A well-known business guru said that it is easy to discover innovatorsbecause you will find them lying face down and with an arrow in the back. And yet, our society is very innovative and we live submerged in a torrent of technological and social innovations. Maybe the users, we are the ones knocked out because of the incredible technological advances of our Society.

The MyMate proposal is pure social innovation. And as everything new, it is a risky business and difficult to explain.

During one of our dissemination meetings with organizations that provide elderly care services, one of their Volunteers Managing Director remarked that MyMate was for her like the Borromeo Rings, what left all of us perplexed. What do you mean? We asked.

She recounted that the name “Borromean rings” came from their use in the Borromeo´s  coat of arms, an aristocratic family in Northern Italy.  Then, she explained that Borromean rings had been used in different contexts to indicate strength in unity. And this is what she sees in MyMate: three rings. The first for ageing, the second for volunteering and the third for technology.

The three rings together offer strength and the beauty of a wonderful social innovation. The Recognition and Rewards are reflected in the intersection of the three circles as the Colour of the Wisdom

She added that, in her opinion, MyMate was a great tool for managing volunteers, and its success would depend on the combination between Digital Literacy and the activities for a Healthy and Active Ageing.

We appreciated Sarah´s comments and assured her that we are completely committed to achieve the project success.