A director at VINCI Energies and based in Strasbourg, north-eastern France, Anne-Catherine Sublon is heavily involved in corporate social responsibility. As an ambassador for the Fondation VINCI pour la Cité, she promotes the foundation among VINCI Group employees and helps charities to present their projects to the foundation. Over the past few years this work has focused on opening a Café Joyeux in Strasbourg, which she found out about in the course of business discussions.

Café Joyeux is a fast food company which aims to develop a family of high-quality coffee shops so as to recruit and train people with mental and cognitive disabilities. This charitable initiative has given Anne-Catherine the opportunity to honour VINCI and of course VINCI Energies commitments to create sustainable jobs and promote equal opportunities. She lodged an application with the foundation to fund the project and, at the same time, offered her help in finding and fitting out premises for the coffee shop.

It’s gratifying to be able to help people who believe in their projects, with the goal of helping those in need. For me, solidarity means moving away from a commercial approach towards an attitude of giving to others without considering your own interests.

Anne-Catherine Sublon Director at VINCI Energies

In Strasbourg, Anne-Catherine also supports Kabubu, a charity which helps migrants find employment through sport. During sports workshops, Kabubu members develop interpersonal skills, forge contacts with local people and are directed towards jobs in sport. Anne-Catherine is determined to set up a partnership between her company and Kabubu: “I’m pleased to be able to help create opportunities for these young people who want to launch their careers. The goal is for them to begin in the field and to start a career at VINCI Energies and other VINCI subsidiaries, with all the tools needed to expand their skills.”