization operating in Asia and Africa.

Maria Serena Maierna

Coordinator and Project Manager

Psychologist and Social Theater Operator, she has many years of experience in school contexts and other educational contexts, with projects to promote health and well-being, learning tutorship, contrasting discrimination, bullying and gender-based violence, theatrical and artistic workshops. Since 2021 she is involved in the coordination, planning and supervision of the foundation's educational projects.

Francesca Redaelli

Administration

With a degree in Political Science, Francesca has been working in the administration and HR sector for many years. She has worked as an accountant at lastminute.com group and she now works part-time at lastminute Foundation. Born in Milan, she now lives in the countryside where she dedicates herself to her passion for photography and ecology.