Riaprire il cancello - building a community by sharing living spaces
Building a community by sharing living spaces, that’s our goal! Our aim is to bring new life to the historic Villa Masini, a once-thriving hub of rural activity that has been closed off for too long. By implementing regenerative practices that prioritize the environment, we hope to build a special connection with the natural surroundings and foster a vibrant community through cultural events and artistic opportunities hosted within the villa's walls.
Local
Italy
Emilia Romagna, Ravenna, Massa Castello
Mainly rural
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): Agrisofia APS Type of organisation: Non-profit organisation First name of representative: Jacopo Last name of representative: Leonardo Age: 27 Please attach a copy of your national ID/residence card:
By ticking this box, I certify that the information regarding my age is factually correct. : Yes Gender: Male Nationality: Italy If relevant, please select your other nationality: Italy Function: president Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: via di massa 33 Town: Ravenna Postal code: 48125 Country: Italy Direct Tel:+39 348 833 9414 E-mail:jacopoleoanrdo@gmail.com
This following program was designed by a group of young people between the ages of 20 and 28. Our goal is to preserve, enhance, and rediscover a cultural heritage that is declining, making sure that those who live in it feel at home and regain a sense of belonging. The ideas and projects offered here come from the cohesion of the minds and experiences of those ones who live around and take care of the historic estate Villa Masini, commonly referred as “Casa Masini”. This is a place that holds a great deal of precious historical knowledge, and traditions yet to be fully discovered.
We aim to give a future to Casa Masini and the surrounding territory by bringing back some of the values that distinguish it in the past, such as openness, generosity, hospitality, agriculture, music, growth and development of the surrounding environment.
The Association works towards planning and promoting nonprofit events that have civic, solidary, and social purposes. It aims to bring local communities and individual citizens back together through social, cultural, and environmental activities.
The Association also focuses on promoting and looking after the estate itself, which went from being the residence of famous tenor Angelo Masini in the twentieth century to being home of Organic Farming Company Masini Maria Bernardetta today.
We promote activities such as agroforestry, enhancement of the animal and vegetable biodiversity within Casa Masini’s estate, recognition and promotion of music and musical composition, screening of films environment and arts orientated, organization of farming curses for children, dance, theater, and music residencies and much more.
Sharing
Remembrance
Biodiversity
Community
Culture
Casa Masini represents a vital green lung in open countryside and a self-sustaining micro-ecosystem rich in biodiversity to the locals.
This project truly aims to turn Casa Masini into an oasis of sustainability. Below we list some of the initiatives created with the collaboration of entomologists and agronomists:
• Study of the soil and the relationships between plants, insects, and animals present in the park.
• Planting of willows that attract different species of insects.
• Study of soil microorganisms through Redox analysis.
• Planting of flower bands and other species that can increase the presence of multiple insects, including fireflies (special inhabitants of Casa Masini’s park).
• Periodic markets that promote opportunities for exchange and sale of local products, meetings with artisans and producers from the nearby area.
All these initiatives aim to increase attention towards sustainability. The study of soil and the relationships between plants, insects, and animals in the park is an effort to understand and preserve the delicate balance of the ecosystem. The planting of willows and other species to attract different insects is an example of regenerative agriculture, which contributes to the overall health of the ecosystem. The study of soil microorganisms through Redox analysis provides valuable insights into the health of the soil, which is a critical component of sustainable agriculture. Finally, the periodic market that promotes opportunities for exchange and sale of local products, meetings with artisans and producers from the nearby area, is an example of a circular economy, which minimizes waste and maximizes resource utilization. This approach to the local economy supports sustainability by promoting the use of local resources, reducing the carbon footprint of transportation and production, and encouraging the development of local communities.
Among the desired achievements of our project, there is the goal of increasing a network of collaborations with other local realities. The collaborations we suggest involve international partners, which will bring added value to our region by fostering relationships and knowledge exchange. These collaborations are expected to lead to additional opportunities for cooperation at a local and regional level. The aim is to promote cohesion between small associations and privates to enhance individual activities and contribute to the common good. This network of collaborations will also serve for communication and information sharing. Through our extensive experience and careful observation in the area, we have identified a lack of sharing, exchange, and comparison among members of the local community regarding practical aspects of the agricultural industry.
The association aims to take on a leadership role, building on past successes during events at Casa Masini, to facilitate discussions and share information on the challenges and tools of daily agricultural life. The project will serve as a platform for communication and information sharing, resulting in additional opportunities for cooperation and enhancing individual activities.
The enhancement of Casa Masini as a meeting place that opens to the community, involving different groups of users and participants, pushes towards social cohesion. Here, children, young people, adults, and the elderly have started to meet since the beginning of this project, and this intergenerational exchange is an essential pillar of the project itself. Many spaces in Casa Masini do not have significant architectural barriers and with limited interventions it is possible to access multiple categories of people with disabilities. We offer the public various initiatives by asking for only a minimal annual membership fee, this allows us to include a greater number of social groups. In addition, the variety of proposals allows us to meet the interests and tastes of people with different backgrounds. This concept promotes inclusion and social cohesion by providing a meeting place that is accessible to different groups of users and participants, including those with disabilities. This approach exemplifies the idea of inclusion and helps fostering a sense of community by bringing people together and creating opportunities for exchange and collaboration.
The striking architecture of the building and the vast park around it give the location an aura of mystery and spark increasing curiosity in the surrounding community. By opening the gates of Casa Masini, this curiosity will finally be satisfied. Furthermore, many of these initiatives possess a significant informative and educational content, which will be conveyed to visitors in form of training courses, conferences, and meetings with experts. On many occasions, the high-quality experiences that we offered attracted visitors, who have later become active participants in preserving and taking care of the location. This shows how much the place means to the local community. Building networks and encouraging interpersonal relationships is one of the main objectives that drive the association.
At a local level, the stakeholders engaged were members of the surrounding community who have a direct interest in the revitalization of Casa Masini and its spaces. They have been involved through community meetings where their input on the design and development of the concept was solicited and incorporated. The added value of their engagement is that they help to ensure that the concept is responsive to the needs and aspirations of the local community. At a regional level, the stakeholders involved have been representatives of regional government bodies, such as the Regional Culture and Heritage Department of Emilia-Romagna region. Their involvement assured us that the concept aligns with regional development plans and that it can be supported by regional resources. The added value of their engagement consisted in securing regional support for the concept and its implementation.
This project values the interdisciplinary practice. We are committed to organize activities related to multiple cultural-artistic practice, such as Dance, Music, Theatre, Cinema, Agriculture, Writing, Illustration, Painting, and various Artisanship. The experts of each practice have a brought a huge amount of enthusiasm and competence with them. We aim to involve people that would connect with the values of the Association and Casa Masini. At the end of every event, we asked for feedback and celebrated the conversations with the participants so that we could evolve by learning from each experience.
The innovative value of this project lies on the development of a system that connects nature, people, and social resources by involving young people committed to care of and rediscover the well-known and valuable artistic heritage of Casa Masini. We want to highlight a dual transformation: from a private place to a place inhabited by the community and from rural buildings to "cultural" containers. The project gives the possibility to discover the green spaces of the place and its living species, providing an innovative intervention to increase biodiversity and diversification of insects, as well as the reintroduction of native species no longer present, such as flowering bands capable of raising the presence of butterflies. Another fundamental aspect is the increase of soil microorganisms through the inoculation of specific preparations and compost. Furthermore, the "Villa Masini" heritage becomes a vessel of art and culture, blending its values and its deepest charm with the hosted forms of art (dance, theater, cinema, literature, agriculture, etc.). We consider the diversity of ideas and initiatives put forward by the association as one of our main strengths. Moreover, we cannot forget the kind of space where all this comes to life, namely a unique historical and natural wealth, an historical estate, protected by the Fine Arts, which, as a private residence, lives by sharing its spaces with the surrounding community. without forgetting the type of place where all this takes place, namely a unique historical and natural heritage, rich in biodiversity and a historical estate, protected by the Fine Arts, which from private lives by sharing its spaces with the surrounding community.
Our project truly stands out for its persistent focus on taking good care of the people and the places that surround us. Building a sense of belonging starts with understanding and listening to the needs and characteristics of a place, this is the core of our methodology. By respectfully comprehending the environment's values and history, we can care for it in a gentle manner. Only in this way is it possible to create a strong connection with the “genius loci” of the place and give others the opportunity to breathe in its magic.
We strive to become a catchment area, creating opportunities for those who live in the territory to meet. In this way we manage to create a network that allows local communities to participate and truly benefit from hidden historic treasures of Casa Masini.
With our care and small but meaningful actions, we play an important role in addressing global issues that matter to us. We are first and foremost committed to restore a historical and protected site as a cultural heritage, which is often not sufficiently protected and empowered. Additionally, we aim to promote sustainable solutions within these spaces for their maintenance and to achieve a fully self-sufficient state: respect for the environment and its care are our top values. Finally, in opposition to mass production and its anonymity, we seek constant collaboration with small local artisanal businesses to support them and contribute to their growth. Our paradigm can also be extended to the attempt to recover and enhance an abandoned building, a growing problem today.
