Mataró City Council and the Sant Jaume i Santa Magdalena Hospital Foundation have launched the first "Carer Challenge" (Repte Cuidador), an initiative designed to support thousands of informal caregivers across the city. This project, part of the "Mataró Caring City" (Mataró Ciutat Cuidadora) strategy, aims to transform the daily lives of those who care for vulnerable family members or neighbours.
The "We Care for Those Who Care" (Cuidem qui cuida) challenge calls for collective solutions. It seeks to improve the well-being of individuals providing often invisible and unsupported care. Many informal carers in Mataró experience isolation, emotional distress, and chronic fatigue. The initiative focuses on enabling these carers to support their relatives without compromising their own health.
The project recognises that caregiving is not just a health or social services issue. It represents a global challenge affecting the economy, work-life balance, and social cohesion. The city aims to redefine the value it places on care within the entire municipality.
A Citywide Call for Solutions
The "Carer Challenge 1" aims to build an ecosystem of solutions in Mataró. This system will guarantee full support for informal caregivers. Its goal is to reduce the physical, emotional, and work-related impact of care. This happens through recognition and redistribution of tasks. The project invites businesses, entities, public administration, and citizens to participate. They can highlight existing effective solutions or propose new initiatives.
All participating proposals can receive specialised support. This includes mentorship and technical guidance. This ensures ideas become real solutions with direct city impact. The initiative makes an open call to various agents in Mataró to become actively involved.
How to Participate and Project Background
The campaign's website allows users to share good practices already in place. People can also propose new actions or initiatives. Full information is available on the Espai Mataró Cuida website. Proposals are now open for submission.
The "Carer Challenges" project uses a specific methodology from the Sant Jaume i Santa Magdalena Hospital Foundation. The process began in 2025 with an extensive participatory phase. This initial stage helped understand what worked and what did not in the area. It involved non-professional caregivers, entities, citizens, and businesses. They explored experiences, needs, and evaluations.
The challenge is now in its activation phase. It will remain open throughout the year. The campaign features five real testimonies from Mataró residents. These stories help show that caregiving is a universal reality. It does not solely relate to gender or a specific age. These five care stories will be shared to promote new ways of understanding broader care.
National Recognition and Foundation's Legacy
The Mataró City Council and the Sant Jaume i Santa Magdalena Hospital Foundation lead the "Carer Challenges" strategy. Many participating entities also drive it forward. The project aims to democratise, share responsibility for, and recognise care. It seeks to place care at the centre of the city's social organisation and public agenda.
The initiative has received national recognition for its new approach. It has support from the Red Innpulso, a national network for innovation. In 2025, it was awarded as the second-best "laboratory city" project in Spain. The project's methodology, designed by the Foundation, draws inspiration from mission-oriented innovation policies. This approach helps open innovation processes and citizen science. Solution-finding involves broad, collaborative participatory processes. These include new actors not traditionally involved in the care economy.
Care has a wide-ranging impact on collective life. This includes economic, labour, social, and health aspects. The project emphasises the need to recognise care, ensure access to it, and promote shared responsibility. Strengthening care policies is key to a more cohesive city. It also helps achieve greater well-being for all citizens.
The Sant Jaume i Santa Magdalena Hospital Foundation
The Sant Jaume i Santa Magdalena Hospital Foundation is a private, non-profit organisation. It works to transform the current care model through health, social, and community efforts. With a 380-year history, the Foundation researches, designs, and implements services and policies. These redesign how citizens access and experience well-being.
For its work and commitment, the entity received the Creu de Sant Jordi, one of Catalonia's highest civil distinctions, in 2020. The Foundation currently focuses on social innovation. It aims to ensure care is a right and a collective responsibility. It offers quality resources to support people at all life stages.
The "Carer Challenge" will continue to gather proposals throughout the year. Its success could provide a model for other Catalan municipalities. This initiative highlights Mataró's commitment to supporting its most vulnerable residents and their caregivers.
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Originally published by Mataró. Read original article.
