RATP Group Foundation history

Thirty years ago, RATP created its Foundation to tackle social exclusion, driven by a simple conviction: everyone should be able to find their place in the city and in society.

The Foundation’s initial aim was to facilitate collaboration between institutions, organisations, and associations across regions in which RATP Group operates, to further the principle of civic responsibility. The Foundation’s strategy consists of three parts: learning about civic responsibility, raising awareness on civic responsibility, and practicing civic responsibility.

Moreover, as part of the momentum that RATP has built up through Association pour une meilleure citoyenneté des jeunes (APMCJ, association for the promotion of civic responsibility among youth), the Foundation deploys measures to facilitate workforce integration.

1999 : The Foundation diversified its areas of activity.

The Foundation is now active in four areas:

• Promoting civic responsibility,

• Combatting all forms of substance abuse,

• Social integration through economic empowerment,

• Social and cultural sponsorship.

The Foundation executes RATP’s desire to facilitate the social integration of disadvantaged youth, and to combat all forms of social exclusion on a broader scale, while supporting the sustainable development of urban regions in line with urban policy.

2002 : Expansion of the Foundation’s scope of action, notably through sport and culture

The Foundation broadened its activities to promote civic engagement, sport, culture, and solidarity.

Created by the Fondation Groupe RATP, this program enables higher education students facing economic or social hardship to benefit from both additional scholarship funding and one-to-one mentoring provided by volunteer employees of the RATP Group. Students are selected based on social criteria, academic merit, and motivation.

2010: The Foundation’s activities structured around 3 flagship programmes :

• Trajets d’Avenir: a scholarship programme that helps students access leading educational pathways, combined with mentoring provided by RATP Group employees.
• Destination Association: support for local non-profit organisations that promote equal opportunities, access to culture, social cohesion, and mutual support in communities served by the RATP Group.
• Parcours d’Émotion: a cultural access programme developed in partnership with cultural institutions to bring high-quality cultural experiences to audiences who would not otherwise have access to them.

2011: Adoption of the Corporate Philanthropy Charter principles

The Foundation became one of the first three corporate foundations in France to commit to the principles of the Corporate Philanthropy Charter, which sets out the guiding principles for philanthropic action.

2016: Formalisation of the 2016-2020 strategic plan around three programmes

The Foundation’s areas of action were structured around three priorities:

• Access to employment
• Access to culture
• Access to education

2018: Introduction of the Environmental Transition programme

The Foundation added a fourth programme area to align even more closely with the Group’s strategic priorities: environmental transition.

With the same objective, the Foundation also began giving greater support to non-profit initiatives that address digital inclusion and/or gender equality.

Funding can be provided during environmental, health, social and economic crises, wars, famines and natural disasters, to the equivalent of up to 5% of the annual allocation

RATP Group Foundation asserts its mission to promote the social integration of economically and/or socially vulnerable urban populations, and conducts its activity focusing on two strategies:

• Facilitating workforce integration,
• Promoting equal access to resources and to opportunities in cities.

The year 2025 marked the end of the Foundation’s 2021-2025 term, a period during which it consolidated and expanded its impact. In 2026, the Foundation embarked on a new 2026-2030 term, continuing to build on the strategic direction established during the previous mandate.