Progress report for
Sicilia Integra - Socio-Economic Integration of Migrants and Unemployed Youth through Agro-Ecology and Sustainable Community Design
Achievement at a glance
The project worked with groups of migrants and unemployed youth to build capacity through agro-ecological activities with the view to establish an alternative trading platform to commercialize Sicilian organic products on the European market.<br>
<br>By the end of the project, migrants and employed youth were able to apply principles of circular economies and local markets trading into their Sicilian host communities, with the ability to set up local social enterprises and cooperatives to support the cohesion and sustainability of the local community. They acquired a bioregional perspective of ecological design whilst learning about the cultural and natural histories of Sicilian cuisine, agriculture, and forestry. The team practiced whole systems thinking and learned about the place humans occupy in the biosphere, not as masters exploiting nature, but as co-creators of resilience with the entire construct of life.
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<br>Key achievements include
<br>Capacity development of migrants and unemployed youth in pasta making, using local ingredients and traditional wheat milling techniques alongside and with the support of awarded community bakery Forno di Santa Rita and master baker Maurizio Spinello
<br>Product branding, website creation and marketing campaigns for the Grana di Gaia pasta, incorporating principles of cradle-to-cradle design and circular economy with the help of the Gaia Education Communication Team
<br>The launch of the Grana di Gaia pasta products in 6 different shapes:
<br>- Hope - Spaghetti
<br>- Trust - Fusilli
<br>- Soul - Ricci
<br>- Courage - Attuppatelli
<br>- Peace - Casarecce
Challenges faced in implementation
One of the main challenges faced by the project and Grani di Gaia socio-enterprise was the high price point of the pasta on the commercial markets, at €3.60 for ½ a kilo. The price was set due to the combination of high quality raw materials and the fair payment to the farmers, who grow traditional grains using a zero-carbon water mill. This challenge was overcome by selling the pasta directly to educational migrant institutions and fair trade companies such as LUSH, who bought 500 packages to be sold at the Lush Summit Event (February 2017) in London.\r\n\r\nMigrants also had to adapt to the slow-paced socio-economic context of the Borgo di Santa Rita. When interviewed a few months into the project, the team commented: “In the small village of Santa Rita we learn day by day with the chief baker telling us before you run you have to walk”.Beneficiaries
Groups of migrants and unemployed youth in Sicily.\r\n\r\nThe fast-moving nature of trends in the journey of migrants has seen a significant shift in the demographics of migrants in the area. More organisations in the area have also diversified and evolved the methods of integrating migrants into the area. Therefore, the project too high-quality has evolved alongside it: there are new opportunities to expand the project to work with female migrants as future beneficiaries of socio-economic integration into Sicilian life.