“No activity proceeds randomly or autonomously. Behind every economic activity lies a human person. The latter may remain anonymous, but there is no activity that does not originate from man. The current centrality of the financial activity as opposed to the real economy is not accidental: behind this lies the choice of someone who wrongly believes that you can make money with money. But money, real money, is made with work. It is work that gives dignity to man, not money”. This is the point made by Pope Francis in an interview published in the Italian daily “Il Sole 24 Ore”. “The unemployment that affects several European countries is the result of an economic system that is no longer capable of creating jobs, because it has put an idol called money at the centre. “Distributing the wealth produced and allowing people to participate in it; the integration of companies in their local areas; social responsibility; corporate welfare; equal pay for men and women; work and life balance; respect for the environment; acknowledging that human beings are more important than machines; a fair wage and the ability to innovate – all these are important elements that keep the community dimension of a company alive”, Pope Francis explained. “When not reduced to a mere technical matter, the economic world has not only the know-how (represented by skills) but also the know-why (represented by meanings). For this reason, a healthy economy can never be separated from the meaning of what is being produced – the Pope added -, and every economic action is also always an ethical fact. Keeping together actions and responsibilities, justice and profit, the production of wealth and its redistribution, economic efficiency and respect for the environment thus become crucial elements to ensure a company’s life”.