Paideia Campus: center for training, application and dissemination of the integral ecology model
Paideia Campus is a living laboratory located in the 13th century Princes Capano castle in the small town of Pollica, Italy. The campus is an experimental center working in three action areas (education, community, innovation) with the goal of understanding and replicating the concept of integral ecology- seeking comprehensive solutions which consider the interactions within natural systems themselves and with social systems.
Video: Pollica 2050 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9eOSb497-E&t=
Local
Italy
Location 1: Pollica, Italy
Location 2: Communities within the Municipality of Pollica (Acciaroli, Pioppi, Celso, Galdo, Cannicchio) and surrounding areas, such as San Mauro Cilento, Vallo della Lucania.
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
Yes
Horizon2020 / Horizon Europe
Future Food is part of 2 Horizon projects, the fist one is titled CITIES2030 (https://cities2030.eu/) and is focused (for Future Food) on the Living Lab located in Pollica and being part of the Paideia Campus, while the second one is titled SWITCH - EU Diets that regards the transition of EU communities towards more sustainable and helathy diets.
No
Yes
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): Future Food Institute Type of organisation: Non-profit organisation First name of representative: Sara Last name of representative: Roversi Gender: Female Nationality: Italy Function: President and Founder Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Via G. Palatucci 20/B Town: Avellino Postal code: 83100 Country: Italy Direct Tel:+39 347 424 3303 E-mail:sara.roversi@futurefoodinstitute.org Website:https://futurefoodinstitute.org/it/
In 2020, Future Food Institute was granted the opportunity to implement their work towards sustainably improving life on earth through education and innovation in global food systems at the Prince Capano Castle in Pollica. Future Food Institute proposed the creation of the Paideia Campus at the castle, transforming Pollica into an experimental laboratory of innovation for agriculture, food and the environment and for the more sustainable use of Italy's territories, villages and inland areas.
The Mediterranean Diet has contributed to the construction of an identity that has become a model within which we can concretely face the coming years, responding to the challenges inherent in the SDGs of the UN Agenda 2030 and the European Farm to Fork strategy. The campus is host to a variety of activities involving all actors in the local community: student hackathons (challenge based learning activity); boot camps (in partnership with FAO) innovative and challenge based learning experience, training individuals of all ages and backgrounds to be climate shapers (our alumni); site visits to local food producers and historical sites; teacher trainings in partnership with government programs including PON (Italian National Operational Program for Civic and Sustainable Development Education) and SOFIA (The Operating System for Training and Upgrade Initiatives for School Personnel- in Italy); community events including ‘RegenerAction’ a three day in-person event aimed at encouraging dialogue between all the actors in the food system to define an action plan towards regeneration
The Paideia Digital Academy providing digital education for rural communities; partnerships and cooperatives between local producers as well as large scale networks. The Campus laid the foundation for Pollica2050- focusing on territorial regeneration by creating employment, deseasonalizing tourism, promoting smart living to counter depopulation, and combating educational poverty and social marginality.
integral ecology
territorial regeneration
co-creation for prosperity
mediterranean diet world heritage framework
heritelling & knowledge keeping
The campus focuses on all three pillars of sustainability.
Environmental sustainability with the enhancement of traditional techniques and introduction of innovative practices in the areas of production, transformation and packaging; leading by example by promoting reusable and degradable packaging, serving food that is produced regeneratively and is in season and local.
Social sustainability through engagement initiatives of schools and local communities, the promotion of local job opportunities, social activities to encourage cross generational connections (cooking classes, storytelling), activation of processes of co-construction of knowledge, training and educational programs for all ages and levels (from elementary to corporate).
Economic sustainability in capacity building and creation of new tourism and hospitality opportunities; the promotion of local job opportunities, sensory aesthetic sustainability, enhancement of experiences in the area, including through the use and training of digital platforms.
The aesthetics of our work takes inspiration from not only what we do but the unique space in where we work.
Six themes in the territory were identified at the beginning of this journey, driving the creation of the visual identity of the Paideia Campus. Represented in 6 elements, which are revived in all the materials, merchandising and set-ups used the logo and branding includes history (red), science and innovation (yellow), ecology (blue), biodiversity (green), ‘convivio’ (light blue), and art and culture (beige).
The physical space of the Paideia Campus is the Castle of the Capano Princes, a historic estate that in recent times has never been properly exploited. The Castle was inherited in 1290 by Guido d'Alment, who came to Italy in the retinue of Charles I° of Anjou, and later purchased by the Capano family. It is the symbol of the village and the main tourist attraction, particularly its mediaeval tower. It is a square plan, on three floors with a view of the sea.
Since the Castle was purchased by the municipality in 1997, it has become a heritage of Pollica. Our initiative was able to breathe new life into a place full of history and potential, in a functional and creative way, without distorting it.
The campus is a Future Food ‘Living Lab’, a place where everyone that comes in can experience and take part in the co-design process. Here, the community is at the center of the innovation process, leading the work we do.
Our projects value the inclusion of all members of society, regardless of age, gender, and ability. The campus itself is a space open to all, there is no fee for entrance and locals and visitors are invited and encouraged to participate.
Our program alumni (climate shapers) range in age from teenagers to 60+ and come from over 100 different countries. Accessibility of our programs has increased as advancements in digital training, education and platforms have become widespread allowing for more affordable programs and decreasing barriers of entry due to geographic locations. While participants are encouraged to physically visit and experience the campus, we are able to offer valuable experiences online.
As an emblematic community of the Mediterranean Diet, Pollica is also a place of longevity. Here older generations are thriving and seen as a valuable resource to learn from the past. The campus fosters Intergenerational interactions by seeing age as an added value. Events are designed to encourage participation from all age groups and specific ‘pasta making classes’ and storytelling activities are commonplace at the campus.
The campus has supported EWA- Empowering Women in Agrifood- a 6 month program providing support, training and personalised mentoring for female agrifood entrepreneurs. From this experience CI.R.C.E was born: Cilento Resilient Conscious Empowerment, a group of local women entrepreneurs supporting each other.
Community is made up of everyone, all members of society despite their gender, age, or socioeconomic status. Due to its inclusive nature, the Paideia campus is a reflection of its community, and by encouraging active participation in its activities, promotes an active citizen. Participants not only learn about theories and methodologies but are able to ‘get their hands’ dirty, creating a deeper level of connection and thus activating action.
The campus was created to train, apply and disseminate and co-create but also to pass on knowledge and skills to future generations, to ensure that young people do not leave that area, and find stimuli to renew their territory and themselves. The campus has not only allowed to act against the school dropout, the increase of NETs in the territory, but also to help and support the process of repopulation of marginal areas that Cilento is experiencing.
Using the integral ecology as a guiding model, the campus encourages the exploration and use of unused or overseen resources- found in nature and within the community.
The theme of caring, present in all courses and training paths, allow not only to support integral ecology as a model, but also to apply it in networking operations and creation of functioning ecosystems in the present and into the future.
In synergy with the Municipality of Pollica, the goal of the Paideia Campus is to generate an action of prosperity design involving the whole territory, in order to create an ecosystem that fuels the regeneration process.
Local stakeholders include schools and students involved in our educational programs and bootcamps and local producers and municipalities who are continuously involved in the codesigning of our initiative. External stakeholders, who are interested in regenerating this region, investing in a healthy and sustainable way of life.
Our experience with European stakeholders include developing the first ICCAR (UNESCO) bootcamp, a pilot program that will be replicated this summer to empower young people to become antiracism and antidiscrimination champions. There is a continual collaboration and exchange of expertise with universities (such as Naples Federico II University), research centers (CREA), tech societies (Farzati tech), local municipalities (more than 20), youth associations, local food producers and cooperatives.
We have hosted events and educational programs for and with the Representation of the European Commission in Italy (UE AgriFood Week), FAO, Unesco - ICCAR, EIT Food, Food For Mind, MedEatResearch, MISCUSI, Archeological Parks of Velia and Paestum, ADI, Mipaaf, LaFeltrinelli, Mygrants, MAVV, Naples Federico II University, Strobilo, DotAcademy, TheFork Organization, TASTE, UNIDO ITPO, I Love Italian Food, INNER, CREA, Fondazione Italia Digitale, PASocial, IgersItalia, Legambiente, Stati Generali del Turismo, Europe Direct Salerno, Amore Per il Sapere, CampuStore.
The Paideia Campus is where we connect the world of innovation and agrifood with the past. We have learned that we cannot go forward without understanding the past, and those who came before us. The area of Cliento (where Pollica is located) has over 2,500 years of history. Within it we can find models, lifestyles, approaches and a true balance between man and nature. Where resources and landscapes were protected, a place that gave birth to a lifestyle which has been identified as the world's healthiest and environmentally sustainable diet.
The enhancement of local knowledge keepers, the experiences offered by the area that allow connecting the historical, artistic, cultural dimension, landscape and rural areas, archaeological parks and the strong connections between ancient Elea/Velia, the Salerno Medical School and the Mediterranean way of life recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity must now be handed down to the future by adopting innovative tools, unusual channels, digital platforms, and every communication channel.
We talk about innovation, strategic measures of agriculture and the role of Europe, and above all we give a voice to young people, startups, schools that train agrifood professionals, agricultural institutes, hoteliers, tourism professionals and those involved in sports. We use the Mediterranean diet and lifestyle as a starting point to connect actors and work towards a holistic and inclusive well being- starting in Pollica.
This being said, and due to the inclusive nature of the project, all academic disciplines and knowledge fields are reflected in the work we do.
At Paideia Campus we act by working on the global commonality, that which is the same between all geographies and of small and large countries: people. We are deploying useful strategies to find a way to protect biodiversity, produce food and better, find new ways to produce alternative energy, and provide services to citizens.
The six elements are the initiatives that are being developed and co-created on the integral ecological model, to promote cultural, social, economic, human, political and environmental regeneration. They are also at the base of the construction of a concrete and applicable integral ecology training model, replicable and scalable.
We are co-creating and learning how to design the way we would like to live, from the use of the resources we have available, by the training of new generations and through the transfer of skills, knowledge, culture, from the old to the young. We strive to identify new solutions to old problems and to finally have something that has not happened yet in Italy and in the world: finding ways to rebuild countries, points to connect to create the new country, and concrete regeneration processes.
The castle is host to many laboratories, both permanent and temporary. Young people from all over the world come here for projects and hackathons, and have occasions like big events and conferences that attract national and international audiences.
Our prosperity thinking methodological approach to designing a world that fulfils all its beings’ needs within the planet’s ecological means is applicable in all challenge spaces. It is a research methodology with defined steps to take in order to come up with ‘successful’ sustainable solutions. It is replicable and has been replicated in different contexts and countries through our hackathon events.
Replicable learning spaces include:
- Hackathons, which have been replicated both online and offline and across cultural contexts. Here, a challenge space is defined and can be changed to reflect local needs and resources.
- PCTO, (Pathways for Transversal Skills and Orientation), school-to-work alternation for the new generation
- Paideia Digital Academy, where kids can be exposed to the "best" and the "beautiful", and where "human learning" opens the door to digital culture with "creative learning" and "tinkering" as a form of informal learning in which we learn by doing.
- Paideia English Club, a series of lessons to promote the knowledge of the English language between the locals and prepare them to deal with the “unknown”.
- Internships, which are available on a rolling basis and relevant to all context
Our trademark methodology and guiding principle for our approach to education and activities is prosperity thinking, a design innovation methodology created to incorporate human needs and planetary means and to design a world that fulfils all its beings’ needs within the planet's ecological means. It aims to enable the design of a better world, starting from a shared, inclusive idea of prosperity that encompasses economic growth and social and environmental well-being. It aims to be an evolution of Design Thinking, going beyond user-centered design to human and planet-centered growth. This methodology is under development at Future Food Institute since 2019. In the discovery phase of a project, participants are asked to analyze a planet crisis revealing the human needs that drove us beyond a specific planetary boundary. Participants create a how-might-we statement that embeds the planets’ means right next to the human needs. Once this ‘green zone of innovation’ has been set, creativity is unleashed. We ideate, co-design, prototype, test with contextual stakeholder communities. These stakeholders become the perfect ambassadors of prosperity-driven innovation, expanding a prosperity innovator’s role into a systemic change agent, linking the micro and the macro. Chosen prototypes go through an impact analysis reflection to minimize or eliminate any long-term negative repercussions. This step helps us innovate for sustainable long-term systemic solutions.
Our training and educational programs use a three-phase learning method.
Inspiration: combines learning and innovation to get a view of the future. This is where research and developments are presented and the foundation from which to depart is introduced.
Aspiration: unlocks people’s potential by realizing their ideas at the side of the doers. This is a space to give functioning examples and highlight best practices.
Action: converts ideas into action and makes a transformation within people’s communities
At the Paideia Campus we design and develop feasible projects aimed at supporting a transition that is not only ecological, but also cultural and digital, starting from the unique heritage we have, in order to enhance and defend it for the future.
This is proof of how much we need "Paideia" today, that human and integral, inclusive and transversal, non-sectorized training that looks at the complexity of the ecosystem and brings all the different disciplines and skills to work together.
Education that does not exclusively privilege tradition or innovation, but fosters a magical meeting of them to preserve what has been while opening the door to the beauty of what will be. For this is the recipe for regenerating not only the Planet, but also the culture, the community and even the individual.
In each of our educational programs we challenge climate change, the issue of preserving biodiversity and we do so following for different priorities: the biodiversity theme, (SGDs 12,15 ) we promote sustainable, and circular entrepreneurship, with european and locally developed projects; the sea theme,(SDG 14) with an education program that let the youngs experience the life of fishermen and follow the entire chain of production of anchovies; the circular economy theme, (SDG 7) working on establishing an energy community and finally with the Mediterranean diet (SDG 3).
Since the start of activities (May 2020), we have involved and trained more than 400 students, involved 30 schools in the area, trained 25 school leaders, worked with 27 regenerative farmers, actively engaged 65 partners and held over 70 in-person events.
To measure the transformative power of adopted policies we use the 3D impact measurement tool, that measures three dimensions of transformative impact and transformative capacity: depth, width, and length..
The goal we have set for ourselves is to continue assessing the specific needs of the community, developing partnerships with local businesses and organizations, providing professional development opportunities to the youth and the teachers to build their capacity to integrate the Mediterranean Diet lifestyle in their everyday lives, implementing pilot projects and gathering data to assess the impact of the initiative to scale up the successful elements which provide the territory the ability to regenerate in all six areas at the base of our initiative: human, social, cultural, environmental, economical and political.
Working towards Pollica 2050, with a focus on the Mediterranean Diet as a model of Integral Ecological Regeneration. A strategic project designed to enhance dormant resources, which obliges us to think and act in a systemic way, orienting every action to the creation of inclusive prosperity starting from the integral ecological approach tested over the years and applied in every phase of the project .
A strategy that aims to create a real ecosystem that will have to be able to feed itself and regenerate to persist over time, will have to spread in space so that the entire territory can benefit and because today it is necessary to network and be networked, and will have to go deep so that the impact is truly transformative.
Paideia Campus provides education and training, as part of one of its three action areas (Knowledge, Community, Innovation). The campus equips learners and educators with the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed for a greener economy and society thanks to the centuries of traditions and practices that have made Pollica the ideal laboratory where to live, learn and apply the concept of integral ecology.
By educating diverse groups, from young students to university professors and adults, we help education and training institutions to integrate sustainability into teaching and learning and across all aspects of their operations. Here there is a shared understanding on the deep and transformative changes needed in education and training for sustainability and the green transition as we continually lead by example, share best practices, learn from experts and encourage open conversations.
On a larger scale, the Sustainable Development Goals outlined in Agenda 2030 are ever present in the work we do. In fact, the SDG’s are present in various places within the campus, including the backdrop for presentations, posters in the foyer and hallways and SDG stickers given to participants and placed throughout the castle.
