VINCI has extended its partnership with the INSA Foundation for a further three years and has committed to working with the INSA group to improve equal opportunities and social inclusion

Nanterre, 19 January 2024

VINCI has extended its partnership with the INSA Foundation for a further three years and has committed to working with the INSA group to improve equal opportunities and social inclusion

• Funding of the INSA group's national host scholarship programme and mentoring programme
• Deployment of local initiatives to promote diversity and help people from low-income backgrounds go to university
• Organisation of an annual spoken art event for students

As one of the founding sponsors of the INSA Foundation (Institut national des sciences appliquées) since 2019, VINCI announced on 18 January that it would extend the partnership for a further three years in order to support INSA’s humanist engineer model.

“The INSA group is delighted to see the partnership with VINCI extend into the long-term. We have been able to count on their support since 2019 to assist with the deployment of our actions, which directly resonate with our model to help people from low-income backgrounds go to university and promote the humanist engineer idea that makes us who we are.” Mourad Boukhalfa, Chairman of the INSA group.

VINCI’s support serves to finance nearly 200 €500 grants each year awarded to all the children who benefit from secondary school scholarships when they start at one of the seven INSA universities. One meaningful change introduced this year is that scholarship students will have the opportunity to be paired with INSA alumni employed within the VINCI Group who will mentor, advise and help them to understand the profession and the world of work.

“The INSA Foundation would like to warmly thank VINCI for its loyal support, epitomising our shared values to promote diversity and improve opportunities for people from low-income backgrounds to go to university thereby amplifying the impact of our community actions to help students in need develop their skills and become the humanist engineers of tomorrow.” Christian Nibourel, Chairman of the INSA Foundation.

Building on the success of the first two “Jeudi de l’Éloquence” events, the partnership intends to continue holding the national public speaking competition, which enables students from the seven INSA universities to test their oratory skills by debating major societal issues that affect the business world. This year, eight candidates went head-to-head discussing their thoughts on the place work should occupy in our lives.

The learning objectives set out by INSA include several soft skills, such as self-awareness, understanding of the environment, insight into the corporate world, interpersonal relations, intercultural intelligence and communication, in order to mould humanist engineers able to understand and take meaningful action in a changing world. The public speaking competition serves to support the student engineers to achieve success, going beyond simply teaching technical skills.

Tailored to meet local needs and operate in close collaboration with the VINCI Regional Directorates and the local INSA foundations, the partnership finances local initiatives that promote equal opportunities among students, such as supporting entrepreneurship, fostering diversity and inclusion (in particular of people with disabilities) and student charity funds.

“We are delighted to extend our sponsorship agreement with the INSA group and Foundation, which we have supported since 2019 and with which we share a single ambition to take a humanist approach to engineering so as to consider technical challenges with the same importance as energy and community concerns, all as part of a complex and changing world. The cooperation between the INSA Foundation and VINCI enable the engineers of tomorrow to develop an in-depth understanding of the needs on the ground by gaining an insight into our professions as well as our social and environmental commitments.

The energy transition and climate emergency facing the world mean the need for engineering is greater than ever. Our core business as builders has never been more central to society!” Xavier Huillard, Chairman and CEO of the VINCI Group.

About VINCI

VINCI is a global player in concessions, construction and energy, employing over 272,000 people in over 120 countries. We design, finance, build and operate infrastructure and facilities that help improve daily life and mobility for all. Because we believe in all-round performance, we are committed to operating in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. And because our projects are in the public interest, we consider that reaching out to all our stakeholders and engaging in dialogue with them is essential in the conduct of our business activities. VINCI’s goal is to create long-term value for its customers, shareholders, employees, and partners, and for society at large.

About the INSA Group

The INSA group (Instituts nationaux des sciences appliquées) is the first group of state-run engineering universities in France. Each year, the seven schools (based in Centre Val de Loire, Hauts-de-France, Lyon, Rennes, Rouen-Normandie, Strasbourg and Toulouse) train over 20,000 students in engineering, architecture and landscaping, preparing them to channel their expertise to create a fairer, more sustainable society. The INSA community, composed of nearly 100,000 graduates in France and throughout the world, draws its strength from the humanist values it nurtures that have been passed down through its history. Six partner schools complete the INSA collective. For further information, visit -insa.fr

About the INSA Foundation

Set up in 2018 by the INSA universities, the INSA partnership foundation seeks to enhance and promote the INSA model of humanist engineers, who think and act responsibly and in society’s best interest. At the crossroads between the socio-economic and academic worlds, the Foundation celebrates humanist values and the responsible actions of the INSA group to shape our future and behave conscientiously.

For further information, visit -insa.fr/

This press release is an official information document of the VINCI Group.

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