THE WEST PARIS CENTER: BUILDING TOMORROW’S SOLIDARITY
With more than 200 years of experience serving vulnerable Jewish communities, CASIP-COJASOR is now preparing its most forward-looking project yet: the West Paris center, a pioneering hub of Jewish social innovation.
Currently in development, this new center will bring together seniors, families, people with disabilities, and caregivers in an inclusive, intergenerational, trauma-aware space designed to meet today’s challenges and tomorrow’s needs.
Reinventing support & expanding access: the center will introduce two forward thinking forms of housing:
- Autonomous apartments for people with disabilities, promoting independence, dignity, and self-determination with tailored support.
- Shared living for older adults, reducing isolation and strengthening mutual aid—an alternative to institutional care informed by successful European models.
These approaches build a continuum of care rooted in CASIP-COJASOR’s long tradition of social innovation.
A LIVING LABORATORY FOR SOCIAL INNOVATION
More than a service hub, the West Paris Center will operate as a research and innovation platform. Sociologists, anthropologists, physicians, gerontologists, and frontline social workers will jointly study aging, disability inclusion, trauma-informed care, and new models of urban solidarity. What emerges here will help shape policies and best practices far beyond Paris.
BENEFICIARIES AS PARTNERS IN CHANGE
True to Jewish values of dignity and agency, the Center will elevate beneficiary-experts, individuals trained to co-design programs, evaluate services, and contribute to governance. Their lived experience will guide innovation at every stage.
A BLUPRINT FOR SOCIAL AND HUMAN PROGRESS
Integrating housing, mental-health support, counseling, and community life, the West Paris Center aims to become a replicable model for European cities, expanding CASIP-COJASOR’s impact well beyond its historic Parisian footprint.
“The West Paris Center will become far more than a service hub; it will be a social innovation laboratory. By bringing together researchers, clinicians, social workers, and the beneficiaries themselves, it will generate new knowledge and build models that can be shared across France, Europe, and beyond. Its impact will reach far past its walls, shaping the future of Jewish social action for the next generation.”
Sociologist & Research Collaborator