"A sustainable future calls for creative solutions. We are determined to play a part in making our world even more sustainable, social and joyful in the years to come. We want to show that social business can be sustainable and successful at the same time as exemplified by Villa Viva," said Benjamin Adrion, founder of Viva con Agua and CEO of Villa Viva Holding. The company will "not be investing a cent" as a group of investors will be injecting the cash. The investors "prefer to invest their money in a social rather than profit-orientated manner", according to Viva Con Agua. The Viva con Agua Foundation and Viva con Agua de Sankt Pauli e. V. will hold majority shares.
"Do good while you sleep" - a glimpse behind association's new social business model
The non-profit organization Viva con Agua began building Monday (July 12, 2021) the 12-storey Villa Viva hotel with around 140 rooms in Hamburg’s Münzviertel. The company’s social business model foresees a "a place for living creativity, connection, culture and sustainability" there by 2023. Under the motto, "Do good while you sleep," guests will be supporting drinking water projects in all corners of the globe simply by staying overnight. Viva con Agua aspires to "water for all - all for water" and is dedicated to Water, Sanitation, Hygiene (WASH) projects worldwide.
Hotel boosting social business
Creative, sustainable and cosmopolitan
The City of Hamburg is also ending its support to the project by awarding the building site to Viva con Agua and Heimathafen Hotels: "The awarding of the site follows a tender by our state agency Immobilienmanagement und Grundvermögen (LIG). We have created the basis for a place in the city centre that like Hamburg, stands for creativity, sustainability and cosmopolitanism," said Dr Andreas Dressel, Senator for Finance. The first Villa Viva opened in Cape Town in early 2021. The business model is "scalable worldwide" and as many other meeting places as possible will be added in future to advance Viva con Agua's vision.
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Viva con Agua
The non-profit organisation, Viva con Agua, is an international network that strives to provide safe access to clean drinking water and basic sanitation. More than 10,000 volunteers, including musicians, athletes and artists support its vision of "water for all - all for water". Viva con Agua has already reached over 3.6 million people through its Water, Sanitation, Hygiene (WASH) projects carried out with partner organisations such as Welthungerhilfe. Apart from the Hamburg-based association, the network includes the Viva con Agua Foundation and local branches in Austria, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Uganda and South Africa.
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