Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1086539
17 COMMERCIAL maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 27 FEBRUARY 2019 SPEED Networking with MEP candidates, a day shadowing competition and school visits are all initiatives that will be run by JCI Malta through the recently launched project Step Up For Europe - Make it Count! The project which will run up to the MEP elections on 25 May, is being run with the main purpose of educating young first-time voters, between the ages of 16 and 19, as well as foreigners living in Malta and voting for the first time, with all they need to know to make an in- formed decision. Striving to provide opportunities for young people to make a positive change, JCI Malta has taken on the European challenge tasked by JCI Europe in order to encourage youths to have a say and to show them that their opinion counts. JCI Malta will be visiting a number of Secondary Schools in order to educate 5th Form students on their voting rights, what they need to know about the up- coming elections, as well as how impor- tant it is to be an active citizen in today's world. In order to make an informed decision, one needs to actively seek ways to get to know the candidates contesting the up- coming MEP Elections. In that spirit, JCI Malta is providing the local community with the opportunity to meet as many MEP candidates as possible and speak to them on a one-to-one basis for a few minutes. The event will be happening on 26 April at Is-Suq tal-Belt. A Day in the Life of an MEP Candidate is yet another initiative JCI Malta is offering. This particular event is centred around giving first-time voters the opportunity to spend a whole day with an MEP can- didate following their daily tasks and events. The shadowing sessions will be happening all throughout the months of March and April. JCI Malta is a non-profit organisation that strives to provide development op- portunities for young people; empow- ering them to create a positive change within themselves and their community. LifeCycle Challenge secures two-year sponsorship with Nescafé 3in1 LIFECYCLE (Malta) Founda- tion has secured a new spon- sorship deal with Nescafé 3in1 for the 21st and 22nd edi- tions of LifeCycle Challenge. The two-year sponsorship of €70,000 will see Nescafé 3in1 as the title sponsor of the Life- Cycle Challenge. The new sponsorship was announced at a press confer- ence at ChicPhysique Studio at Hilltop Gardens. LifeCycle (Malta) Founda- tion Founder Alan Curry said the sponsorship was a signifi- cant and substantial partner- ship for our forthcoming en- deavours. "Such partnerships increase our motivation to work even harder to benefit kidney pa- tients and their families," he said. "Today, we are also announc- ing the destinations of Nescafé 3in1 LifeCycle Challenge 2019 which will take our team of cyclists on a route starting in the city of Hanoi in Vietnam, going through Laos, Cambo- dia, re-entering Vietnam to end in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam: a 2,000 km route through Southeast Asia." Alfred J. Borg, Nestlé Mar- keting & Corporate Commu- nications Manager, said that the partnership with the Life- Cycle Challenge would further highlight Nestlé's ongoing commitment in promoting a balanced and healthy lifestyle among its communities, and in this case in Malta. "Further- more, the Respect and Dignity the Lifecycle Foundation has sought from inception to in- stil into this cause is demon- strated by their effort to treat not merely the patients, but their relatives and the rest of the community through vari- ous initiatives aimed at edu- cating and preventing," he said. "Nescafé too seeks to in- stil respect from the plant, to the farmer, to the community, to the planet and ultimately to our consumer. Respect is in fact the secret ingredient which has turned our coffee into Malta's favourite coffee for over 70 years." Parliamentary Secretary Clifton Grima praised the LifeCycle Challenge cyclists and the support team for us- ing their sport abilities for such a noble deed with one aim in mind: that of helping renal patients and their fami- lies. "It is inspiring to see so many people coming together to freely give their time, money and expertise in the service of others," he said. "We are a nation tied together through family, community and citi- zenship, and us all being here today is a great example of the strength of those bonds." Training for Nescafé 3in1 LifeCycle Challenge 2019 has already commenced. Do- nations for this cause can be sent via sms: 5061 7370 = €2.33; 5061 8920 = €6.99; 5061 9229 = €11.65; or via a call to 5160 2020 = €10, 5170 2005 = €15; and 5180 2006 = €25. Bank details are Swift code VALLMTMT, IBAN number MT 18 VALL 22013000000014814521017, Bank name Bank of Val- letta, Account number 14814521017. For further updates and to donate towards LifeCycle Challenge 2019 visit https:// www.facebook.com/LifeCyc- leChallenge/ (from left) Nestlé Marketing and Corporate Communications Manager Alfred J. Borg, Parliamentary Secretary Dr Clifton Grima, Founder and Chairperson of LifeCycle Foundation Alan Curry and Dr Shirley Cefai respectively MAPFRE Group present a gift to blood donors DURING the month of January, a to- tal of 16 employees from MAPFRE Middlesea and MAPFRE MSV Life donated blood towards the National Blood Transfusion Unit. The scope of this initiative is to make a con- tribution in ensuring that those in need of a blood transfusion will have a sustainable and safe blood supply readily available. The National Blood Transfusion Unit, located in front of St. Luke's Hospital, is an organisation which "strives to provide a sustainable safe blood supply in the Maltese Is- lands." The services being offered by the organisation include the coun- selling to donors, basic biochemical screening, and the implementation of awareness campaigns about the importance of blood donations. MAPFRE Middlesea CEO Felipe Navarro, who also participated in this initiative, said he could recog- nise the importance of these blood donations as well as the impact which they can have on a significant number of individuals. Both entities from MAPFRE Group will continue to express their commitment to so- ciety by donating with the purpose of increasing national blood re- serves, as well as to raise awareness on the importance of this life-saving action. This campaign forms part of MAP- FRE Group's corporate volunteering initiatives which are implemented through Fundación MAPFRE's VOLUNTEERS Program. MAPFRE Group will, once again, continue to support this initiative in June 2019 for the upcoming World Blood Do- nor Day. For more information on how to donate, you may visit www. health.gov.mt. Step up for Europe and make it count