Area
Social
GOAL(s)
Summary (description and reason to be)
Born from an idea of a Christian parish, the COMMUNITY OF DANISINNI, represents in Palermo a third sector and no-profit association, whose objective is to promote the human and social development of the city and its inhabitants, in particular all citizens living in the “Danisinni” district in Palermo, Sicily.
Target: Vulnerable Group (VG) and/or type of community
All social categories, of all ages and mainly people living in the “Danisinni” district in Palermo, Sicily.
Application setting: context
The COMMUNITY OF DANISINNI was born from the need to counteract the social marginalisation of many families and children living in the Danisinni district, who were deprived of some services due to the closure of some schools and a growing urban and environmental degradation of public spaces and areas, including parks and streets.
Objectives
The objectives are:
• Social emancipation and social cohesion, creating a sense of community among the people living in Danisinni;
• Revaluation of public areas and fight against urban and environmental degradation;
• Promoting the circular economy;
• Fight against social and economic precariousness, enhancing social and labour participation of all citizens;
• Promote co-planning and foster the direct involvement of all citizens;
• Promote the idea of an “open community”: a community open to everyone and which supports the needs of all individuals in it and promote the participation of everyone.
Requirements
No requirements needed.
Performance procedures
Danisinni is based on teamwork, and it strongly promotes co-design of services and co-planning of activities, in a participatory way and with the contribution of all citizens.
Activities
Main activities:
• Design of a new bio-pond, being Danisinni located on the bed of a river. Water is a fundamental aspect of this territory. And in fact, the logo of the Danisinni community includes the symbol of water;
• Creation of a communitarian farm, which includes plants and animals and where several people work, even people facing vulnerability. Inside this farm, people created a park too, in order to allow any adults and children to spend their free time outdoor and having fun together;
• Creation of a playroom and a public library, to promote reading and play among both adults and children;
• Creation of a mediation service run by trained female workers;
• Creation of a social museum to promote the arts and in collaboration with the University of Palermo and the department of fine arts;
• Creation of a theatre workshop;
• Creation of a public kitchen, led by citizens, starting from the use of vegetables growing in the Danisinni social farm.
Results
Main results:
• Creation of micro-enterprises for the urban and environmental revaluation of the Danisinni area;
• Several projects involving adults, women, minors in the socio-economic revaluation of Danisinni: https://www.danisinni.it/ (section “progetti”).
Strengths
The COMMUNITY OF DANISINNI and the activities carried out are also the result of a strong and continuous collaboration between the public and private sectors, including third sector associations. The will is to reproduce the COMMUNITY OF DANISINNI working model not only within the specific neighborhood Danisinni but also in other neighborhoods/districts and living communities in Palermo.
CRITERIA actors or stakeholder are using to assess it as a “good practice”
The COMMUNITY OF DANISINNI is considered as a good practice because it promotes both social and urban regeneration in Palermo, letting people working together and for common and collective goal. Moreover, the revaluation of the green areas and parks of the Danisinni district is already mentioned and included as part of the main itineraries in UNESCO, at an international level.
Inoltre, la COMMUNITY OF DANISINNI promuove una serie di azioni che promuovono etica e valori. Per esempio:
• Ethics in employment;
• Decarbonisation of territories;
• Zero waste and circular economy;
• Sustainable exploitation of the territory;
• Sustainable and ethical exploitations of the animals.
References (Bibliography, URLs, suggested readings)
Official website: https://www.danisinni.it/
