Leading companies join forces to address Barcelona’s challenges

• With Fundación Exit, the first initiative of this alliance has mobilised the business community to tackle early school leaving

Early school leaving remains one of Barcelona’s most pressing social and economic challenges. Its impact extends far beyond the education system, limiting young people’s opportunities, affecting social cohesion and reducing the city’s ability to develop the talent its business community needs.

With this goal in mind, and in partnership with Fundación Exit, the first collective initiative of the Board 2030 has been launched. Board 2030 is a community of organisations committed to transforming Barcelona, promoted by B Lab Spain, EADA Business School and Ferrer under the umbrella of Barcelona+B. The alliance brings together business leaders and key stakeholders across the city to develop collective solutions to shared challenges such as inequality, employability, housing and sustainability.

The launch event, held on 1 July at the Fundació Conservatori del Liceu, brought together the Mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, along with more than 170 representatives from businesses and organisations across the education and social sectors.

During his speech, the Mayor highlighted the importance of collaboration between the public, private and social sectors to address the city’s major social challenges: “We need initiatives like Board 2030 to build the city we want — a city where no one is left behind. This project sends young people a fundamental message: dare to dream, persevere, and never let anyone limit your future. That is why the involvement of the business sector, through alliances such as Barcelona+B, is essential if we are to work together towards a shared goal: building a better society.”

Creating a real impact on a systemic challenge

The first collective initiative promoted by the Board 2030 aims to reduce the risk of poverty and social exclusion in Barcelona while increasing opportunities to develop local talent by addressing one of the root causes of these challenges: early school leaving. To tackle this issue, the Board 2030 has partnered with Fundación Exit.

Throughout the 2025–2026 academic year, we have supported 272 young people enrolled in Vocational Training and Integration Programmes (PFIs) across Barcelona and its metropolitan area, helping them stay engaged in education and continue their learning journey.

Professionals from the companies that make up the Board 2030 have volunteered throughout the school year to mentor these young people, providing guidance, introducing them to the world of work and sharing their professional experience. Without targeted support, 40.7% of these students do not continue their education. Thanks to the programme, however, 89% of participating students now intend to continue studying.

During the event, several young participants shared how the mentoring programme had transformed their outlook. Brayan explained that his relationship with his coach went far beyond career guidance: “My coach became a friend—someone who supported me through his professional and personal experience.” He also highlighted the importance of working with the same mentor throughout the programme and meeting in person: “Having the same coach is important because you build a friendship. That bond helped me express myself more openly and clear up my doubts.”

Another participant, Noa, shared her experience to illustrate that early school leaving is often the result of complex personal circumstances. She spoke about how bullying affected her throughout primary and secondary school: “I experienced a lot of bullying. There came a point when I simply couldn’t cope with being at school anymore. I suffered from severe anxiety.”

She explained that joining a PFI programme gave her the opportunity to regain confidence: “Here, we’re surrounded by people who have gone through similar experiences, and we all share the same goal: to keep moving forward.”

As Nacho Sequeira, Managing Director of Fundación Exit, pointed out: “Too often we talk about educational dropout only after it has already happened. Our experience shows that when young people find role models, gain first-hand insight into the world of work and feel that someone believes in them, their expectations for the future increase significantly. When a professional dedicates time to mentoring a young person, they do more than introduce them to a career—they help them discover opportunities they may never have imagined. That shift in perspective can make the difference between dropping out and building a future.” He added: “Early school leaving is a complex, multi-causal issue that can only be addressed through collaboration between the education, business and social sectors.”

Together with Nacho Sequeira, Managing Director of Fundación Exit, Brayan, Noa and Andrés, participants in the Guidance Programme, shared their personal experiences.

In addition, 98% of the corporate volunteers would recommend the experience, reinforcing the role of businesses as agents of social change. During the 2025–2026 academic year, the initiative mobilised a joint investment of more than €510,000 and the commitment of 303 corporate volunteers.

Board 2030: Businesses committed to Barcelona’s future

In line with the vision and international standards of the B Corp movement, Board 2030 promotes collaboration and collective action to generate tangible, measurable impact across the city.

As Mario Rovirosa, CEO of Ferrer, explained: “Business leadership only has real meaning when it is placed at the service of society’s greatest challenges. Board 2030 was created to turn that leadership into collective action by bringing together companies, public institutions and social organisations around a shared goal: building a fairer, more inclusive and sustainable Barcelona, while strengthening its position as an international benchmark for the impact economy.”

The organisations that make up Board 2030 include B Lab Spain, CBRE, Consorci de la Zona Franca, Cushman & Wakefield, Deloitte, EADA, Ferrer, Fundación Ship2B, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, ImpactCO, Medichem, Moritz, Nactiva, Quadpack, R4S, Reig Jofré, TRAM, Uriach and Volkswagen Group España Distribución, among others.

Businesses’ commitment to young talent

The event also highlighted the important role that businesses can play as agents of social transformation and their ability to contribute to the development of local talent.

As Pilar Varela, Director of Institutional Relations at Hospital Clínic de Barcelona and a member of Board 2030, noted: “Board 2030 brings together senior leaders to turn strategic thinking into real commitment and collective action, fostering concrete engagement in addressing shared challenges.”

The event concluded by once again putting young people at the centre of the conversation. Andrés, a participant in Fundación Exit’s Guidance Programme, delivered a powerful message to the companies in attendance: “What I ask from companies is an opportunity. We learn from businesses, but businesses can also learn from us. Young people have enormous potential, and I believe that should be taken into account.”

Early school leaving does not begin the day a young person leaves school. It begins much earlier, when they stop believing that education can help them build the future they aspire to. That is why we continue working to ensure that hundreds of young people find new role models, regain confidence in their abilities and continue their educational journey.

Beyond tackling early school leaving, Board 2030 was created with the ambition of driving further collective action in areas such as employability, housing, sustainability and reducing inequalities, reinforcing the role of the business sector as a committed partner in Barcelona’s social and economic development.