Who Shape the City? Non-profit associations and civil society initiatives in urban change processes: role and ambivalences

The present paper focuses on non-profit sector and civil society initiatives within urban change processes. More specifically, it looks into experiences that are characterised by a local/area-based ap-proach and that arise in relation, response and reaction to the processes of city change, becoming and be-ing recognised as one of its actors. By examining different initiatives variously involved in the regeneration process of a semi-central neighbourhood of the city of Torino (Italy), and by investigating their origins, goals and actions, the paper addresses the transformations that they go through over time, their complex relation with other local actors, and their role in the regeneration process, overall pointing out the different forms of ambiguity and ambivalences that they bear

The Diversity That We Love. Commodification and Control of Diversity in Gentrifying Neighbourhoods

In a time of growing appreciation for urban diversity, consuming ethnic food, sharing the streets with foreign people and showing interest for cultural diversity often operate as a means of social distinction, in particular among the new urban middle classes. Hence, culturally and ethnically diverse atmosphere have come to be considered as an asset for urban branding and neighbourhoods’ regeneration. The implications for those who embody such diversity, however, are often unclear. The paper addresses the ambiguous relationship between diversity and urban upgrading, focusing on the case of Turin and, more specifically, on a mixed neighbourhood that after a period of misfortune has become one of the new trendy spots of the city, also building on its diverse and gritty atmosphere. Bringing together literature on gentrification and social mix, commodification of diversity in urban transformations, and everyday multiculturalism, the paper offers an analysis of practices of negotiation, control and commodification of diversity in different domains of neighbourhood’s life: commercial landscape, public spaces and neighbourhoods’ representations. It argues that middle classes’ love for diversity often appears related to the ability to control it, to decide which kind of diversity is ‘good’ and should be visible and displayed in the neighbourhood space. In this frame, diversity may become a particular kind of commodity, to be consumed in a safe and sanitized environment and the appreciation for diversity may lead to forms of control, reification and exploitation rather than to integration and social inclusion

Sailing against the law tides : implications of the 2018 refugee reception reform in small-medium towns and rural areas in Italy

Published online: 29 June 2022Over the past decade, asylum seekers and refugees arriving in Italy were accommodated in reception facilities located not only in large metropolitan centres but also in Small-medium Towns and Rural Areas (STRAs). Italy’s reception system evolved quickly to face the peaks of asylum applications, especially in the 2015-2017 period. At the same time, the changes in Italy’s reception policies were pushed by the increased polarisation in the asylum debate, which, in turn, has led to great heterogeneity in the development of reception practices. This paper argues that the reception-territory nexus is a critical dimension to focus on when investigating the implications connected to the arrival and establishment of asylum seekers and refugees. This appears particularly true in STRAs where the reception system provided new resources that, when well-managed, showed transformative potential, developing virtuous interconnections with the local territories and communities. These virtuous interconnections have, however, been affected by the continuous changes in reception policies and came to a critical juncture in 2018, when the so-called Security Decree entered into force. While further modifications are currently underway, such legislation profoundly affected the Italian reception system’s functioning and working principles, creating new frictions and tensions among institutional actors and within the local governance of the reception system itself. We argue that the reform contributed to disrupting, both materially and symbolically, the previous virtuous combination of refugee inclusion and local development, especially in STRAs. Our situated qualitative analysis – carried out between 2019 and 2020 through discursive in-depth interviews – investigates the interconnections between territory and reception in three small to medium-sized towns and rural areas before and after this regulatory shift. It does so by introducing a novel analytic framework, focusing on symbolic and material aspects within and around reception. The analysis suggests that the stress and disruptions connected to the regulatory changes have had a negative impact on the internal organisation of the reception as well as on the refugees’ inclusion and on the chances of local development

The dark side of solidarity : ambivalences and double standards in the Ukrainian refugee crisis in Italy

Published online: 15 November 2023The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and the subsequent arrival of people fleeing the war prompted remarkable mobilizations and responses throughout the EU. By focusing on the Italian context and, more specifically, on the case of the Piedmont Region, this paper conducts critical reflection on the different forms and expressions of solidarity that emerged at both the institutional and civic society levels. The paper builds on qualitative interviews carried out between February 2022 and March 2023 with representatives of public institutions, third-sector organisations, and associations, and it intends to: I) frame the different expressions of solidarity in light of recent changes in the regulatory arrangements of the institutional asylum system; II) explore the relationship between formal and informal reception with respect to equity in terms of conditions, opportunities, and quality of the services provided; III) discuss the implications of the double standards and the ambivalent role of solidarity towards a specific category of refugees, especially as regards its sustainability over time and the growing fragmentation of the refugee reception systems

The Dark Side of Solidarity: Ambivalences and Double Standards in the Ukrainian Refugee Crisis in Italy

The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and the subsequent arrival of people fleeing the war prompted remarkable mobilizations and responses throughout the EU. By focusing on the Italian context and, more specifically, on the case of the Piedmont Region, this paper conducts critical reflection on the different forms and expressions of solidarity that emerged at both the institutional and civic society levels. The paper builds on qualitative interviews carried out between February 2022 and March 2023 with representatives of public institutions, third-sector organisations, and associations, and it intends to: I) frame the different expressions of solidarity in light of recent changes in the regulatory arrangements of the institutional asylum system; II) explore the relationship between formal and informal reception with respect to equity in terms of conditions, opportunities, and quality of the services provided; III) discuss the implications of the double standards and the ambivalent role of solidarity towards a specific category of refugees, especially as regards its sustainability over time and the growing fragmentation of the refugee reception systems