EN - RECODE ATINA - Conversations with the Future of Atina

RECODE ATINA

Conversazioni con il Futuro di Atina

CONVERSAZIONI CON IL FUTURO DI ATINA CONVERSATIONS WITH THE FUTURE OF ATINA

Analysis and report compiled by Clear Village, in partnership with Fabiana Panetta Report date: February 2012

CONVERSAZIONI CON IL FUTURO DI ATINA CONVERSATIONS WITH THE FUTURE OF ATINA Phase 1: Discovery Week July 2011

Sponsored by:

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CAMERA DI COMMERCIO DI FROSINONE

Financed by:

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PROVINCIA DI FROSINONE

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BANCA POPOLARE DEL CASSINATE

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COMUNE DI ATINA

AZIENDA AGRICOLA LA FERRIERA

PRESIDENZA DEL CONSIGLIO REGIONALE DEL LAZIO

GE.MAR BALLOONS. SRL

Facilitated by Angela Koch ImaginePlaces

Fabiana Panetta

FONDAZIONE JACOBELLI - REZZA - MONTI ONLUS

Artur Moustafa

PRO LOCO

content EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION & Methodology KEY RESULTS

WELL-BEING ANALYSIS CONCLUSIONS HORIZONS

exercise catalogue WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT .... ?

POSTCARD SURVEY INTERACTIVE POSTER POLL QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWS CHILDRENS’ DREAMS MY PROJECT FOR ATINA ENLIVENING COMMUNITY SPIRIT IF I WERE THE MAYOR ...

PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS WHERE IS A VACANT ... ?

I WISH THIS WAS ...

RETAILERS’ FUTURE

APPENDICES detailed postcard survey detailed results of well being analysis COLLECTED ANSWERS TO POSTCARD QUEstion: WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT ATINA? COLLECTED ANSWERS TO POSTCARD ATINA 2030 COLLECTEd AnsWERS TO POSTER POLL: WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT....?

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY CONVERSATIONS WITH THE FUTURE OF ATINA The Conversations with the Future of Atina is an initiative to take local residents and stakeholders on a collaborative journey to re-ignite their town.

The traditional approach to tackling challenges in a place like Atina would be either to rely on top-down schemes or on grass-roots initiatives. Yet both approaches have their weaknesses. Top-down schemes often fail due to insufficient local adoption, while grass-roots initiatives can be haphazard and lacking in strategic focus and reach. Especially in the context of a severe global crisis, it is our belief that both traditional methods are inadequate and need to be replaced by a process where top-down and bottom-up are enabled to work together from the outset to achieve successful community transition. This is what the Conversations with the Future of Atina sets out to do: to encourage, support and empower all local residents and stakeholders in Atina to take part in a collaborative process of co-visioning a brighter future for their town and transforming this vision into reality.

Š clear-village.org 2011

The Conversations with the Future of Atina is a multi-step process which consists of three phases which can in principle be repeated again and again. The first phase, the Discovery Phase, is about scoping out the challenges confronting Atina. The second phase, the Dreaming Phase, is about codeveloping solutions. And the third phase, the Making Phase, is about co-implementing these solutions as effectively as possible.

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The first of these phases has now been conducted in the form of the Discovery Week, which took place in Atina from 24th to 30th July 2011 and was led by CLEAR VILLAGE, Angela Koch of ImaginePlaces and Fabiana Panetta, supported by the Comune di Atina and assisted by Pro Loco and the Fondazione Jacobelli Recchia Monti.

This first phase has been financed by Consiglio Regionale del Lazio, Camera di Commercio di Frosinone, the Presidenza del Consiglio della Regione Lazio, Provincia di Frosinone, Comune di Atina, Banca Popolare del Cassinate and sponsored by Azienda Agricola La Ferriera and GE.MAR Balloons srl.

The Discovery Week was an action research project comprising a host of street-style exercises and activities aimed at mapping out the challenges facing Atina as well as starting to engage residents and stakeholders around the transition process.

This report summarises the process, activities and outcomes of the Discovery Week and also recommends next steps to be taken on the collaborative journey constituted by the Conversations with the Future of Atina. The report has been prepared by CLEAR VILLAGE and Fabiana Panetta on behalf of the whole group of partners.

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Š clear-village.org 2011

THE PROCESS The methodological cornerstone of the Discovery Week was the Design Residency. The Design Residency is a projectcatalyst method which involves one or more design analysts taking up residence in a community for a certain period of time to engage in qualitative inquiry, outreach activity, and interactive learning going both ways between members of the community and the design analysts. The Design Residency of the Discovery Week was specially tailored to match local needs and opportunities and involved a team of three design analysts- Angela Koch, Fabiana Panetta and Artur Moustafa of CLEAR VILLAGE- taking up residence in Atina during the annual jazz festival, which is when the town is at its liveliest, in order to facilitate a week of street-style engagement activities.

The Discovery Week was well publicised in advance. Invitations were sent to the local community via the mailing list of Atina’s Main Library; the event was promoted on the Facebook pages ‘Pro Loco Atina’ and ‘Di’ la tua.. il sito dei commenti politici e non di Atina’; ‘I love Atina’ postcards were distributed around town; and a web presence was set up with information and an online questionnaire. During the Discovery Week, the design team had a dedicated stand on Piazza Garibaldi and also conducted substantial outreach in other parts of town to ensure wide-spread community participation.

The team facilitated a lively series of exercises and workshops to capture people’s thoughts, concerns and hopes and engage them in a conversation that local people are usually not invited to participate in. Broadly speaking, the exercises and workshops had three main goals. Firstly, they aimed to identify the strengths and weaknesses of Atina as perceived by the community. Secondly, they aimed to unleash people’s dreams about what the town could be like in the future. And thirdly, they encouraged people to consider specific initiatives and projects that could lead to community improvement. By taking this three-thronged approach, the Discovery Week served not only to map out the challenges facing Atina but was also a valuable preparatory step in engaging the community around phases two and three of the Conversations with the Future of Atina which will focus on co-visioning and co-implementing solutions. At the end of the Discovery Week the initial findings were presented at a public exhibition at the Convento di San Franceso.

Participation in the Discovery Week was highly satisfactory and rich input in the form of thoughts, dreams, suggestions for projects, visions for the future and many other types were gathered from a broad variety of groups: from the young and the old, from residents of Lower Atina and Upper Atina, and from visitors and locals.

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THE OUTCOMES The Discovery Week has resulted in a mixed picture of Atina’s strengths and weaknesses as perceived by the local community. On the one hand residents greatly value the town’s heritage and natural environment, which are indeed significant assets to build upon. Together with Atina’s cultural dynamism as manifested by the jazz festival and the many local associations, they can serve as vectors of pride to support revitalisation efforts. Yet on the other hand a number of challenges were cited that urgently need to be addressed. The two most critical ones are community division and economic anxiety. At present there is a distinct division between Lower Atina and Upper Atina in terms of people’s sense of belonging and community spirit, which is exacerbated by the fact that there are no community support facilities to bridge the gap.

Yet there is an expressed desire for the two parts of Atina to re-connect and a consequent need for facilitation tools and processes that would enable this.

As for economic anxiety, it is a result of a number of factors including Atina’s dependence on seasonal tourism, the lack of economic drivers in the region, and the state of the national economy. Yet people also saw substantial opportunities through enhancing intercorporate networks, establishing new innovative businesses, and revitalizing traditional craftsmanship. In sum, then, it may be said that the Discovery Week has not only identified a number of serious issues facing Atina, but also a strong local desire to tackle them.

This links up to the other outcome of the Discovery Week.

The event has been a successful first step to bring together the local community around a branded conversation running under the motto of ‘I love Atina’ in order to boost local pride, overcome fragmentation and nourish collaboration. As one participant in the ‘Enlivening community spirit’ exercise wrote, what needs to be done is to “narrow the gap and eliminate the contrasts between Ponte Melfa and Atina Centro Storico to transform the love for Atina into something tangible”.

Developing and implementing such tangible results will be the goal of the next two phases of the Conversations with the Future of Atina.

Suggestion TO IMPROVE THE community spirit:

“narrow the gap AND eliminatE the contrasts between ponte melfa & atina centro storico, TO transform the love for atina inTO something tangible”

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NEXT STEPS Following on from the Discovery Week and the presentation of the outcomes to municipal stakeholders on 29th November 2011, the Conversations with the Future of Atina is now ready to move into its second phase: the Dreaming Phase.

Š clear-village.org 2011

Our recommendation for this phase would be to bring together local residents and stakeholders with experts in changeand place-making at a so-called LAB to be held in Atina.

A LAB is a facilitated event spread over a number of days where participants are guided through a rhythm of exercises that include action-learning, rapid prototyping and other participatory design techniques to work together towards

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DISCOVERY WEEK

WELL-BEING ANALYSIS

JULY 2011

JULY - NOVEMBER 2011

the outcome aims. The Atina Lab would focus on the most pressing challenges identified during the Discovery Week and develop a limited number of realistic, actionable and effective initiatives to address issues such as community division and economic anxiety, which would then be implemented in the third phase of the Conversations with the Future of Atina.

The collaborative journey that was embarked upon in the Discovery Week would thus have a powerful second-phase sequel. With its pioneering approach to building resilience, Atina would be able to serve as a source of inspiration for other places in need of similar novel solutions, both in the region and potentially even further beyond.

LAB: "THE FUTURE OF ATINA" COMMUNAL VISION FOR ATINA

CITIZEN INITIATIVES

RECODE THE FUTURE OF ATINA STRATEGIC PLAN

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INTRODUCTION CONVERSATIONS WITH THE FUTURE OF ATINA The Conversations with the future of Atina is an initiative that encourages, supports and facilitates all residents of Atina to co-vision the future of Atina. All residents are invited to engage in these Conversations to envision and take ownership of the future development of Atina. The Conversations are meant to be a bright and compelling development that, firstly, assists the formulation of a common vision and, secondly, supports the transformation of this vision into reality.

Š clear-village.org 2011

The Conversations with the future of Atina consists of a multistep process, the first phase being the Discovery Week.

The aim of the Discovery Week was to capture the Atinates’ perception of their town today and to ignite enthusiasm amongst them for a further collaborative process towards a bright future for Atina.

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This first phase was an action research project carried out by CLEAR VILLAGE in collaboration with Atinate Fabiana Panetta, Angela Koch of ImaginePlaces and local collaboration of the Comune di Atina, Consiglio Regionale del Lazio, local partners like Pro Loco and members of the local community.

The Discovery Week took place from 24 to 30 July 2011, the week of the yearly jazz festival, when the city is buzzing and full of life. The Conversations with the future of Atina were centered around a stand at Portico del Convento di San Francesco, Piazza Garibaldi. The team was present at the stand every day from 17.00 to 21.00. The mornings were focused on reaching out to other parts of the community at different venues and places. The Discovery Week was conducted in the spirit of a strength-based approach to change known as Appreciative Inquiry.

Concluding the Discovery Week we presented initial findings and harnessed public opinion at a public exhibition on 31 July from 11.00 to 13.00 at the Convento di San Franceso, Sala Tauleri, Piazza Garibaldi.

The Discovery Week was the beginning of the Conversations with the future of Atina. The next step consisted of presenting the outcomes to municipal stakeholders as well as the community on 29 November 2011, thereby moving into the second phase of co-visioning. This is the so-called Dreaming Phase and will bring together inhabitants from all parts of the community, from Centro Storico, Ponte Melfa and the other fractions, to work together on one Atina. Subsequently, the third phase is the co-implementation of initiatives with the continued involvement of all stakeholders.

These phases can in principle be repeated infinitely, as wished for by the community.

PURPOSE OF THIS REPORT This report is a summary of the first phase of the Conversations with the Future of Atina, the Discovery Week. It has been compiled by CLEAR VILLAGE and Fabiana Panetta on behalf of the whole group.

The first part outlines the vision and methodology behind the Discovery Week. This is followed by a summary and analysis of the outcomes of the Discovery Week, presented in a WellBeing Analysis. In conclusion, a roadmap for development is provided.

The Exercises Catalogue presents an overview of the diverse exercises that were held to engage and empower the Atinates to define and create a desirable future in Atina.

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© clear-village.org 2011

METHODOLOGY

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OUR COLLABORATIVE DESIGN PRINCIPLE We believe that at the heart of any successful change lies the ability of the whole community to reach agreement and rally around a common goal. In other words, one needs the buy-in and the input of the community in this process of complex change; from igniting the first spark through to implementation and assessment.

Stakeholders in the community are young and old; rich and poor; residents of upper and lower Atina; municipal decision makers, housewives, vegetarians, musicians, tennisplayers and all other members of the local community.

80%

Local community

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Action plan CLEAR VILLAGE process methods & facilitation

Global expertise

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METHODOLOGY DESIGN RESIDENCY

EXERCISES

The Design Residency is a project-catalyst method which involves one or more design analysts taking up residence in the community for a certain period of time. This method is a good starting point for a project which is driven by engagement and vicinity, as the Conversazioni con il futuro di Atina is. Being a temporary resident in the community enables qualitative inquiry, outreach to diverse segments of society, direct multisensoryexperiences, a dynamic feedback loop and interactive learning going both ways between the members of the community and the design analysts. This is how we believe most social innovation takes place and also where there is much opportunity to ignite community development.

The key purpose of the Discovery Week was to analyse current well-being of the Atinates and additionally to lure out their priorities, dreams and desires and thus enable analysis of the present situation as well as mapping of possible future scenarios.

In every case, the methodology Design Residency is tailored to fit the needs and opportunities. Thus, the Design Residency for Conversazioni con il futuro di Atina was comprised of three design analysts spending the majority of their time in one of Atina’s central public spaces during the yearly Jazz Festival.

The team consisted of Angela Koch, Fabiana Panetta and Artur Moustafa, who facilitated an intense array of exercises, interacting with the community and harnessing conversations.

The exercises included: + interactive activities at the stand on Piazza Garibaldi + qualitative interviews + the team conducting outreach at the local market + a questionnaire that could be answered prior to or after the event + an online questionnaire on the CLEAR VILLAGE website

Throughout the Conversazioni con il futuro di Atina, the engagement of inhabitants from all parts of society is pivotal.

In this first phase, we catered for many different people by means of various means of engagement and aimed to make participation possible for all inhabitants. The wealth of diverse exercises, sharing the style of an Appreciative Inquiry, reflects the wealth of diversity in the Atina community.

+ exercises for children and young people

Š clear-village.org 2011

All the data collected in the various exercises is treated confidentially; therefore the answers and data presented in this report are anonymous.

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MEthodology SURVEYS + We carried out qualitative interview based on a version of the CLEAR VILLAGE Well-Being Analysis, a semi-structured qualitative interview grid which was specially tailored for Atina; + A postcard survey was designed as a light version of the above. The postcards were distributed across Atina in advance of the Discovery Week and enabled inhabitants, of whom 127 responded, to rate 12 areas of life and provide narrative answers to two open questions.

Š clear-village.org 2011

+ A Poster poll was held at the stand in which people were asked to vote on the importance of the main issues raised by the Well-Being Analysis.

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INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES The exercises, which will be described in detail in the course of this report, included: + ‘I wish this was...’ asked Atinates to write down on stickers on the windows of three vacant shops what they would like the shop to be, once revitalised. + ‘What I love about Atina’ asked Atinates to write down on a poster what they consider most positive about Atina in order to stimulate a positive mindset about the town; + ‘If I was the Mayor...’ asked Atinates to write down ideas on how to improve well-being for different groups in society, such as families, local businesses, tourists & visitors, etc. + ‘Enlivening Community Spirit’ asked Atinates to write down on a poster their ideas for concrete actions to foster community spirit.

+ ‘My Project for Atina’ asked Atinates to write down and explain their ideas about and commitment for concrete projects to enhance the future of Atina. + ‘Public Realm Improvements’ asked Atinates to indicate and describe suggestions for the improvement of the public realm on a map of Atina. + In ‘Where is a vacant ...? we asked respondents to indicate on a map where there are vacant dwellings or shops. + ‘Children‘s Dreams’ asked the children of the Summer Holiday School of Atina Centro Storico to make a drawing about their future profession and the future of Atina. + ‘Retailers’ Future’ asked local entrepreneuers at the Atina market to write down on a chalk board their ideas about what would Atina make a better place for their business.

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METHODOLOGY COMMUNICATION Getting people involved before carrying out a community WellBeing Analysis is of primary importance. A key principle is that everyone is invited to participate. We thus reached out to the community via all available channels: + Invitations to members of the local community were sent via the existing mailing list of Atina’s Main Library. This list contains many useful contacts that are kept up to date. + Secondly, we published the event on the local Facebook group page ‘Di’ la tua... il sito dei commenti politici e non di Atina’ which currently has 454 active members with a shared interest in developing the community. Approximately 40 members of the group were actively tagged in discussion posts.

© clear-village.org 2011

+ Another Facebook page on which we announced the project and discussed with interested people is that of Pro Loco Atina which currently has 4,308 subscribers.

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+ A communication channel we created ourselves was the ‘I love Atina postcards’. These were distributed to the local community and indicated where and when we were available for the interactive exercises. + We established a CLEAR VILLAGE project site on www.clear-village.org containing several posts posts which provided all essential information about the project. + On www.clear-village.org/2011/07/18/i-love-atina/ we offered members of the Atina community the opportunity to answer an online questionnaire which was the virtual counterpart of the one found on the postcards.

During and after the event there was already some initial press coverage. We are confident that we can build on this prior to the following phases of the Conversations with the future of Atina.

PARTICIPATION The overall participation of people from the local community in the first phase of the Conversazioni con il Futuro di Atina was very satisfying.

Merely from the postcards we gathered 127 responses; the detailed statistical information from the postcard survey can be found in Appendix 1. However, we estimate that at least the same number of people actively took part in our interactive poster exercises.

Based on the postcard analysis and the overall impression of the Discovery Week, it may be concluded that the distribution of participants among younger and older age groups was approximately even. Most of the exercises were designed for participation of all age groups. Some of the other exercises allowed for making drawings, making them more accessible for children. An interactive painting session was organised to enhance the participation of children in the Discovery Week.

As we carried out the Discovery Week during the Atina Jazz Festival, it is not very surprising that a substantial number of respondents were not residents of Atina. However, we estimate that about 80% of the respondents were Atinates, with the majority of the people coming from Centro Storico which was the main location of the Discovery Week’s activities.

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KEY RESuLTS CLEAR VILLAGE WELL-BEING ANALYSIS

THE WELL-BEING “WHEEL”

The following pages of the report summarise and analyse the key findings of the Discovery Week and aggregate them into a comprehensive Well-Being Analysis.

The Well-Being Analysis is graphically presented in the CLEAR VILLAGE Well-Being Analysis Wheel. The wheel provides a snapshot of aggregated findings on how Atinates perceive various facets of well-being.

The input comprises findings from the range of exercises throughout the Discovery Week *. As described previously, the exercises conducted with residents and stakeholders in the area all followed best-practice in engagement and were especially tailored for Atina.

The exercises resulted in a pool of data in all shapes and forms, rich in its nature and complex in meaning. It has been processed by means of the CLEAR VILLAGE Well-Being Analysis tool and the results will be presented on the next pages.

© clear-village.org 2011

It is important to note that when examining the Well-Being Analysis, it is recommendable not to focus on isolated critical areas but rather to take a holistic view of all the categories and their interdependencies.

+ for full detail of the separate exercises, please refer to the Exercise Catalogue, further on in this document

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There are 19 categories located within the four dimensions, which are presented separately on the following pages: • • • •

Social Dimension & Community; Natural Environment; Architecture & Infrastructure; Economy & Governance

The Wheel is to be read as follows: the higher the score for a particular category, the more it is filled with colour extending to the outer edge of the circle.

For example, the Wheel below shows high “scores” in the category “Climate”. This is a result of Atinates responding extremely positively to all questions and exercises concerning their perception of the climate.

biosphere & recreation

energy

climate

water

health

food

natural environment

education

community

social dimension & community

ATINA Well-being Analysis

waste

housing

architecture & infrastructure

economy & governance

culture

public spaces & facilities

well-being

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mobility

intercorporate networks

civic society

governance participation

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Š clear-village.org 2011

Suggestion TO IMPROVE community spirit:

“narrow the gap AND eliminatE the contrasts between ponte melfa & atina centro storico, TO transform the love for atina inTO something tangible�

SOCIAL DIMENSION & COMMUNITY Looking at community aspects in Atina, we found a very diverse picture. We considered matters of health, education, community, culture and well-being as such and found that whilst the community itself is strong, there appears to be an equally strong perception of a division between lower and upper Atina.

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On a more tangible level, there was a perceived lack of important community services and facilities related to community support, education and healthcare.

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Health It was felt that the health of the general public was good and that there were no chronic problems. However, healthcare facilities were considered insufficient, particularly in Centro Storico where the hospital has closed. Another contradiction that was found was that although interviews stated that there were many sports facilities, the anonymous surveys asked for more to be developed. It is advisable to look deeper into demand and supply in this respect. Home care and social support for the elderly were mentioned by people as priority areas of investment.

Education The educational aspect in Atina shows a rather different picture. Whilst the town is located conveniently for higher education and offers a reasonable amount of further education activities, most respondents complained about primary and secondary schools. The postcard survey also showed that individual perceptions of education and development opportunities are not very positive.

Community Evaluating the community and cohesion aspects in Atina again shows a mixed picture. Whilst community spirit in general is alive and traditions are said to be well kept, cultural differences are felt by the majority, in particular between Centro Storico and Ponte Melfa. There is a real and perceived lack of community support services and community centres; this is an area hugely in need of improvement. However, community events, most prominently Atina Jazz, are seen as a positive factor in Atina and only minor improvements were suggested in this respect.

SUGGESTION FROM “IF I WERE THE MAYOR, I WOULD”:

‘START A CARE CENTRE FOR THE ELDERLY’ Culture Amongst cultural factors, Atina’s ‘heritage and charm’ is definitely the most appreciated aspect. The attractions including Atina Centro Storico’s monuments and lanes, Ponte Melfa’s Roman bridge and old Cartiera, and the town’s archaeological finds are all highly appreciated. The cultivated landscape around Atina with folkloristic events is another cultural asset mentioned by respondents.

Well-being Within the field of individual well-being, people seem to suffer in the historical centre and from the fact that lower Atina is recognised as more dynamic; which can partly be explained by the employment situation in both areas. Although people feel safe and there is a low level of crime, there is a huge need to talk more within the community, ideally in a facilitated environment.

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what do you love about VALLE DI COLMINO?

© clear-village.org 2011

“THE MOUNTAIN PANORAMA”

what do you love about atina?

“the santo stefano hill full of oxygen that we breathE�

natural environment The natural environment scored highest out of the four cornerstones of our analysis. This quadrangle includes the themes of biosphere & recreation, climate, energy, water and food.

The relatively high level of appreciation can be attributed to Atina’s attractive rural setting and good climate which contribute significantly to a high quality of life.

However, there does appear to be a desire for the management of available natural resources to be improved.

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“ConservationValorisation & guided visits in parco st. stefano” Biosphere & recreation In general, the biosphere and recreational opportunities in Atina are good, though the neighbourhoods are not considered particularly green but benefit rather from having public parks within walking distance. There is much space however for the improvement of the parks. One person suggested that people are losing the habit of walking outside with negative impacts on wellbeing.

Climate

Water

Climate conditions in Atina are perceived extremely positively.

Though some concerns were mentioned about the air quality in Atina Ponte Melfa, given its position in the valley and proximity to the ‘superstrada’, people replied positively to all questions regarding air, emissions, contamination and the general natural beauty of the town.

Atina does not face any severe issues related to water. Water quality and availability are seen as very good and the waste water system works well, although the system does seem to reach full capacity when rainfall is added to waste water from the built environment. Average per capita water use is high however; therefore it is recommended that opportunities for traditional rainwater harvesting for agricultural use be investigated.

Energy Energy is a rather weak field within this section. Although people tend to pay attention to their energy consumption, they don’t have many choices to influence it. Firstly, electricity can only be purchased from the national grid and it is not possible to choose a different (for example renewables) provider.

Secondly, due to their size most houses need a great deal of energy to be heated. As many properties are still not linked to gas mains, residents need to buy diesel oil.

Food Though Atina has a very strong culinary tradition like most parts of Italy, people did not appear to have a strong focus on local produce and locally sourced food. Their choice is determined by other factors such as the taste, value for money and how the food has been produced. A few have already started to grow their own food.

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© clear-village.org 2011

“INTRODUCE a Reward system with tax discounts to families that recycle more urban solid waste” RECOMMENDATION FROM THE EXERCISE “IF I WAS THE MAYOR I WOULD”

ARchitecture & infrastructure There are considerable concerns when looking at architectural and infrastructural aspects of community well-being, which include waste, housing, transport, mobility, public spaces & facilities. ++

The main challenge in this category is the housing stock which needs particular attention in terms of use and quality. Car dependency and its detrimental effects on public space are the most pressing issues with regard to transport and mobility.

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Š clear-village.org 2011

unit y

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Mobility

Transport

Waste The main concern mentioned in this field was the lack of transparency around garbage disposal. Improvements could be made with an awareness campaign and waste disposal units in new homes. Additionally, there is currently no functioning recycling system in place, though it is considered essential to make substantial improvements in this field.

Housing In the field of quality of housing, the most pressing issues were considered maintenance and repairs, as well as compliance with health and safety standards which was viewed as inadequate. Additionally, a few houses still lack a sufficient supply system. A major concern are the vacant dwellings in Atina Centro Storico, both in terms of finding new residents and in terms of posing a governance challenge to stimulate landlords to take a more active stance. A possible solution could lie in using these dwellings as multi-generation and multi-purpose houses, as these are largely absent now.

“RECONSTITUTE THE COLONY FOR CHILDREN IN THE PARK” SUGGESTION FROM “PROJECT PROPOSAL FOR PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENT”

Public spaces & facilities Open public spaces are easy to reach for the community, though there is a lack of dedicated facilities like playgrounds for children. People feel that Atina lacks a multi-functional space to have for example music, dance and film courses. This was observed both in Centro Storico and Ponte Melfa. People feel that Atina lacks a multi-functional space that could be used for example for music, dance and film courses. This was observed both in Centro Storico and Ponte Melfa. People in Ponte Melfa mentioned being afraid to go out at night, as there are no places that are open and the area feels deserted.

Transport The main traffic problem that was cited was car parking. It was felt that uncontrolled car parking causes congestion and provides a hindrance both to cars and pedestrians in Centro Storico and partly in Ponte Melfa. A lack of parking spaces and insufficient ‘education’ in ‘parking behaviour’ were considered the primary problems. Although pedestrians feel that they no longer have any ownership of the streets, this does not affect their feeling of security on the streets.

Mobility People find it convenient to walk to shops selling food and other daily necessities in their direct neighbourhoods. However, schools and medical services are further away and require people to drive, leading to high car dependency. Public transport was generally considered sufficient, though frequency was cited as an issue.

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© clear-village.org 2011

“If the MARKEt COULD HAVE MORE SPACE, IT WOULD BE GOOD FOR BUSINESS”

ECONOMY & GOVERNANCE The economic situation in Atina is perceived as tense when looking at economic capacity, intercorporate networks, civic society and governance & participation.

Limited employment opportunities leading to depopulation and declining classical tourism are the main concerns. Maintaining a democratic environment with more opportunities for civic participation is key to sustaining people’s confidence in the possibility of upgrading the economy.

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Š clear-village.org 2011

Governance & participation

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Governance & Participation

The current state of the economy is reflective of the national and global recession and some of the causes of the current crisis are felt as being exogenous to the local system. Although the region is doing better than many others in Italy, people feel there is a lack of entrepreneurial spirit. Young people move away to find employment opportunities elsewhere. The region suffers from the interference from Rome as well as declining tourism. Although tourism is seen as a main driver of the local economy and community, tourist facilities are considered to be inadequate.

Generally people feel represented by the local authority although there are decisions that they do not agree with and some express low confidence in the capacity of the administration to make improvements. Democracy is highly valued and people actively participate in elections. People feel empowered to shape their life, but they would like more opportunities to influence public affairs and spaces that would facilitate this . People also feel that there needs to be a greater focus on civic education about the duties, responsibilities and rights of citizens.

Intercorporate networks Within the field of intercorporate networks, a lack of cooperation is recognized, though this is also seen as counterintuitive given the numerous private associations.

Co-operations between companies within the same sector as well as between different sectors is rated rather weakly though seen as a huge opportunity. In addition, upgrading traditional craftmanship is considered necessary to give the place a unique economic proposition.

Civic Society

from the exercise “imagine Atina in 2030,..”:

Generally it is felt that the community is reasonably open, fair and tolerant. However, it was stated that people need to be less suspicious and prejudiced about new developments. Younger respondents in particular mentioned that the town should be more open to diversity.

“If the administrators carry on like this, Atina will no longer exist in 2030”

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CONCLUSIONS

ex er cis aw es ar & en sp es pr im or sf ary ts or he ed hig a u he education lth ca re tio yl du n ivi furt cat ng her ion edu c atio edu cati n on & enc oura comm gem unit y ent spirit commu nit y eve nts community community supp ort social

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economy & governance

m syste osal p s i ed wast sing of hou qualit y omunità alloggi e c

multi generation & purpose

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© clear-village.org 2011

de str ia

partic

intercorporate networks

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open sp unit y

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economic capacity

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ATINA Well-being Analysis

dimension & community

surviving community

absolute energy consumption relative en ergy consu mption renew able e rene nergy wab sourc les & ing ener gy e fficie ncy wat er q uali ty rai wa nw ste ate w a rh ter wa arv lo ter es ca tin av lly g ail so ab u ilit rc lo y ed ca lp fo o ro d du ce

air qualit y

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emissions ination contam y eaut ral b ood natu ourh ighb n ne gree s lth ark ea lic p lh pub e ter ta wa alu v en ’s blic m ity pu & un al mm e sic ar co hy hc lp alt ua he

biosphere & recreation

traffic

public spaces & facilities

GENERAL CONCLUSION It is important not to over-emphasize our findings. The aim of Discovery Week was not to establish the ‘absolute truth’ about Atina, which would have been unrealistic given the limited time-frame, but to discover indications that can serve as a basis for the ongoing process.

Yet it is also important not to under-emphasize our findings.

In the course of Discovery Week, opinions were gathered from a broad variety of groups: from children to the elderly, from residents of Lower Atina and Upper Atina, from visitors to engaged locals. And in view of this fact, the findings certainly serve as a collation of a host of different perspectives from which indications and trends can be extrapolated, as has been done in this report.

The picture that has emerged from the Discovery Week is that Atina has rich cultural and environmental assets, yet suffers from a divide between Lower and Upper Atina and from an economy in need of reinvigoration. The differences in respondents’ opinions between Atina Centro Storico and Ponte Melfa are striking, though it should be pointed out that we had a limited number of respondents from Ponte Melfa. Further investigation into the views of people from Ponte Melfa is therefore recommendable.

Whilst sporadic or seasonal tourism connected to Atina’s natural beauty and cultural heritage can go some way to putting the town on the map and stemming the diaspora of residents, there is a limit to this and a need to identify more ways to keep the local economy functioning successfully on a day-to-day basis. Especially Atina Centro Storico is in need of upgraded services like medical services.

Furthermore, Atina struggles with a declining and divided community, its streets and public spaces are taken over by car congestion, the quality of housing is sometimes poor and in need of investment. And finally there is a degree of anxiety about the viability of some of the town’s economic activities.

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CONCLUSIONS IDENTIFIED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT

Upgrade and New Purposes in Housing

Summarising the Well-Being Analysis, it can be seen that Atina is doing very well in some areas which affect life quality.

But there are, of course, other factors that are seen as in need of improvement. The following are the main challenges, presented in a prioritised order, that were unveiled in the Discovery Week:

The quality of housing in terms of maintenance, repairs and health & safety standards is seen as a pressing issue.

Additionally, a few houses still lack a sufficient supply system.

Rents are considered high which ties in to the problem of vacant houses. As was suggested, this could be addressed through government action to prompt landlords (often members of extended families) to adopt solutions such as change of use, subdivision or investment. Other suggestions focused on providing incentives to lower rents in order to attract young families to Centro Storico.

Divided Community All the respondents felt a very distinct division between lower and upper Atina in terms of their sense of belonging and community spirit. In addition to that, there are no community support facilities in place which could facilitate a dialogue between them. However, people also feel the need and an urge to re-connect, work and talk with each other. To do this effectively, they ask for facilitation tools and processes to be provided.

Economic Anxiety

© clear-village.org 2011

It is clear that people feel that the local economy is impacted by the national and global recession. There is anxiety about economic drivers in the region: unemployment is high, traditional tourism is declining and many young Atinates have to leave the town to find work or higher education and often do not return. However, some people see a huge opportunity in enhancing intercorporate networks and implementing new and innovative businesses like ‘residential tourism’ to address issues like unemployment or the revitalisation of traditional craftmanship.

Demand for Active Administration & Participation Although people acknowledge and appreciate that the local authority invited CLEAR VILLAGE to conduct this participatory project, they still express a strong demand for more active, open and transparent administration and decision-making.

Additionally, local residents mentioned a strong desire for more opportunities to actively influence public affairs whilst proposing civic education offerings to teach residents how to use those opportunities.

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Need for Services Revitalisation Closing down the primary school and hospital in Centro Storico is viewed by respondents as the ‘ final proof’ of Atina’s decline.

There is a strong need for service improvements in both parts of the town, and not only among the elderly, to ensure that Atina remains a livable place.

Dependency on Fossil Fuels Although renewable energy is well known to local residents, use is very low. On the one hand people cannot choose between traditional and renewable energy providers but are dependent on the national grid. On the other there is a high demand to heat due to large houses. Most people still use oil or other fossil fuels to satisfy their energy demand.

Mobility & Public Space ruled by Cars Car dependency is high among residents. Public transport is considered insufficient and therefore cars are needed to reach for example schools and medical services. More importantly, the many cars parking around town cause congestion and take over the public space from pedestrian.

Underutilisation of Nature with Traditional Tools Water availability is evaluated as very good, but per capita use is very high, due to the use of drinking water for agricultural purposes. There are, traditional yet currently unused cisterns which were used to harvest rainwater for private residential use in the past. It is recommendable to study if these could be used for collecting rain water for agricultural purposes. There could be a stronger focus on healthy, sustainable and tasty food if people learn to appreciate traditional and local food purchase.

The figure below shows the main challenges and assets we found in the Well-Being Analysis. The figure suggests a way in which these challenges and assets can be linked to identify lines of thought along which viable approaches can be developed in an integrated manner.

no multi-generation or multi-purposebuildings

health &safety standards often not met

UPGRADE AND NEW

people’s bad behaviour in parking

PURPOSES IN HOUSING

MOBILITY & PUBLIC SPACE RULED BY CARS

bad quality of housing in Centro Storico

insufficient public transport

dependency on car congestion

parking problem

decline in traditional tourism

ECONOMIC ANXIETY

felt national & global recession

DEPENDENCY ON FOSSIL FUELS

national park D’Abruzzo

unemployment missing incentives for entrepreneurs loss of craftmanship medical services out of reach hospital closed no primary school in Centro Storico loss of local shops

NEED FOR SERVICES

NATURAL BEAUTIES

services unequally distributed

the scenic position the local food

lack of community services

DIVIDED declining population COMMUNITY

location close to Roma and Napoli

Centro Storico

Divide Centro Storico & Ponte Melfa

HISTORICAL HERITAGE

unused cisterns

Parco St. Stefano La cartiera The monuments

UNDERUTILISING TRADITION Atina Jazz Festival Local entepreneurship

ASSETS

friendliness of the people

missing civic education

DEMAND FOR ACTIVE ADMINSTRATION & PARTICIPATIO lack of transparency in decision making

© clear-village.org

CHALLENGES

THEinterest PEOPLE in tradition

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HORIZONS In order to tackle the challenges in Atina, we propose continuing the participatory journey embarked upon in the Discovery Week.

We recommend the next step to be a LAB, bringing together: + local stakeholders (whether or not involved in Discovery Week); + experts in behavioural change, place identity, local economy etc.

Š clear-village.org 2011

A Clear Village LAB is a experience and a creative environment, facilitated by Clear Village, which will enable the community to work streamlined and collaboratively on the future of Atina. The aim is to move from the desires, requests and needs identified in the Discovery Week to concrete initiatives. Viewed in their totality, these initiatives will provide a roadmap to tackle a host of challenges currently facing Atina: addressing economic anxiety; re-engineering services and local

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administration; and upgrading infrastructure, CLEAR VILLAGE LAB-SERIES INmobility, housing and HELSINGBORG, public space.

SWEDEN

The importance of strong local involvement in this initiativedevelopment process cannot be overstated. It is only by letting locals be the drivers of change that improvements can be made that coincide with people’s aspirations, respect traditional customs and values. The focus is to gradually build connections that matter between Lower and Upper Atina, so that the whole community can project itself and rally behind a brighter future.

This means an emphasis on enhancement of quality of life, retaining and attracting youth and the establishment of an incremental path to structural resilience.

And not only that. By continuing the participatory journey that has been started, Atina will manifest a pioneering approach to building resilience which others in the region, and potentially even from a larger audience, can look to as a source of inspiration.

EXAMPLE: DYNAMIC DIALOGUES

Project: Dynamic Dialogues Place: Helsingborg, Sweden Partners: Helsingborg City Authority, Helsinborg Regeration Agency (H+), Helsingborg City Theatre Timeframe: 2010 - 2014 Similar to Atina, Helsingborg is a City with tendencies of division in the community. However, here the split is rather of socio-economical character. CLEAR VILLAGE was asked to play a role in bridging the divide.

Our specific stake was to be the process and methodology partner and utilise culture as a driver for people to meet and obtain intercommunal understanding at the same time as thinking up their common future. An important part of our methodology is the organisation of Dynamic Dialogues Labs.

Within months of the Labs, a range of recommendations were implemented. The most prominent one being a pioneering community driven cultural cabinet. Here, community members from all segments of society will match the inside knowledge they have of their communities with the aims and initiatives of organisations and the cultural, structural and governace realm.

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Š clear-village.org 2011

CATALOGUE OF EXERCISES A DETAILED STORY OF THE DISCOVERY WEEK AND ITS RESULTS

CONTENTS WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT ...?

POSTCARD SURVEY INTERACTIVE POSTER POLL QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWS CHILDREN‘S DREAMS MY PROJECT FOR ATINA ENLIVENING COMMUNITY SPIRIT IF I WERE THE MAYOR ...

PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS WHERE IS A VACANT ...?

I WISH THIS WAS ....

RETAILERS‘ FUTURE

Š clear-village.org 2011

WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT ....?

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WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT ....?

POSTER QUESTIONS Three interactive panels were present at our street exhibition for the entire Discovery Week. Participants contributed their opinions and many lively discussions were stimulated.

KEY FINDINGS

© clear-village.org 2011

In the historical centre people value both the social life and the historical environment in general. Many people named particular assets such as “the walls”, “Atina Jazz”, or “the alleys and arches”.

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Some people are less appreciative of Ponte Melfa, but many people cited very specific assets ranging from the folklore festival, the river and its adjacent walk, to the sport facilities of the university and the manege. Core to people’s appreciation of Ponte Melfa are its rural characteristics together with the comforts of its facilities.

As for the Colmino Valley, the majority of respondents valued the various aspects of the natural environment (fresh air, mountains, greenery). The food produced, sold and prepared in the Valley is also an asset appreciated by the people in Atina.

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Š clear-village.org 2011

POSTCARD SURVEY

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POSTCARD SURVEY OPEN QUESTIONS On the postcards that we distributed among the people of Atina, two open questions were asked to poll general opinions about Atina: + What do you love about Atina? + Imagine Atina in 2030 and writing a postcard at that time to your friends: How would you describe your experience?

Š clear-village.org 2011

Over 100 people answered the first question, while about 90 people provided their views on Atina in 2030.

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KEY FINDINGS In response to the first question, people‘s answers varied from the very negative “nothing” to the very positive “everything”.

Many of the answers that were more specific focused on aspects of Atina‘s natural environment, such as the town’s tranquillity, fresh air and climate. The historic built environment is also an aspect much appreciated by the people of Atina.

Compared with the many who cited physical aspects of Atina, maybe surprisingly few mentioned social aspects of Atina as the reason for their love for their town. “Atina Jazz” was however mentioned by about 10% of the respondents as one of the primary reasons for loving their town.

The same extremes of negativity and positivity can be observed in the answers to the second question. Some people do not see any future for Atina, or believe that no positive developments will occur before 2030. Others expressed a hope that things will change for the better. Among the activities that people imagine doing in Atina on such a day in the future, walking around in nature or the historic built environment is often mentioned.

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POSTCARD SURVEY EVALUATIVE QUESTIONNAIRE In addition to the open question of what people love about Atina, we provided an evaluative questionnaire asking for respondents’ opinions as to how they would evaluate twelve selected topics related to Atina, for example its natural beauty.

In this survey, we asked people to state whether

?

they’re very satisfied with a particular aspect of Atina, see it rather neutrally, they’re not satisfied, or they don’t know how to answer the question.

KEY FINDINGS As in many rural towns, people from Atina value its beauty, charm and heritage very highly. Nearly 75% of all respondents answered that they like the town’s natural beauty, whilst a nearly equal amount answered as positively about the heritage and charm.

However, Atinates are very sceptical about communal services and innovative economic solutions in their home town.

natural beauty

On topics such as different uses of buildings (for example Albergo Diffuso), tourism offers that could also be Atina’s main source of income in winter, convenience shops or people’s connectivity - there were significantly more negative than satisfied responses.

heritage & charme

public spaces & celebrations

© clear-village.org 2011

tourism summer community updating education & shops & traditional encourage- recreational offers spirit commercial access & use of crafts ment facilities offerings connectivity buildings

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tourism winter offers

DIFFERENT GROUPS - DIFFERENT OPINIONS Although the postcard survey was completely anonymous, we were able to identify some differences between people of different age, gender and origin. The most significant differences are presented here, for a full overview see appendix 1.

vs.

The availability of public spaces for gatherings, whether as polyfunctional or informal spaces, was evaluated more critically by female members of the community than by male members.

The reason for the stronger level of dissatisfaction among women was not determined by this survey. However, it may be presumed that women have a greater desire for such places than men.

The most interesting difference in responses between the young and the old is related to the innovation and development of Atina’s traditional crafts. Whilst young people tend to evaluate this positively, the vast majority of older residents is highly dissatisfied.

vs.

This issue should be taken seriously as the elderly are afraid that their knowledge will be lost. Secondly, this constitutes a huge opportunity for intergenerational exchange and economic stimulation.

vs.

The most striking difference in opinion between people from Upper and Lower Atina can be found in relation to the availability of shops and commercial offerings. Whilst people from Ponte Melfa and San Marciano evaluated this aspect mostly neutrally, 65% of Centro Storico residents answered very negatively.

This difference is not very surprising in view of the fact that Centro Storico has lost many small shops in the historic centre.

However, this survey underlines that people’s quality of life suffers as a result.

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Š clear-village.org 2011

INTERACTIVE POSTER POLL ATINATES’ EVALUATION OF DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF THEIR PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT

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© clear-village.org 2011

INTERACTIVE POSTER POLL

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In this survey we asked people on the street to evaluate their local well-being by rating different aspects that influence it.

This is firstly to build on the results from the postcard survey and secondly to have a more detailed evaluation that can be interlinked with in-depth interviews carried out in parallel.

For example, we asked participants to evaluate water quality in Atina, on a scale from one to ten by means of a dot.

The diagram on the left side shows the mean value of all respondents arranged in a descending order, from the bestrated down to the worst-rated aspects. The diagrams below highlight the 5 aspects evaluated most positively and most negatively.

TOP 5 WELL-BEING ASPECTS FROM POSTER POLL

How do you perceive local air quality?

How well does the community look after traditions?

How do you perceive the quality of your drinking water?

How would you rate the health of the general public?

How would you rate the communal events? Are there enough? How is the quality?

LAST 5 WELL-BEING ASPECTS FROM POSTER POLL

How would you rate the local economy?

Do you feel treated fairly in society? Is there equality?

How would you rate the opportunities for innovation and development in local business?

Are the most important shops, health services, schools etc. in a walkable distance from your home?

How would you rate the current local employment situation? Are there enough places to work?

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Š clear-village.org 2011

QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWs ATINATES’ DEEPER EVALUATION OF DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF THEIR PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT

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QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWs These interviews, held one-on-one between the team and people from the community, followed the principle of a semi-structured qualitative interview, which allows interviews to be completed regardless of the interviewee‘s commitment and availability without challenging the collation or validity of the data.

The emphasis of the interviews was on perception and desires, which requires a high level of individual flexibility without jeopardising the comparability of the feedback. For this reason the questionnaire was tailored to include a set of foundational questions and a series of optional prompts for elaboration. As a result, the interviews were designed to flow like a conversation and allowed for individual responses to be quantified, systematised and compared.

The team had 8 interviews in total with residents of Atina, each interview lasting 40 minutes on average. One resident was in his 30’s, four residents were in their 40’s, two were in their 50’s and one was in his 70’s.

One key finding was that respondents did not always have the same opinion, showing the broad range of perceptions among the interviewees, and probably among Atina’s population in general. The quotes on the following page show how diverse answers were for example when asked about sense of community. The diversity and depth of answers shows the level of human resources available in Atina.

© clear-village.org 2011

The detailed results of the interviews have been integrated into the Well-Being Analysis in the Appendix.

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DO YOU THINK THERE IS A SENSE OF COMMUNITY?

„No, the people spend too much time gossipping about each other.“

„There have always been differences and cyclically they reappear. There is no sense of membership of the community in Atina, Ponte Melfa, Settignano, San Marciano or Rosanisco. It is broken into pieces.“

„Yes.“

„Yes, but facilitating meet-ups per area might help overcome differences.“

„Yes, especially in Atina you can feel this strongly; in the whole village, within different parts and especially in Centro Storico.“

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Š clear-village.org 2011

CHILDREN’S DREAMS INTERACTIVE PAINTING SESSION WITH CHILDREN SHOWING THEIR DREAMS FOR ATINA

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CHILDREN’s DREAMS HOW CHILDREN SEE THEIR ATINA In a painting exercise we asked children aged between 6 and 10 from the summer holiday school in Atina Centro Storico both what they would like to do professionally in the future and how they would like Atina to be.

© clear-village.org 2011

All the submissions where shown to the public at the final exhibition and all the children won ‘I love Atina’ hats, which were presented to them by Fabiana Panetta and the Vice Mayor of Atina on the Sunday.

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Š clear-village.org 2011

MY PROJECT FOR ATINA INTERACTIVE POSTER EXERCISE ON REVITALISATION PROJECTS IN CENTRO STORICO

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MY PROJECT FOR ATINA CENTRO STORICO REVITALISATION PROJECTS After in-depth discussions with members of the local community, we asked people to suggest their own revitalization projects as clearly as possible, whilst promoters of the idea were asked to leave their name.

Furthermore other people could ‘sign up’ to support the suggested project. The exercise resulted in six different project ideas; three of these are related to concrete properties and another three deal with Atina Centro Storico in general.

Weddings at the Ducal Palace Idea:

Hold weddings at the Church of Santa Maria Assunta and host the

celebrations in the courtyard and rooms of the Ducal Palace.

Both the council and the church will get revenues from these activities and jobs will be created (catering etc).

Promotor: Daniele Bartolomucci Supporters: Antonio Caira, Rachele

Beatrice Residence Idea:

Create a residence in the former nursery school

Promotor: Daniele Bartolomucci Supporters: Fausto Tamburrini

Parco di Santo Stefano Idea:

conservation/ valorisation and guided tours through Parco di Santo Stefano

© clear-village.org 2011

Promotor: Orazio Riccardi Supporters:

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Exchange of Holiday Properties Idea:

Temporary exchange of holiday properties within Italy and internationally

Promotor: Salvatore Ciotola Supporters:

Outlet in Centro Storico Idea:

Re-use the numerous empty shops of the historical centre to accommodate outlets of big brands and engage businesses in Cassino as well.

Promotor: Antonella Orlandi Supporters:

Quirino: Great idea Antonella. We have been working on this for 2 years and I can assure you that we have been banging against brick walls. If you want information call me!

Albergo Diffuso Idea:

Provide holiday accomodations spread to a minimum of 6 units, in compliance with the Regional Policy.

Promotor: Daniele Bartolomucci Supporters: Antonio Caira

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Š clear-village.org 2011

ENLIVenING COMMUNITY SPIRIT INTERACTIVE POSTER EXERCISE FOR COMMUNITY SPIRIT IMPROVEMENTS

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enlivening COMMUNITY SPIRIT Another interactive poster exercise asked people to suggest their ideas on how to foster community spirit.

Whilst two respondents focused on a shared vision for the two parts of Atina, there were three other very interesting suggestions highlighting the importance of overcoming the divide within the town.

Idea n° 2 Identifying shared priorities.

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Idea n° 1 Sharing a collective dream!

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Idea n° 5 The Mayor and all the Councillors should place more value on Centro Storico and all the residents of Atina Ponte Melfa should suffer less from an ‘inferiority complex’ and • be instead proud of Atina Centro Storico and the whole area • create less hatred • don’t get too influenced

Idea n° 4 • Narrowing the gap and eliminating the contrasts between Ponte Melfa and Atina Centro Storico, transforming the love for Atina into some tangible actions.

Idea n° 3 • The old paper mill (La Cartiera) could be restored and transformed into a cultural hub that connects upper and lower Atina, with the intention to mitigate friction due to the Jazz Festival.

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IF I Were THE MAYOR ...

INTERACTIVE POSTER EXERCISE ON TARGET GROUP ORIENTED IMPROVEMENTS IN ATINA

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IF I Were THE MAYOR ...

IF PEOPLE WERE THE MAYOR, WHAT WOULD THEY DO? In another interactive exercise we asked members of the local community to slip into the role of the mayor and suggest what they would do to improve well-being in Atina.

The ideas and suggestions that people proposed were overwhelmingly varied; therefore we asked them in advance to cluster their improvements within target groups like the elderly, the young, Atina’s families, visitors and businesses.

FOR LOCAL BUSINESSES If community members were the Mayor of Atina, they would improve, build up or introduce for local businesses: Business Activities + Give incentives for the creation of new businesses and new jobs. + Open shops selling clothes and electronic devices. + Create a regional information system for the management and control of land in a sustainable and targeted way. + Promote the growth of businesses that are linked to the renewal of buildings in a sustainable way by means of regulations and partnerships between businesses, the public and banks. + Incentives, financial contributions and fiscal deductions for new entrepreneurial initiatives. Š clear-village.org 2011

+ Bring quality craftsmanship of quality back to life. + Offer tax discounts and advantages for the start up of new businesses. + Reduce the amount of car parking to help the commercial centre in Ponte Melfa flourish.

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FOR FAMILIES

Jobs & Society

If community members were the Mayor of Atina, they would improve, build up or introduce for families:

+ Integrate immigrants & incentivise local craftmanship with the contributions of new immigrants and residents.

Community Activities + Open a shopping centre, cinema and family park and offer better spaces for children.

+ Introduce a Time Banking System to coordinate and enable collaboration among families to give assistance to the elderly and children.

+ Build a playground for the young in Atina.

+ Enhance services for families (school, pharmacy, convenience shops).

+ Create a recreational/ sport playground in the area behind the primary school in the historical centre.

+ Introduce citizenship training courses (social and civic ethics).

+ Organise social events; social and urban decay need to be faced.

Public Realm

+ Use the Church as a place for encounter for the residents of ALL different fractions. + Investigate with bar owners the possibility to do a pilot project and extend their opening times. + Bring back the nursery and offer some first aid facilities.

+ Build a cycle path, for example one along the Melfa river. + Improve public transportation and links between Atina Centro Storico and Ponte Melfa. + Clean carriageways and walkways more efficiently. + Restore facades and make use of archaeological remains as a source of attraction.

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IF I Were THE MAYOR ...

FOR THE ELDERLY If community members were the Mayor of Atina, they would improve, build up or introduce for the elderly: Community Activities + Introduce various activities for the elderly. + Older craftsmen give courses and lessons to youngsters to hand down their knowledge. + Combine home care with recreational activities i.e. art courses. + Build a social centre. + Introduce a time banking system: organise people’s availability and their experience to help others.

Healthcare & Elderly Care + Re-open the pharmacy with a new management. + Introduce a care centre for the elderly. + Open a care centre for the elderly in the historical centre, possibly using the former hospital. + Build a nursing home. + Improve the home care system. + Introduce home catering for elderly people who live alone.

Public Realm + Remove obstacles for the disabled and the elderly in the public realm to improve accessibility. + Replace the poor quality material on surface walkways. Š clear-village.org 2011

+ Gather groups of voluntary workers to look after the proper maintenance of the public realm.

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FOR THE YOUNG If community members were the Mayor of Atina, they would improve, build up or introduce for the young: Sports & Play + Offer more spaces to play and engage in activities. + Introduce a well equipped play area.

School & Other Education

+ Build a south-facing playground to ensure its use also during the winter.

+ Bring back the primary school at via Vittorio Emanuele.

+ Shuttle service for sport facilities.

+ Conversion of the Primary School of the historical centre into a multi media library with ample areas dedicated to children.

+ Enhance existing facilities (e.g. sport).

+ Introduce free music lessons.

+ Offer the possibility to do sport for free.

+ Give civil behaviour & society lessons to pupils at school.

+ Create a sport programme of the Council.

+ Show more tolerance to youth but also ask them to respect the rules.

+ Offer more usable sport facilities.

+ Sport activities and play areas.

+ Offer an alternative to drug and alcohol abuse.

Jobs & Society + Create new jobs utilising the young as a resource to give assistance to the elderly and improve social cohesion. + Re-establish old craftsmanship to create new jobs. + Create voluntary groups responsible for maintaining urban decorum.

Culture & Arts + Create various events, for example a fun fair. + Create spaces dedicated to creativity like film club, multimedia, painting, music, visual arts. + Re-use empty buildings for cultural, musical and recreational associations. + Organise a programme of events also in the winter and not only during the summer + Incentivise theatrical activities, organise itinerant shows in the whole historical centre. + Create a library, multi-purpose centre, museum and other venues at the Cartiera (Paper Mill).

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IF I Were THE MAYOR ...

FOR TOURISTS & VISITORS If community members were the Mayor of Atina, they would improve, build up or introduce for our visitors: Culture & Arts + Provide more art and exhibitions facilities & events. + Promotion of the Museum, its expansion and rebranding of the presentation of the exhibits on show. + Establish Pro Loco for tourists and develop structured and professional programmes linked to various itineraries like the museum, historical themes, walks; or create an information point. + Organise gigs and public events to attract more visitors. + Coordinate the public events of the entire Valley in a shared Diary to avoid them overlapping. + Organise Summer Camps.

Touristic Attractions + Create natural and environmental itineraries, historical itineraries (i.e. medieval towers). + Provide walks & itineraries. + Establish archaeological Itineraries. + Emphasise the role of boundaries throughout the history of Atina (Capo di China) and insert in historical itineraries. + Information points for tourists.

Touristic Business Networks + Sustain the associations which work for local development.

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+ Incentivize the owners to rent commercial/residential premises. + Opening of Bed & Breakfast accommodations. + For the historical centre create the Albergo Diffuso, providing accommodations for visitors as a priority to attracting them.

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+ Open a hotel & wellness centre. + Create a hotel with swimming pools, sport pitches and dance floors. + Training on Tourism and accommodation facilities. + Reduce the rent prices for tourist accommodation. + Check the quality of tourist accommodation offered by a network of landowners willing to make their premises available for rent. + Residential tourism incentivising owners in the historical centre to sell or rent their properties. + There needs to be more hotel accomodation in Atina Centro Storico (lower and middle range). + Create new accomodations and re-use empty properties. + Reactivate all the services and recreational spaces that existed 60 years ago.

OTHER SUGGESTIONS If community members were the Mayor of Atina, they would improve, build up or introduce for other occasions: Governance + Notify residents of the activities of the Council and inform them, for example by a bulletin. + Show more presence, professionalism and reliability. + I would keep the community more informed of the various initiatives and possibilities. + Create more transparency of the Municipal Budget. + Twin with Athens in Greece and in Turkey. + Twin with Lyon (Munazio Planco was the founder). + Collaborate with other towns. + Establish semestral meetings between the Administration and the community. + Reward system with tax discounts for families that recycle more urban solid waste. + Simplify the rules on change of use of some premises (like cellars and shops) relaxing existing building regulations.

Culture & Community + Jazz Music School. + Write a book on the decline of Arts and Crafts. + I would teach civil and respectful coexistence (among residents of upper and lower Atina). + Re-open the old cellars and especially the small shops of the historical centre to sell quality products (arts and crafts). + Initiatives to increase social cohesion. + Employ the skills and knowledge gained by individuals for the benefit of the common good, in a synergic discourse projected to revitalize the town. For example everyone could dedicate 1 hour per week to cooperate in a development project.

Public Realm & Technology + Public transportation services linked to the rail connections with Rome. + Salvage the Surrounding Walls. + I would separate Centro Storico from Ponte Melfa. + Promote the quality of life and the technology infrastructure to attract residents who can work remotely from home. + Create a car park, urgently. + Improve waste separation (accompanied by correct guidelines to residents). + Create historical itineraries of the ‘Atina Memory’ with the Museum as starting point. + Ensure a first aid facility.

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Public realm improvements INTERACTIVE POSTER EXERCISE ON PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENT SUGGESTIONS FOR ATINA

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PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS IN ATINA Showing community members a map of the whole of Atina including Ponte Melfa as well as Centro Storico, we asked them to suggest improvements in the public realm in their neighbourhoods and elsewhere.

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The approach is pro-active; most importantly we did not only want people to complain about negative aspects but to offer positive recommendations for improvements.

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MAIN FINDINGS PONTE MELFA There were not many suggestions for Atina Ponte Melfa compared to Centro Storico. However, their range was quite varied and spanned from architectural improvements to the creation of public space and the conservation of local heritage.

Additionally there were ideas to boost local trade as well as to promote music & arts in the community.

PONTE MELFA - CARTIERA Cartiera: Remove the gates from the Cartiera and make it accessible.

PONTE MELFA IN GENERAL Corso Munazio Planco: Replace tiles used to pave the pavement. They look like from the 70s.

Streetscape Colour Scheme: Develop a colour scheme to homogenize the streetscape.

Front of Sports Facilities: Creation of a new public space in the existing parking in front of the sports facilities.

Local Trade: Create a trade centre of local products for the farmers in the area.

Music School: Found a school of classical/jazz/ folklore music with final concerts of the courses at the Palazzo Ducale.

Art Centre: Create a multi-purpose centre for theatre and other artistic activities.

Paper Mill: Reactivation of the Paper Mill or other productive activity.

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PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS MAIN FINDINGS CENTRO STORICO 1/3 As mentioned above, the number of ideas for Atina Centro Storico was absolutely overwhelming and shows impressively which public realm improvements people want to see in their neighbourhoods.

The results of this exercise range from very general ideas like keeping Centro Storico tidy to very specific ones like introducing urban allotments or building a car park on Via San Nicola.

CENTRE & VIA DELLA VEDUTA Beyond the Column: Create a multi-storey car park with terrace overlooking the panorama on the top.

Historical Centre: Keep the historical centre tidy and looked after (with flowers). Change the balustrade of Via della Veduta and use the same light posts as in Piazza Garibaldi.

Balustrade: Upgrading of the street, in particular change the balustrade and replace the light posts.

Banco di Napoli front: Develop the area with two buildings and one small square.

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Lift service: Create a lift service between Atina Centro Storico and San Marciano.

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PARKING & ACCESIBILITY Traffic in Town Centre: Ban vehicles from the centre of town and give permits only to owners of garages.

Via San Nicola: Build a multi-storey car park with 5 floors.

CENTRO STORICO IN GENERAL Urban Allotments: Reactivation of the Urban Allottments throughout the city.

Cisterna Romana: Reinstate the Cisterna Romana.

Piazza Garibaldi: Return the fountain to its old place.

Via San Nicola: Create a play area in front of the Bank.

VIA DELLA COSTA / FORMER FOOTBALL PITCH Via della Costa: Resurfacing of the carriageway and development of the area as residential.

Football Pitch: Repair the football pitch and/ or create a playground for children.

Basketball Arena: Upgrading of the Basketball arena and creation of a play area for children.

SEWAGE SYSTEM Purification Plant: Activation of the Purification Plant.

Storm Drains: Link storm drains to the main sewer.

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PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS MAIN FINDINGS CENTRO STORICO 2/3 The results on these pages show firstly that people wish to see more social activities, both for the elderly and the young, as well as civic education and the re-opening of the recently closed school. For higher education there was an additional suggestion for the former San Francesco convent.

Secondly, there is obviously an issue with the streetscape around the church and around the old walls. The number of responses on these heritage aspects indicates a high relevance for Atina’s people.

DESCENT OF THE CHURCH Streetscape: Improve the quality of the lane.

Streetscape: Resurface the lane, currently dangerous and difficult to walk on, given the rotten steps and loose materials.

Streetscape: Requalify the lane currently covered in building debris.

SOCIAL The Elderly: More activities especially for elderly people & women.

The Youngsters: More activities for children and teenagers.

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Civic Education: Organize a permanent course on civic education.

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Streetscape: Remove debris from the lane.

FORMER SAN FRANCESCO CONVENT Council Offices: Accommodation of the Council offices in the former Convento.

Advanced Studies: Use of the Convent as a centre for advanced studies linked to the University (for example courses on Classics).

CENTRE & SURROUNDING WALLS Wall Maintenance: Upgrade and maintain the old walls and the lane of the historical centre to a good quality.

Piazzetta Terrappio: Regenerate the neighbourhood’s public space and reactivate the drinking fountain.

Piazza Rustica: Public realm improvements and street furniture to ignite and facilitate their use by residents and visitors.

Largo Massimino Corsi and Old Walls: Dedicate the space to pedestrians and and stop the invasion of cars being repaired at the garage.

SCHOOL Primary School: Requalification of the Primary school and surrounding area to provide play area and space for children.

Public Lighting: Improve public lighting, the current situation is comparable to that of a developing country.

Porta Santa Maria: Redevelopment of the war ruins.

Stairs to Via Vittorio Emanuele: Make the stairs safe that link the school (Library) to Via Vittorio Emanuele.

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PUBLIC REALM IMPROVEMENTS MAIN FINDINGS CENTRO STORICO 3/3 Most comments in the category of public realm improvements focused on improving Atina’s parks.

The suggestions made are manifold and span from general upgrading ideas for parks like cleaning, requalification and heritage restoration, to providing opportunities for physical activities like cycling and walk trails, to offering a children’s playground and artistic activities around the Colonia.

Additionally, the drawings on the right show clearly that parks and open spaces are important for Atina’s children as well.

PARKS Tibetan Bridges: Create harboring paths or itineraries, for example Tibetan bridges.

Park Maintenance: Clean and upgrade the Parks (Pineta, Madonnella, Colonia).

Parco di Santo Stefano: Activate a cycle path in the Parco di Santo Stefano.

Wildlife & Habitat: Do an endemic species analysis of flora and fauna for educational and tourism purposes.

Fire & Security: Create a fire fighting system in the Parks.

Upgrading Parks: Upgrading of the Park and the Colonia.

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Cyclopic Walls: Clear the bushes that obstruct the view from the cyclopic walls.

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Orto dei Monaci: Make the Pista (Orto dei Monaci) and the surrounding areas accessible throughout the year.

Parks’ Walk Trails: Re-arrange the walk trails of the Park.

COLONIA & PINETA Colonia: Requalify the Colonia and the Orto dei Monaci.

Colonia: Reinstate the Colonia for children and other initiatives, for example boy scouts.

Colonia: Playground at the Colonia running for the entire summer (mentioned twice).

Colonia: Reactivation use of the Colonia and Pista for all age groups.

Colonia & Activities: Requalify the park to reintroduce the Colonia for children and other activities like theatre, playground and Ballet.

Pineta: Requalify the Pineta (cleaning and maintenance) to offer green spaces to families with children.

Pino Saturno: Re-open the Pino Saturno dance floor in the Park.

Pineta & Colonia: Requalify the old itineraries of the Pineta and Colonia to create one circuit of walks of various lengths.

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Where is a vacant ...?

MAPPING EXERCISE TO IDENTIFY VACANT DWELLINGS AND SHOPS

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WHERE IS A vacant ...?

MAPPING VACANT DWELLINGS & SHOPS This exercise was a mapping exercise to let people locate vacant dwellings and shops.

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As can be seen in the picture on the next page, people indicated 52 dwelllings that are vacant for the whole year (red dots), 2 dwellings that are only vacant in winter (green dots), and 14 vacant shops (blue dots). The vacant dwellings are spread all over Atina Centro Storico.

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The map can be viewed as an existing constraint on the economy of the historic centre and as an indication of unused resources. A more positive perspective is to view them as assets that could be used to reinvigorate real estate, the community and the economy.

In the exercise „I wish this was...“ we further built on the theme of empty shops by asking how they could be used.

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I wish This was ...

INTERACTIVE POSTER EXERCISE ON FUTURE COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES IN VACANT SHOPS

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I WISH THIS WAS ...

LOCAL SHOPS REVITALISATION In the “I wish this was ...” exercise, we asked local people at three different shops in Atina to write on a plain sticker what they would like the shop to be once it was revitalised. After people wrote down their opinions, we collected them and mapped them in a multi-dimensional grid.

On the following page, we summarise our main findings based on the mapping and show the number of wishes per category for each shop, which is visualised by the diameter of the circles.

This illustrates the degree of desire from people in each area and also allows for easy comparisons between the shops.

For a complete overview of all answers given in this exercise please refer to the next page.

OVERALL DESIRES

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SHOPS

What respondents desired most strongly was:

Looking at the distribution of ideas and wishes for the three different shops, we found the following distinctions:

+ entertainment opportunities like a pub, discotheque or

electronic appliances shop with 12 wishes mentioned across Atina, + beauty and fashion shops like clothing or shoe shops or beauty salons with 11 wishes mentioned in total, and

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+ food and convenience shops which were mentioned in 4 wishes, with ideas like a butcher, fair trade or local produce shop.

The other wishes mentioned ideas related to ‘travel & transport’ (scooter retailer, travel agency), ‘leisure & profession’ (internet café, artists’ paint shop) and others like a real estate agency.

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+ At shop 1 wishes were equally distributed amongst ‘food & convenience’, ‘beauty & fashion’, and entertainment.

People would welcome opportunities for improving their day- to-day life. + At shop 2 respondents focused on beauty & fashion stores and paid very little attention to entertainment or food & convenience opportunities. + At shop 3 there was a very strong desire for entertainment opportunities like a night club, discotheque, pub or book shop and literature café.

food leisure

& profession

3 wishes

& convenience

4 wishes

entertainment

I wish this was ...

12 wishes other

3 wishes

3 wishes 11 wishes

travel beauty

& transport

& fashion

shop 1 - VIA ROMA shop 2 - VIA ROMA shop 3 - VIA ROMA

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I WISH THIS WAS ...

LOCAL SHOPS REVITALISATION In the “I wish this was ...” exercise, we asked local people at three different shops in Atina to write on a plain sticker what they would like the shop to be once it was revitalised.

After people wrote down their opinions, we collected them and mapped them in a multi-dimensional grid.

leisure

This illustration shows all wishes that were written down and posted to the closed shop doors in Atina.

& professional

internet café

artist’s paint shop

sex shop

I wish this was ... love giving centre

estate agency

shop of emotions other

undergarment shop beauty salon perfume shop flower shop

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children’s clothing shop clothing shop

beauty

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& fashion

clothing shop shoe shop shop selling traditional hand needlework and giving training shoe shop clothing shop

shop 1 - VIA ROMA food

typical local products

shop 2 - VIA ROMA

& convenience

shop 3 - VIA ROMA

butcher & bakery cheese shop fair trade shop

music shop disco for youngsters

toy shop

discotheque

discotheque

Pub

electronic appliances shop

tourist information

video games & consoles

night club book shop & Literature club

entertainment

electronic appliances shop (2x)

scooter retailer

travel agency travel

& transport

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RETAILERS’ FUTURE CHALKBOARD STATEMENTS WHAT LOCAL MARKET ENTREPRENEURS SUGGEST FOR ATINA

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RETAILERS’ FUTURE WHAT MARKET RETAILERS SUGGEST In our chalkboard exercise we asked local market retailers who regularly sell their goods in Centro Storico what would make Atina a better place for their businesses.

This question was specially designed for local entrepreneurs to gather their expertise and experience as well as to make them think about the community’s impact on the local economy.

The cheese & sausage retailers #1 + Promote the market with unusual initiatives, for example free drinks, street artists. + Typical products at promotional prices.

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The fashion trader + Move the market to Ponte Melfa to have more parking and space. + Regenerate the market and eliminate unauthorized traders.

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The fashion trader #2 + Move the market to Ponte Melfa where there is more space.

The grocers + Re-activate services for the residents to attract people to live in Atina again.

The fabric retailer + Bring back people to Atina. + Move the location of the market to Ponte Melfa. + Create a car park.

The fashion retailers #1 + Leave the space cleaner when we traders leave the site.

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RETAILERS’ FUTURE

The cheese & sausage retailers #2 + Reintroduce typical products like the chestnut roast. + Introduce another day for the market on Wednesdays in Ponte Melfa.

The anonymous retailer + There should be more money around.

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The fashion retailers #2 + Move the market down to Ponte Melfa. + Increase the number of services for people in Atina Centro Storico to increase the total offer and attract people.

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APPENDICES 1. DETAILED ANALYSIS POSTCARD SURVEY 2. WBA: ARCHITECTURE & INFRASTRUCTURE 3. WBA: NATURAL ENVIRONMENT 4. WBA: SOCIAL & COMMUNITY 5. WBA: ECONOMY & GOVERNANCE 6. ANSWERS “WHAT I LOVE ABOUT....”

ApP. 1: BIRD’S EYE VIEW Details POSTCARD SURVEY One main aspect of listening to the community during our Discovery Week was through a survey postcard in which people could remotely and anonymously state their opinion how they evaluate twelf selected issues around what they like about Atina, for example its natural beauty.

In this survey, we asked people about their satisfaction:

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EDUCATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT

they’re very satisfied with a particular aspect of Atina, see it rather neutrally, they’re not satisfied, or they don’t know how to answer the question.

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COMMUNITY SPIRIT

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CULTURAL HERITAGE AND ATTRACTIONS

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MAIN FINDINGS The analysis shows that some parametres of the community’s well-being are strong. However, there was a rather critical view on most of the issues we asked the community to evaluate.

On the community perspective, the answers again show a rather critical view on Atina’s community spirit as with 70 more than half of all respondents answered negatively, 15 positively and the remaining respond neutral or did not answer the question.

There was a very strong consensus on the natural beauty of Atina. There were only 6 out of 127 who stated that they did not like it, another 6 did not answer the question whereas 93 said that they like it.

In addition to that, education and encouragement opportunities are equally seen that these might be in need of improvement as again 70 respondents answered negatively and 32 neutral. Only 8 out of 127 stated that they are rather

In line with the natural beauty, people also rated the heritage and charme of Atina as very positive as 81 out of 127 people crossed the positive smiley. 28 respondents evaluated this issues as neutral, 11 negative and 7 did not have an opinion about it.

INFRASTRUCTURE FOR RECREATION

Most respondents stated rather critically that Atina is lacking recreational facilities as 73 rated this question negatively, another 39 answered it neutral. ?

biosphere & recreation

climate

energy water

health

food

natural environment

education

community

social dimension & community

ATINA Well-being Analysis

waste

housing

architecture & infrastructure

economy & governance

culture

NATURAL BEAUTIES

public spaces & facilities

well-being

traffic

? economic capacity

mobility

intercorporate networks

civic society

governance participation

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BIRD’S EYE VIEW POSTCARD SURVEY #2 biosphere & recreation

Looking at the economic side of Atina, respondents again state very clearly that shops and commercial offerings are rather rare as 74 answer negatively and another 28 neutral whereas only 8 respondents seem to be satisfied with it.

When asking for innovation and economic development of traditional crafts, this is seen only very slightly more positive; 11 people are satisfied with this area whereas 26 answer neutral and 71 dissatisfied.

Asking the community for tourism opportunities, separately asked for offers in summer and winter time, its members clearly express their concerns as once more the majority seems to be dissatisfied with the offers. For summer tourism only 10 people answer positively, 35 see it neutral and 64 thus half of all respondents evaluate it dissatisfying.

For winter tourism opportunities, it is seen even more critical, 81 respondents state clearly that they rate it negatively, only 5 out of 127 are satisfied with this aspect whereas 14 see it neutral and 27 did not know how to answer.

OFFER FOR SUMMER TOURISM

climate

energy water

health

food

natural environment

education

community

social dimension & community

ATINA Well-being Analysis

waste

economy & governance

culture

public spaces & facilities

well-being

traffic

economic capacity

mobility

intercorporate networks

civic society

governance participation

OFFER FOR WINTER TOURISM

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5 ?

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housing

architecture & infrastructure

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USE OF BUILDINGS

PUBLIC SPACES AND CELEBRATIONS

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On the architecture and infrastructure side, the potential of a mixed use of buildings in terms of seasonal resicencies and empty commercial units is being criticised, 69 respondents are rather dissatisfied with this aspect, 27 answer neutral. It has to be stated that 26 repondents did not know how to answer the question.

ACCESSIBILITY AND CONNECTIONS

The use of public spaces in terms of availability of places for gatherings, as polyfunctional or informal spaces, are seen as neutral to dissatisfying: 23 people are satisfied, 47 respondents answer neutral and 46 dissatisfied.

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Within the infrastructure field, Atina’s accessibility and connectivity for example through pedestrian paths, stairs or public transport is being criticised as only 7 out of 127 answer positively. Another 28 are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied whereas the majority of 73 respondents clearly express their concern.

UPDATING LOCAL CRAFTS AND ARTS

SHOPS AND COMMERCIAL OFFER

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?

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BIRD’S EYE VIEW POSTCARD SURVEY - GENDER SPLIT Looking at the same questions as in our previous analysis, we found an interesting variance of results when looking at how different gender groups answered them.

To explain the graphic shown below: we multiplied each positive answer with +2, each neutral answer with 0 and each negative one with -2 and calculated the mean value of each gender group which is shown in the respective bar of each question.

The line drawn above the bars shows the difference between answers from men and women and indicate how much more positively men answered than women in Atina.

In this part of the analysis we will particularly comment on those questions that show a significant difference between genders.

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MEAN VALUES DESIRE ANALYSIS GENDER GROUPS

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With 48% in comparison to 40% of all respondents, there were slightly more men answering the survey than women. Another 12% did not give any information on their gender.

PUBLIC SPACES AND CELEBRATIONS A detailed look at the answers on the use of public spaces in terms of availability of places for gatherings, as polyfunctional or informal spaces shows that male respondents see this aspect much less critical than female; a much higher percentage of men answer positively and neutral whereas women tend to be more dissatisfied. ?

EDUCATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT

In comparison to men, female community members seem to evaluate education and encouragement opportunities slightly more positive.

Whilst only 2 men answered positively, there were 6 women responding equally. More importantly for that is however that many more men answered negatively which had an impact on the mean value.

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CULTURAL HERITAGE AND ATTRACTIONS

In average, the heritage and charme of Atina has been evaluated slightly more positive by women than by men. Though the absolute numbers of men answering positively is 39 compared to 38 women, but as the overall number of respondents is 51 women and 61 men, the female group’s percentage of positive answers stands out.

USE OF BUILDINGS

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The analysis of the answers on the mixed use of buildings in Atina shows an equal distribution of dissatisfactory answers from both men and women. However, the rate of negatively responding women is slightly higher which makes the mean value of this gender group answering more critically. ?

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BIRD’S EYE VIEW POSTCARD SURVEY - ORIGIN GROUPS Looking at the questions again and analysing where respondents live, we again found remarkable variances in the results.

With 75 responses the vast majority of all respondents came from Atina Centro Storico. This might well be due to the location of the street exhibition and the geographical presence of the facilitators. However, we also got 10 answers from Ponte Melfa, 6 from San Marciano, 22 from other parts of Italy and 3 visitors from other parts of Europe. 11 respondents did not state where they came from.

In this chapter we analysed the difference between those people from Centro Storico, Ponte Melfa and San Marciano as these groups are particularly in the interest of the project.

As already shown in the gender example, we multiplied each positive answer with +2, each neutral answer with 0 and each negative one with -2 and calculated the mean value of each origin group which is shown in the respective bar.

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MEAN VALUES DESIRE ANALYSIS ORIGIN GROUPS

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The line drawn above the bars shows the difference between answers from people from Atina Centro Storico vs. Atina Ponte Melfa and indicate how much more positively people from Centro Storico answered in comparison to people from Ponte Melfa.

DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS PER ORIGIN GROUP

NATURAL BEAUTIES

The natural beauty of Atina is being evaluated much more positively by those people coming from Centro Storico than from those Atinates coming from Ponte Melfa.

In comparison to 75% responses from Centro Storico, only 50% of Ponte Melfa residents answer positively about the natural beauty.

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EDUCATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT

Looking at educational and encouragement opportunities, we find a less dissatisfactory opinion in Ponte Melfa. With 20% a remarkably bigger share of people from Ponte Melfa answer positively compared to 5% from Centro Storico.

?

SHOPS AND COMMERCIAL OFFER

The remarkable different opinions about shops and commercial offerings between people from Centro Storico and Ponte Melfa can be described in the amount of people answering neutral vs. negatively. Though no Ponte Melfa respondent answered positively, the highest share of 60% evaluated neutral and only 30% negatively. People from Centro Storico answered vice versa: 65% answered negatively, less than 20% neutral. ?

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BIRD’S EYE VIEW DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONDENTS PER AGE GROUP

POSTCARD SURVEY - AGE GROUPS In addition to gender and origin of people, we also asked for their age group to get an idea of how older people think about Atina in comparison to younger. We were very pleased to see that respondents from all age groups actively took part in the survey. Putting the ‘younger’ groups together (all people of up to 35 years old) and compare this to ‘the older’ (all people older than 35), we find an equal amount of 58 respondents in each. To see age-related complaints and issues, we analysed the difference between • the younger (<35) and the older (>35), and also • the youngest (<20) and the oldest (>50).

As shown, differences between younger vs. older and youngest vs. oldest have the same tendency. However, we found the most significant differences in answers between the youngest and the oldest, this is why we focused on them here.

© clear-village.org 2011

MEAN VALUES DESIRE ANALYSIS AGE GROUPS

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Again we multiplied each positive answer with +2, each neutral answer with 0 and each negative one with -2 and calculated the mean value of each age group shown in bars. The lines drawn above the bars shows the difference between mean values of answers from those age groups mentioned above.

COMMUNITY SPIRIT

Interestingly, the youngest people responding to the question about community spirit are the most critical: whereas about 45% of the oldest residents are dissatisfied with this issue, the share of the youngest marks at 73%.

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ACCESSIBILITY AND CONNECTIONS

Again a very significant difference between the youngest and the oldest can be seen with regard to accessibility and connectivity. A remarkably higher proportion of older people are dissatisfied with this issue than the younger generation that answers rather neutral.

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UPDATING LOCAL CRAFTS AND ARTS The economic side of Atina regarding innovation and development of its traditional crafts is seen differently among age groups. Whilst the majority of younger people rather evaluates neutral and positive, the vast majority of older residents is highly dissatisfied.

?

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Š clear-village.org 2011

ZOOM IN: Architecture & Infrastr.

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These parts include the detailed answers from the interviews together with findings from the other exercises

MOBILITY

Mobility radius & local connectivity • In general people seem to visit most parts of the Borough regularly.

• Links to the bigger cities in the surroundings are granted by the ‘superstrada’ although again it seems that car is preferred for transport.

• Atina is well located in close proximity to three main airports of Rome and Naples that provide excellent connectivity to national and international destinations.

• Improvements in local connectivity were asked for in the frequence of public transport.

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Walkable Neighbourhood • Centro Storico people acknowledge that it is convenient to walk to some shops who sell food and other small necessities.

• However, schools and sanitary structures are further away and people need to drive to reach them in other parts of Atina or other cities.

Streetscape • Extension of street network is seen as considerable, links among the different ‘fractions’ of Atina are considered to be enough.

• Maintenance of the streetscape is seen as worsened and piecemeal.

• There is a lack of homogeneity in the materials used for streetscape.

• In Centro Storico the surface of pavements and alleys is considered as unlevelled and without necessary level crossing for disabled.

• The traditional way of laying river stones was lost though, if well laid, this is a sustainable, local material which adds character and is convenient to walk on.

Public Transport • Public transport is named to be sufficient but limited in frequency.

• Smallest fractions probably suffer more of a lack of service while the two main nodes are linked by shuttles (until 2 pm).

• Still, there is a big reliance on private transport, again it seems that the car is preferred as a mean of transport especially to reach greater distances.

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ZOOM IN: Architecture & Infrastr.

TRAFFIC Traffic Situation • The traffic in Atina is highly periodical. In Atina Centro Storico the traffic is not felt as a problem even if slightly higher during the summer. The market on Monday mornings creates some traffic which is however tolerated.

• A lack of parking spaces and the lack of ‘education’ in ‘parking behaviours’ seems to be the real cause of congestion and hinders all types of movement (cars and pedestrians) in Centro Storico.

• Ponte Melfa suffers more from traffic and again of a lack of proper parking, which seems to congregate all on the main road exacerbating the problems of movement.

• At night apparently the opposite problems arises: cars run too fast in the middle of Ponte Melfa.

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Parking Situation • The real traffic problem seems to be car parking.

• Uncontrolled car parking is said to cause congestion and hinders all types of movement (cars and pedestrians) in Centro Storico and partly in Ponte Melfa.

• It is felt that traffic should be reorganized and that people should be driven to park their cars in side roads or dedicated spaces.

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Pedestrian Ownership over Streets • The part of the town where traffic and parking is disturbing is Ponte Melfa at peak hours; people tend to park into the main street of Ponte Melfa, Via Muniazio Planco.

• The streets on the perimeter of the historical centre are also full of cars parked (Via S. Nicola, Via Vecchioni e via Vittorio Emanuele); cars are parked also in front of the entrance of the Cathedral to the detriment of the public enjoyment of monuments and public spaces.

• It is felt necessary to have a purpose-built street structure to only allow garage owners to enter Centro Storico by car.

Traffic & Security • In general the public spaces and their traffic are considered as completely safe.

• A lack of dedicated spaces for children means that they play in the public spaces sometimes to the detriment of the elderly, which rather causes clashes of different users as a concern, but not a safety issue.

PUBLIC SPACES & FACILITIES

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Public Spaces & Celebration • The postcard survey questioning the use of public spaces in terms of availability of places for gatherings, as polyfunctional or informal spaces shows a rather neutral position from the local community.

• However, male respondents see this aspect less critical than female; a much higher percentage of men answer positively and neutral whereas women tend to be more dissatisfied.

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Open Public Spaces • People can easily reach and access open public spaces from their homes.

• However, there is a lack of dedicated facilities like playgrounds for children.

• Also it is felt that the street furniture should be improved as there are for example too few benches for the elderly.

Community Buildings • There are some community centres in Ponte Melfa and in some of the smaller fractions, which are not purpose-built premises but converted schools.

• Previously all zones of the Borough used to have a community centre but costs involved were too high so their management got delegated to private associations, with the result of having some of them closing down.

• In Atina Centro Storico there are no buildings dedicated to informal socialization, although there are a ‘Library and Museum’ which has tentatively offered space for this purpose - without success.

Also, the library closes in the evening; socialization is left to for example coffee bars.

• It is felt that Atina lacks a multi-functional space where to have music, dance and film courses. The problem however is particularly felt in Atina Ponte Melfa.

Safety & Security • People from Centro Storico feel secure in public spaces, although they are not satisfied with the level of illumination in general; it has been suggested to use renewable technologies for light posts and to create an income that could pay for the maintenance, which is another problem that has been highlighted.

• Ponte Melfa has highlighted that people are scared to go out at night because there are no places open and this part of the city feels rather deserted. The urban form also does not help socialization because it lacks proper squares.

• A better illumination of monuments is felt as being beneficial to the overall enjoyment of the public spaces.

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ZOOM IN: Architecture & Infrastr.

HOUSING Quality of Housing • The quality of some of the houses in Centro Storico is excellent, however their state of repair and maintenance is poor and the compliance to current building regulations’s health and safety standards is basically non existent.

Some houses have outstanding quality and are protected by the Ministero dei Beni Culturali, and would probably need limited repairing work.

• Current levels of the rents are considered extremely high, cutting out all the young families and people with low incomes; in consideration also of the poor state of repair, the lack of modern facilities, such as lifts or parking, and the physical constraints posed by traditional methods of construction (to fit them with modern facilities).

• Houses in Ponte Melfa are more modern hence with less constraints but some of them are in need of maintenance. The demand in Atina superiore is high from families who want to move there, but the prices are set by the owners with no regard to national criteria.

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Multi generation & multi purpose buildings • The number of empty properties in Atina is huge, however there are only 3 shared houses that accommodate people from vulnerable groups, such as people with minor mental health problems, non-EU immigrants and refugees.

• This is seen, however, as an opportunity as people living in these accommodations seems to have found a job and got integrated in the society.

• The number of empty properties is seen as an opportunity to supply new forms of accomodations such as B&Bs, student housing and apartments for young families.

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Housing & Community • Obviously the two nodes of Atina Centro Storico and Atina Ponte Melfa offer two completely different way of living, more modern and with services in lower Atina, and potentially more prestigious and certainly more characteristic houses in the historical centre.

• It is quite a concern that services are being wiped out in Atina, this could be the cause of even less will to invest in the properties from their owners, now that it is vital that these empty properties are put back into use.

• Rents are perceived as high. It was suggested that it is vital instead incentivise owners to lower the rents so that new residents and new blood is pumped into the veins of Atina.

• The problem of vacant buildings needs action from the local government to incentivize landlords to rent these out again. Property is often owned by larger family conglomerates, which is a serious governance issue as these can be quite powerful in the community.

Supply • There are no further concerns mentioned related to supply, however, it is stated that not all houses are linked to the main gas supply and need to buy diesel oil instead.

WASTE

Waste Management • Residents asked about waste management system seems more concerned with waste disposal.

• The lack of transparency as to how garbage is actually disposed is seen as the cause of the reduced proportion of residents participating in the waste separation.

• An awareness raising-campaign has been suggested to inform residents on the benefit of the waste separation and on the current disposal system adopted in the area.

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Recycling • The waste separation ratio is currently in the range of 20-22% of all waste produced.

• A new system of collection door to door has been planned and a competitive bid is soon to be organized which is considered to be more efficient in terms of recycling.

• There are contradictory feelings about the efficiency though, people seem more concerned with other residents actually not separating waste properly.

• A suggestion of incentives has been suggested by a resident as ‘who recycles more pays less’ type of system.

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Waste Disposal System • Another suggestion has been to introduce a compulsory waste disposal system unit in every new house as an alternative to compost.

• The higher costs involved, has been suggested also, should be be deducted in some way from taxation.

Compost • All the respondents currently differentiate the organic waste, although only one affirmed to compost them.

• Generally people seems open minded about having a composting system in their property.

• Currently there are no communal systems of composting, although it was affirmed that this system should be part of the new ‘door to door’ refuse collection system, proposed for the near future.

• The countryside of Atina could contribute highly in terms of organic materials to these collective composting facilities.

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© clear-village.org 2011

ZOOM-IN: NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

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FOOD

Locally Sourced Food • People appreciate much the food of the Colmino Valley, e.g. the Cannellini beans.

• For most people in Atina there is a tendency to pay attention to what type of food to purchase.

• However, this seems rather a matter of taste, some look at value for money and how it has been produced whilst a few look at locally sourced food.

• In total there were not enough people answering this question to draw a sufficient answer.

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Local Produce • Interestingly, some residents already grow their own food in their private spaces. However, there is still much room for improvement as most people are not interested in growing yet.

• While most of Atina’s people would be reluctant to join a communal allottment, some already exchange their products with relatives that grow their own.

• From all respondents there was only one who actually would not know how to grow his own food.

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Culinary Tradition • Cooking and eating is an important factor in the culture of the people of Atina.

• Traditional ingredients are not only available locally, they are one of the most important food sources that people in Atina cook with.

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ZOOM-IN: NATURAL ENVIRONMENT WATER

Water Quality • The quality of the water seems to be considered excellent, which was also proven by the postcard survey as well as interactive poster poll.

• Nonetheless, it was mentioned that there should be more transparency and better communication by the local administration upon results of the data of contamination tests.

Waste Water • Respondents did not seem to experience problems with sewage systems in their properties.

• Still there are some areas in Atina where storm drains are not linked to the main sewer, also in the historical centre.

• The system of depuration of which Atina is provided has been managed by an external agency and the efficiency of the system is not well known. Again ‘transparency and communication’ could help in keeping the residents more aware of the situation.

• The system seems to be be reaching full capacity especially when rainfall is added to waste water from the built environment.

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Rainwater Harvesting • There are no public systems for the collection of the rainwater.

• A big proportion of old properties are equipped with cisterns but it has not been explained if they are currently used.

• Some private individuals are willing to adopt such systems in their houses and know of other residents that have started doing so.

• Given the availability of fresh water in Atina and its very limited cost there is a lack of education in water efficiency, shown by the daily use per person which is 700-1100 litres per day against the national average of 250 litres (!). It has been suggested to increase the cost of water that currently is set around 30 € per year.

Water Availability • The water in Atina is supplied by an aqueduct which is publicly owned, despite regulations that oblige public administrations to give the management of these infrastructure to municipalized companies.

• This choice has implications on expenditure, as maintenance costs sits with the Administration, but it also allows to deliver water at very low costs.

ENERGY

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Absolute Energy Consumption • All respondents give consideration to their absolute energy consumption.

• Some have concerns about their high consumption and related costs, especially as not all houses are linked to gas mains so residents need to buy diesel oil, which is more expensive.

Relative Energy Consumption • All respondents have considered reducing their consumption of electricity and gas.

• However, some argue that the volume of houses implies a considerable consumption of energy to heat them.

• One respondent has actively changed all the bulbs in the house and turns off all the appliances in stand-by, to increase energy efficiency.

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Renewable Energy Sourcing • Residents are aware of the source of their energy and they are served by the national grid. It is not possible to choose a different provider.

• There is a certain level of interest in renewable energy sources, although only younger respondents are truly knowledgeable on different types of energy.

• However it is felt that more investments should be dedicated to the installation of photovoltaic cells that could produce energy to be sold to the grid.

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Renewables & Energy Efficiency • Renewable energies although not known by all the respondents are seen as an opportunity to diversify the sources of energy.

• Photovoltaic cells have been suggested to power public illumination for example using cells on individual light posts (i.e. on extra urban routes).

• It is felt also that energy efficiency of buidings need to be improved.

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ZOOM-IN: NATURAL ENVIRONMENT CLIMATE Air quality • Air quality in Atina is perceived positively, from good to excellent.

• Some concerns have been raised on the level of quality in Atina Ponte Melfa, given its position in the valley and close to the ‘superstrada’ that is heavily trafficked with big lorries.

• It has been suggested to install monitoring stations to evaluate the actual quality of the air, without relying on perception only.

Emissions • Apart from emissions from traffic in Ponte Melfa, no respondent is disturbed by other emissions.

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Natural Beauty • Taken from the interactive poster exercises as well as the anonymous postcard survey, there was a very strong consensus on the natural beauty of Atina.

• Only a very few people say that they did not like it, the vast majority appreciates the beauty of nature and the climatic circumstances.

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Contamination • All respondents mentioned that they are satisfied and don’t feel any risks of water contamination as the aqueduct is treated with chlorination.

• No other contamination fears were mentioned.

BIOSPHERE & RECREATION

Green Neighbourhood • Neighbourhoods are rather less considered as green in walkable distance as people rather refer to parks but not green neighbourhoods.

• In addition to that, maintenance is partly seen as bad and needs far more attention.

• There is some suggestion of volunteerism and raising additional funds to get some areas upgraded to green.

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Public Parks • Parks are easily reached in Atina Centro Storico as the green space of the Collina di Santo Stefano is integrated in the urban structure of the town.

• People visit parks with their children, to walk their dogs and to visit archaeological remains; but currently they are in a poor state of repair. Atinates, seeing space for improvement, proposed various new facilities for the parks. Also park management is said to need attention.

• Funding has been attracted by the administration for cleaning and repairing as part of a project for a Naturalistic and Archaeological Park and Itineraries of the Poligonal Walls.

• Atina Ponte Melfa has created a Fluvial Park to revitalise the embankement and a footbridge has been planned to a) link the hippodrome to the Park and the Sport Centre and b) increase accessibility in general.

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Community Value of Green Spaces • Natural Environment has a very special place in the life of the people of Atina. Quoting them ‘to neglect Nature it means to neglect oneself’.

• Some people complain that the old habit of walking and enjoying the natural environment is being progressively lost which is a big loss in terms of well-being.

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Public Water • Water amenities in the area are mainly represented by the River Melfa, although the embankment is not well maintained and apparently also it does not run anymore in its bed as it is not kept clear and maintained properly.

• Further away is the Lake of Cardito, which has recently been been provided with modern facilities.

• The sea is also not too distant.

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© clear-village.org 2011

ZOOM-IN: SOCIAL & COMMUNITY

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HEALTH

Individual Physical & Mental Health • The interactive poster poll showed that people rate the health of the general public rather positively as this category was within the top five of all responses.

Healthcare • The interactive poster poll showed that although the health of the general public is rather good, healthcare facilities are meant to be unsufficient.

• From the interviews we gathered that especially Centro Storico is lacking such facilities in terms of doctors and hospitals.

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Exercises & Sports • It has been affirmed that the supply of sport facilities is oversized compared to the population in Atina.

• There is an hippodrome, a skating rink, a crossover rink, a go-kart track.

• In addition to that, a bridle path has been planned to link the Val di Comino, passing through Belmonte.

• There is no sufficient information about the actual amount of exercises people in Atina carry out.

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Awareness for Healthy Living • There is some awareness for healthy living in the community, a cross reference is provided by the ‘if I was the mayor’ questions where sport facilities have been asked by many people.

• It could thus be argued that although the supply seems over-sized the perception of the people on recreational facilities is on the contrary poor.

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ZOOM-IN: SOCIAL & COMMUNITY EDUCATION

Primary Education • Primary education is being rated rather weak as there are no more primary schools in Atina Centro Storico.

• The ones in Ponte Melfa seems not fit for purpose. It is felt that it would be important to teach to pupils to become the citizen of the future and invest in their education now.

Higher Education • A nearby University is located in Cassino, which is 15 km away, where there are some good faculties.

• Previously two high schools (vocational and technical) were present in Atina Ponte Melfa, however, both of them closed down and can now be found in Sora or Cassino, the biggest towns in the surrounding area.

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Further Education • Opportunities for further education is seen as rather optimistic.

• There are some scholarships managed by the Council and allocated by the Provincia and the Region.

• In addition to that, the ‘sportello Informa Giovani’ offers information about work opportunities and training.

• More opportunities for example to get unemployed back into work need to be explored.

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Education & Encouragement • The postcard survey showed that education and encouragement opportunities in the local community are seen that they need improvement as much more than half of the respondents answered negatively.

• Additionally, the poster poll showed that opportunities for self-empowerment are evaluated quite weak.

COMMUNITY Community Spirit • The community spirit is alive. It seems however that sometimes it is piecemeal and specific of the different identities of which Atina is composed of.

• Some argue that there is not a sense of belonging of people from the smaller fractions.

• Cultural differences are felt by the majority in particular among the old historical centre and the more modern expansion of Ponte Melfa.

• Historically the two hubs have been characterised by different cultures and way of living, agricultural in the lower Atina and blue collar and artisans in Atina Centro Storico, and also landowners. People in the Centro Storico had a higher level of education.

• One respondent argued that this cultural difference is progressively being reduced,however it looks like the differences are felt cyclically.

Community Events • Community Events are numerous and of many sort; music and religious in particular.

• However, respondents feel that events are separated between upper and lower Atina like the community itself.

• To improve things it is felt that events should be spread more evenly across the year and not being only limited to the Summer period.

• Other suggestions touch upon extending the Jazz Festival with classical music, dance, theatre as well as to re-establish sport competitions.

Community Support • Only one respondent knows of agencies dedicated to job seeking.

• As per health care services the only one remaining is the ambulance with the doctor on board.

• Respondents hope that this is not going to be shut down like the hospital that was in Atina Centro and previously had a catchment area of about 20.000 people which has been closed down.

• People expressed a need for more (home) health care services for the elderly.

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Surviving community • Respondents were telling that the number of residents need to be increased and the economy strengthened by enhancing tourism and attracting new residents so the community can actually survive.

• Therefore the community needs to grow together; it looks like the Church is the only entity which manages this right now. However, there are some shared interests: important issues are similar and they are aligned to the national economical recession.

• Community keeping tradition scored high in the poster poll.

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ZOOM-IN: SOCIAL & COMMUNITY CULTURE

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tradition Tradition • Keeping community tradition scored high in the poster poll.

• Some respondents in the “what do you love about Ponte Melfa” told us to love the folkoric festival in Ponte Melfa.

Integration • Upper and lower Atina seem distinct places and there is little social integration between the residents of the two parts.

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Heritage & Charme • The postcard survey as well as the interactive poster intervention showed impressively how people evaluate the heritage and charme of Atina.

• In addition, the historic and natural environment and specific objects constituting this environment were the most mentioned assets that people love about Atina.

• Mentioned were not only its lanes, its landscapes and the mountains but also archaeological finds and heritage components like roman fountains etc.

© clear-village.org 2011

Celebration of Culture • About 10% of the people in the What do I love about Atina? postcard question indicated to love the Atina Jazz Festival.

• Other respondents to this exercise mentioned the folkloric festival in Ponte Melfa.

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Empowerment & Self-Determination • The current situation is felt that people are suffering in the historical centre and possibly that lower Atina is more dynamic, being the ‘propulsive economical centre’.

• Respondents feel that Centro Storico is progressively being transformed into a dormitory which causes high frustration.

• One respondent only replied to be happy with himself, proud and self-determined.

Employment • Job offers are really low and the cause of the depopulation of the town. A big problem is youngsters who need to leave their home to find first jobs and end up never going back.

• Unemployment rate is estimated around 11%.

• Employment situation has the lowest score in the interactive poster poll.

• Investments in tourism and production development are seen as potential creators of jobs.

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Self-Expression • There is a strong need of the community to talk and to express itself.

• Particularly old people need to have the chance to talk more and not only about their health problems. It has been suggested that a sort of group therapy should be organised, involving psychologists.

• The CLEAR VILLAGE project was seen as a first step toward this type of approach of letting people express what they value and think.

Crime Level & Policing • Is was stated that there are no crimes in Atina.

• Some younger people are reported to abuse drugs. It is felt that there is a lack of real opportunities for them and that this issue is almost ignored by the administration which is being perceived as not being interested in the life of the community.

• There were no complaints about the level of policing. However, some people from Ponte Melfa are mentioned their concern about bars closing early night, which makes streets empty so people feel less safe.

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© clear-village.org 2011

ZOOM-IN: ECONOMY & GOVERNANCE

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ECONOMIC CAPACITY

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Local Economy • The current state of the economy reflects the national and global recession. Some of the causes of the current crisis are felt as being exogenous to the local system.

• There is a contraction of the demand but altoghether Atina seems to perform better than other towns in the Valley.

• Small shops are present on the territory, in Atina Centro Storico however it is felt that the limited population cannot allow small shops to be competitive in terms of prices and attracting clients from other places.

• The business which is considered as the more obvious for the town is Tourism. However the old type of periodical tourism granted by emigrants coming back for the summer and spending their incomes cannot be expected anymore; as the global recession is striking also countries to where people of Atina have moved to, like Ireland.

• As areas of improvement it has been suggested to focus on the production of niche agricultural products, tourism and a good administration of the public affair, centred mostly on services for the young and the elderly.

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GDP & Welfare • Having 4 banks and 2 post offices shows that Atina is generally a wealthy place as it was historically. However, the town feels the national recession like any other place.

• Savings are high, although possibly concentrated in the hands of few people.

• What is lacking is an entrepreneurial spirit. The region suffers from the presence of Rome which attracts energies, intelligences and wealth.

• The economy of the Lazio region is partially protected by the fluctuations of the economy, given the presence of the advanced service industry.

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Sustainable Entrepreneurship • There are some very small industries working in technological innovation, photovoltaic, eolic and electronics which although small realities makes Atina at the forefront in the sub-region (basso Frosinate) for investments in these fields.

• Still the field of sustainable businesses should be pursued, it has been suggested.

Tourism • The postcard survey as well as the interviews showed impressively that there is some potential for tourism that is still unused. Atinate’s appreciation of the heritage and natural environment could play a major role in this.

• On one hand current tourism opportunities are being evaluated both for winter and summer tourism as rather weak (see postcard survey results) • On the other hand many suggestions to improve tourism were made as this field is seen as a main driver of the local economy.

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Creative Industries • Almost no creative businesses are present in the area.

• Further detailed analyses should be made in this field to explore the potential of attracting creative businesses as these are essential for a local economy’s success.

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Inter-Sectoral • There is no co-operation between companies operating in different sectors as respondents stated.

• However, it was suggested to improve one form of Tourism that could be subject of investment, the Residential Tourism, which would be in need of inter-sectoral cooperation and concerted actions.

• Exploiting the higher quality of life of Atina to attract residents from Cassino which could still carry on working in Cassino, given the short travelling distance.

• Owners, it is felt, should be incentivised to rent or sell their properties in order to boost this market.

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Intra-Sectoral • There is no collaboration between businesses operating in the same sector.

• The only associations of category are the unions which are strong but end up caring for the interest of pensioners.

• Lack of co-operation is counterintuitive given that private associations are numerous. In response to what should be done to improve this state of affair the suggestions made were rather on the social side, as in boosting the empathy between people to make the adrenaline flow and the cooperation boost.

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Craftmanship • Craftmanship and knowledge of elderly is seen as a resource to be capitalized.

• However, especially as the postcard survey proves, people in Atina see this field of the local economy rather weak.

• Especially the vast majority of older residents responding to the survey questions is highly dissatisfied with the economic development and innovation of traditional crafts, which could contribute to a unique development proposition.

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Fairness • Respondents have affirmed that they feel treated with equity from the community itself.

• However, it was mentioned that the administration is rather in a situation of inactivity leading to a frustrated community and a feeling of unfair treatment. The latter is reflected in the poster poll where fairness gets a low score.

• On the other hand people acknowledge that the administration is supporting a project like this, which takes away a high amount of unfairness.

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Openness • Generally it is felt that the community is open and tolerant.

• However, it was stated that people need to be less suspicious and prejudiced about novelties, sometimes expressed also towards urban changes.

• These are the last obstacles that need to be cleared before total openness can be expressed.

• The non-existent level of crime is considered also as evidence of the openness of the society.

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Diversity • Younger generations are experiencing a more heterogenous society than the others, it is felt though that the church, although a beacon of socialization and aggregation, can sometimes exacerbate religious differences.

• There were no other mentions of community’s diversity, however people in Atina seem to be open for diverse members.

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ZOOM-IN: ECONOMY & GOVERNANCE GOVERNANCE & PARTICIPATION

Democracy • Most of the respondents but one feel that governments at all levels are democratic.

• It is obvious that democracy is highly regarded and that people actively participate in elections. Some feel that possibly the administration has been authoritative on small controversial decisions, while it probably should have been so for more important things.

• Economic recession has been suggested as an obstacle to selfexpression whilst no other institutional obstacles have been mentioned.

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Civic Education • Civic Education, like teaching about the duties, responsibilities and rights of citizens is seen as rather less existent in the local community and sought by all respondents.

• Respondents feel that enhancing this would be a way to facilitate the transition to a more engaged community and, it is said, should start from the schools curricula.

Participation • People feel in power to influence their life actively but they would like more occasions to influence also the public affairs.

• A need to be involved more in the decisions that regard everyone has been expressed but also a need to revamp the community spirit through real involvement.

• For example contributing to the well-being of their neighbourhood or town, dedicating 1-2 hours of their time, through time banking.

© clear-village.org 2011

Governance • Generally people feel represented by the local authority although there are decisions that they do not agree with.

Only one respondent felt completely not represented and would like elections to be held immediately. Also the will to be able to decide who is going to be part of the administration, for example in changing the national laws has been expressed.

• It is felt that there should be more occasions for the community to meet, to talk about public affairs and a need for some instruments to facilitate the conversations with those who are in power.

• There is a will to express ideas and concerns particularly on social networks but it is felt that it is time to meet face to face and in the ‘real’ world.

• Participation by the community would grant a shift from the current focus of the administration on businesses to the small things of life which are important to the community.

• The postcard question about Atina in 2030 revealed a distrust with some in the ability of the administration to bring about positive change.

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WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT ATINA? All answers to the question: What do you love about Atina? in the postcard survey.

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Atina is beautiful but the Atinates are envious and like gossip Atina is very beautiful for me that I live here. The beautiful Cathedral, the Palaces, Visocchi, Palombo and many others and all the beautiful lanes and the panorama who surrounds us, full of oxigen Atina is wholly to love Atina jazz. The landscape. The environmental protection AtinArt. Jazz Festival. Locale cuisine and products. Race of the Carrozzelle.

Summer nights ‚movida‘ Everything Everything Everything Everything that makes her unique. The memories, the people that are part of my past and my present. Atina is my life..

Everything, but I would like it to come out of its stupor Everything, except the residents which still discriminate among upper and lower I am a resident of Atina who loves is village dearly, the Cathedral, the Ducal Palace, the Square, the marvellous lanes and all the rest. Beautiful I am rather disillusioned. I would like to read the history of Atina from the archaeological finds and the inscriptions. I would like to feel the emotion of being a citizen of ‚Atina potens‘ through itineraries among the archaeological remains which linked the ancient roman villages and the more modern Atina. Not only imagining via cliches.

I can‘t say what I love about Atina, something attracts me here because is where my roots are and because I have memories of my infancy. But it is evident that I love this place.

I could love everything but there are too many things badly maintained and in need of improvement. Of Atina the historical centre is evocative with the small lanes and the Via della Veduta and its beautiful panorama (but the Pineta is filty); Excellent also the food I don‘t like many things about Atina but when I am not there I miss it I like the football pitch, the tennis pitch and especially the sport activities that are organised during the Summer I love very much my city in general the Cathedral, the Ducal Palace e all the characteristic lanes, the beautiful square and the marvellous air that I can breath and the panoramic green I love Atina, surrounded by the mountains and by villages; is like if it was the focus of the whole Valley; but is real, abbiamo una cosa bellissima dentro di noi I love going out in winter and find at least one coffee bar open to have a coffee, I love to see more people (there is never a living soul) I love the arrival of a coach full of girls. Reinstate the 5-a side pitch ‚cause the refurbishment works are pitiable I love its being part of the nature that surrounds it and englobes it reflecting its harmony and passion I love the lanes, the festival jazz, the local cuisine and some events promoted by the local associations I love the people that despite not doing anything is content of spending their days gossiping about the others I love the tranquillity and the places to walk like the Via della Veduta e Via

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della Valle and the Square I simply love the Village, its lanes, its landscapes and the mountains, the archaeological find and all the possibilities that it has to grow.

Is my village how is it possible not to love it! It‘s history with the Palaces, the lanes the landscape of ancient memory and its cuisine ‚which is handed down from one generation to the other‘ It is impossible to love something about Atina It‘s enough to want it, I open the eyes and this wonderful panorama of mountains and hills put me back in peace with the ‚rest‘ and my sojourn becomes a ‚bon plaisir‘ Its general beauty and its flagship constituted by the presence of the Pinewood in the middle of the historical centre Its history that should be more emphasised Its natural beauties and its historical patrimony which however is not valued enough to boost an economic revitalization fit for the whole of Atina Its natural beauties, seen from above its spotless, beautiful, as for the rest, we are 50 years backwards La madonella Landscape. Melfa riverside Little or nothing and that little is rotting Madonnella. L‘Abete. The Colonia. La Pineta Mario Piscia Sotto, the chaos of everyday, Don Mimmo, Via Grotti, Gino, a little of everything, there are many things to see in this big city. Thanks for the attention and goodbye Nature Nothing Nothing Of Atina superior the tranquillity and the cleanliness Other than the historical centre, the periodical organization of culturalartistic events…hoping to increase these initiatives and not the opposite Papa Giulio. The benches. The fountain which does not exist anymore. Atina jazz with the Canadians and the free pass.

Peace and Landscape Personally I love the whole town, especially the climate Simone and the Buka restauran, Beatrice and Giacomo Simple people, excellent climate, the genuine and simple cuisine. The historical centre should be requalified. I love this town and I say strongly C‘MON ATINA RESURRECT! surely its position, the views of the landscape, and the atmosphere of the old little town Surely the natural beauties. The communal spirit is not among the best. The winter the tourist offer is scarce, including some infrastructures That I can park easily?

The ‚Collina di S. Stefano (hill), the mura poligonali the roman fountains, the roman road of access to the historical centre (reinstatement of ancient mobility) valorizationof squares big and small The Abete. La Madonnella. La Colonia. La Torretta.

The air, the jass, the nature. I like when it rains, the tranquillity. Going to the library, cycling, the food, sleeping and the boast of oxigen. The smell of the chimneys in winter, the summer feasts, when the village get alive again.

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The ancient walls, the beauty of the historical centre, the night colours of the soft lighting. Even more beautiful when the people of Atina are not there!

The calm atmosphere of the historical centre, his ancient charm and its people The change of flag for political interests and the pathy of the administration..with lot of irony and conscious of the mediocrity of our administrators The clean air. The fact that everyone knows each other, although it is also counterproductive. Its palaces. Its lanes. Its views. But in particular I love seeing in the eyes of the people who visit it for the first time the emotions that it arises The climate, the pure air, the ‚taste‘ of ancient, the urbanism and especially my house The climate. The historical centre. The squares. The panorama The climate. The people. The history The Contraddictons The Cultural patrimony The daily nothingness The Ducal Palace, Piazza Marconi with the Episcopal Palace, S. Maria Assunta Church, the mura ciclopiche and the roman remains; the S. Stefano hill and the Orto dei Monaci The engagement and the vitality expressed by all the residents, being part of the past cannot be experenced anymore. The operational stillness is deep, lack of valid initiatives, emptiness of the boasting of initiatives for the good of the village.

The fresh walk at Via della Veduta The good air, the hospitality of the people that characterises it from always!!!

The green, the air.

The historical and artistic patrimony. The healthy air. The landscape. The accessibility to the major communications axis and the proximit to the mountains and the sea the Historical Centre The history, the geographic position, the urbanism, the climate…but not the people!

The history, the tranquillity, the facility of movement, the air.

The history…the culture…the class…the big characters of the past, Vittorio Fortuna, Atina Jazz. Giuseppe the barber, Manducc and the Peroni The intact simplicity of old valutes that reflects themselves in the modernity of the impersonal life The lack of traffic The landscape, the freshness of its climate and especially the gigs of Atina Jazz The lanes (even if not well maintained), the summer weather, the ‚notte bianca‘, the ‚cicogne‘ atinati, the cultural and artistic patrimony, the ‚via della Veduta‘, piazza Garibaldi (the most beautiful square in the world). I love all the historical centre.

The lanes and the houses of the old village. The jazz festival which open the route to the local gastronomy

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The medioeval and provencal character, the quiteness in all the seasons, its geographical position (between Rome and Naples, close to the National Park of Abruzzo) The memories, the landscape The most beautiful village in the world The Natural beauties and the landscape, the historical and cultural services which unfortunately are neglected by the town and the residents and especially by the Mayor The old village with its stones and the views, and the residents, nice and warm The panorama and the people but most of all the Jazz Festival The people that fuck from dawn to sunset The position, the air and the social interaction The promenades with my friends The quality of life, the green, the sunsets, the sky, the mountain Meta, the mountains, the lanes, the colours, the stone, the sun.

The restaurant ‚Il vicolo‘. The tobacconist ‚Gino‘. L‘Abete. The evenings at the Restaurant ‚La Buka‘ and getting drunk at the Artu‘ café. Atina Jaz and my house The shifting alliance to satisfy political needs and the apathy of the administration The square. The view. The climate in Summer The stones that form the structure of the town. The S. Stefano hill for its lush vegetation The summer weather, the promenades The surreal atmoshpere The town itself, the monumental historical Palaces…etc The tranquillity of the places. The lack of smog The tranquillity, although sometimes is too much The tranquillity, the food, the promenades, the squares and lanes, the cathedral and the panorama The tranquillity, the natural beauties, the climate, the relative absence of criminal activities The village but without the people The wild nature. The walks in the historical centre. Better when the people of Atina are not there!

There is no need to say what I love about Atina, is enough to look around. I love Atina, loved by history, described in the Eneide and talked by Cicerotto.

What one wants more than this? I love my town and will work for it Tranquillity Tranquillity Tranquillity Tranquillity. Socialization Via della Veduta, the historical centre and Rocco‘s Ice Cream What I Don‘t love about Atina is the fact that the people from Atina don‘t pay attention to the public affairs and only think about squabbeling (both in Atina Centro Storico and Ponte Melfa)

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POSTCARD ATINA 2030 All answers to postcard survey question: Imagine Atina in 2030 and you write a postcard to one of your friends: How would you describe your experience?

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A barren land, where no man, animal or plant survives A lousy day A nice breakfast in the main square. A walk on the S. Stefano hill. A visit to the winerys and the wine cellars of the village. A lesson of paragliding.

A horseride on the bridleway. A bit of fishingin the fresh water. A funk concert in the main square. A A normal day spent with my wife and my children will be unforgettable A place for relaxing with the possibility to access in few minuts the National Park (of Abruzzo) After a restoring walk on the S. Stefano hill, among the archaeological finds and the oaks I ate an excellent pasta e fagioli in the Natural Restaurant of Piazza Marconi..then lot of space and silence Alarm at 11, breakfast at Luigi, Monument, crisps and chatting, lunch at Massimo‘s restaurant (the best in Atina) nap until 8, Buka restaurant and aperitiv at the Artu‘ caffe‘ and to sleep Among the green of the s. Stefano hill and the archaeological beauties offered by the historical centre (Churhc, museum, ducal palace and other sites) and why not a great meal with traditional local products that all the restaurants offer Among the lanes full of people and tourists Atina 15 August 2030. After many years of absence I came back to Atina and found it transformed. I found public connectivity, a nice pharmacy, a beautiful park for the chiildren and a recreational centre for elderly people. In the surrounding villages the Atina in 2030 will no longer exist Beautiful day among the little lanes of Atina Beautiful sun. Promenade among the shop/atelier of the centre, talking to artists, goldsmiths, artesans, while shopping. Lunch with the product typical. Afternoon in the music bars of the place with local and international artists, back to the hotel and Between dreams and reality, from the Museum to the Convento, the history, the history, the various itineraries…what a place.

Dear friend I am here in Atina and like 20 years ago I am here drinking with Oriana Dear friend I have been to a beautiful village in the south of Lazio. I visited its historical-architectonical excellences, the museum and I enjoyed its nature, fresh and of a ruby colour Dear Friend if you want to have a calm and relaxing holiday and have fun at night you need to come to Atina. P.S. When the Jazz Festival is on.

Dear Friend in 2030 no one ‚fuck‘ anymore. What can we do?

Dear friend tonight in Atina the music was resonating in all the lanes.

Street artist were fire breathing and exhibited in every corner. In the main square an air tissue danser was moving like an angel. Everywhere the was a Carnevalesque atmosphere Dear Friend, does an Atina still exist?

Dear friend, I am here in Atina, like 20 years ago I have been drinking, nothing has fuc…changed

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Dear friend, I don‘t understand how this place reach of history and romanity became a junction, to the benefit of whom?

Dear friend, I have been to Atina which is beautiful and interesting but lack of initiatives Dear, it has been a great day, always here in the places of my infancy and adolescence, with the friends from always, a pity that there aren‘t any work opportunities here.

Dearest, after many years I came back to Atina, you can‘t believe what I‘ve done, fuc…all like 30 years ago Dearest, visiting the city has been experienced not forgettable. Incredible to say, just few chilometres away from big cities a green oasis, with hanging ivies, privets and ferns which with the climate change have rooted. A surreal silence envelops the re Doing nothing…helas.

Eat, drink, rest Finally today is the day of the residents, no tourists, only us, places free at the coffee bars, parking available. We went back of 20 years…but it will last only until tomorrow when once again we will be in the company of those who honour us with their v For the historical centre: restful From when Atina Centro Storico has a separate Council from Ponte Melfa the air is refreshed Has been ‚clean‘ by vandals Hello manrico we have spent a great day in Atina among gastronomic traditions, good wine, sun and history. P.S. I wish it was true!

I am still waiting for the bus..

I believe that Atina does not have a future, hence I cannot immagine an unforgettable day in this town which helas is neglected by the uncaring attitude of the administration I came back to my enchanting village, I visited the squares, the Palaces and made a wonderful promenade on the S.Stefano hill. I enjoyed the traditional cuisine and drank an excellent Cabernet I came back to the place I come from, here life has a calmer pace and for a while you feel regenerated. I will invite you to come and visit it. Kisses I can‘t find a reply now in 2011, imagine in 2030. I reckon there will be nothing to tell I can‘t imagine 2030 given my age, maybe I won‘t be living anymore, why heart even more someone who loves Atina?

I don‘t know, I don‘t see a bright future for Atina I don‘t think that Atina will have progressed by then I had the impression on being propelled in a little town with lots of history and joy of learning, hence I suggest you visit it.

I hope than in 2030 Atina is more beautiful and inhabitated and with more spaces to play for children I hope that in 2030 there still will be a pleasant life, I would say that I did a nice walk and admired the panorama I immagine my Atina immersed in Archaeology, in what our ancestors let

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us, a better future for our Atinates. Should be enough to say ‚mother to many illustrous men so much that no other prefecture in Italy can be said to be richer (Cicerotto) I personally think that it won‘t be a nice day because there won‘t be any progress in Atina I spent a pleasant day for the hospitality of the people, buut if you want to spend your holidays here you should come during summer and enjoy the various cultural activities offered by Atina Jazz (I love you!)

I spent my day in a dreamworld among silence and nature I still find the time to remember about the small things that make life special I think that if things go on as they stand there will be no future for Atina.

It it essential to appreciate and improve the value both of Atina and the entire valley I visited one of the most beautiful places in the world, great people, history, art, culture. Come back to live here.

I wait you here to spend beautiful days in Atina I walked up to Atina, ageing I hanged up my bike. I am having a coffee at the bar under the Palazzo Comunale and I see that nothing has changed, the cars always invade the historical centre.

I was sitting under the Convento at the usual bench I will carve an art piece listening to music and chatting with people from the place which I will find nice, welcoming, smiling and willing to DO! Like today I wish I was there to tell about it I wish that in 2030…it‘s beautiful!

I would like Atina to shine in all its splendour even more beautiful and marvellous than today, with lots of inhabitants in the litte villas, in the lanes and everywhere If I am still here. I went for a walk on the ‚via della veduta‘ up to the Column If I was in 2030 I would like to write that in the world a place better than this one does not exist If it is summer I spent my time with my friends from one party to the other if it is any other season I spent it either walking or going far away If the administrations carry on like this in 2030 Atina will no longer exist Immersed in the charm of the village that never dies..I imagine you between us to live the past again Impossible because in 2012 the world will end. However, on a bench.

Impossible it would be something for losers to spend a day in Atina in 2030.

In a strange way. Atina in 2030 will be a gost town in the calmness In the postcard I would write that I didn’t visit Atina from a long time for a week end plenty of long walks in the bushes.

It is difficult to imagine Atina in 2030, is enough to look around today.

It has been abandoned by all the administrators. We need a miracle to

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spend an unforgettable day in Atina…but closing the eyes ..we could make the historical centre a centre where c Mate I‘ve been at the killing of the pork Maybe I am a nostalgic. Observing Atina today I imagine it full of life and people, tourists, immigrants like 30 years ago My dear daughter, despite the years that go by today I cycled 10 km along the Melfa river on the cycle path up to Casalvieri. The route is shaded and well maintained On the flying cars Peacefully because in 2030 Atina will be a ghost town and dead, worst than what it is now Probably I will witness a village weatherd by the veil of time which covers the monuments and I would write: What a pity we let it die‘ Shipwrecked in a deafening silence The culture, sign of civilization and love for the others The lack of traffic This day has been unforgettable. In Atina there is not living soul. The last time I came only the coffee bar were open now not even those. I think I will not come back anymore.

This weekend I have been in Atina, the vitality of the people was incredible and the countless little artesan workshops were in a pleasant and picturesque atmosphere.

Unfortunately in 2030 there will be nobody because the town will be buried by the administrators. But to visit without doubt there is the Ducal Palace, the Museum, the beautiful landscapes and the framing of these views that the historical centre offers.

Very well and I would say‘ come along we will make some relaxing promenades and then tired at night we will spend the night into a restaurant..

Walking a litte bored among houses almost empty Walking along via della Veduta with my girlfriend, who, with time would have become my wife. Observing the beautiful view that this town offers.

Walking in the woods Walking, breathing, enjoyng, resting, looking and talking. Every step an emotion Walks in the mountain, sport, food and music Wandering along the lanes enjoying the light of October which illuminate us and the ‚fanee‘ atmosphere of the historical centre.

We are all dead We have been on the ‚Abete‘ (green park) play football with the pinecones and drinking lot of beer With a boy I like Without the weight of Ponte Melfa Atina has made considerable progress

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WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOst ABOUT...?

All answers to the three poster survey questions: 1) What do you love most about Atina Centro Storico?

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The Walls The People The Church of the Assunta, beautiful!

Auntie Lella The Art and its people Everything (Old Palaces, Lanes) The Alleys and Arches The Ducal Palace The friendliness of people and the history of the village The Lanes The fact that I can say:‘I grew up with Jazz‘ Atina Jazz Nothing The history of Atina The via della Veduta for the numerous annual promenades The People Mostly friendly fun people, historical surroundings the ‚workers‘ EVERYTHING! The Church The pharmacy, the school Atina Jazz The hospital The monuments which are there but cannot be seen the History To say Everything is still not enough La Madonnella The people, the food, the place! Is beautiful. The ambience The Library Piazza Veroli Friends The talkings blew away by the wind Walk in the lanes at night time The Church, the Ancient Palaces, the squares, which are beautiful, all the characteristic lanes Beautiful to be revamped though The warmth of the people Is letting go everythin‘ what a shame! Atina was beautiful. Bring back everything above. Atina before Rome!

Via Grotti e I Vicoli Grotti 1, 2, 3, 4 Everything is beautiful and need enhanced The Monuments The Park of Santo Stefano The Artu‘ cafe Everything and more

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The breakfast in the morning at Luigi‘s The Santo Stefano hill full of oxygen that we breath The hospitality of people The Pino Saturno and its music We want the music back!

The houses, the Walls, Porta St Mary I like Angela!

The atmosphere in the alleys

2) What do you love most about Atina Ponte Melfa?

3) What do you love most about Valle di Colmino?

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The roman bridge that is under the bridge The beer on tap of the Valco bar The sport facilites that once were there, the go-kart track, motocross track) To scrap To be bombed the comforts Walk through the field of corn. The scent of cut grass, the rural buildings of the valley, the river.

That from 8 pm there is nobody around The Bridge The manege Nothing No comment Negative busy, no character; positive as a regular visitor a better range of facilities The Paper Mill Visocchi (Cartiera) The river Melfa (to enhance) The road that head to Atina Superior The Cartiera (to revitalize) Everything that has been replaced there (from Atina Superior) The Antignani Pharmacy Monica I love you F.M.V. The sport facilities of the University The Folkloristic Festival The flood the betting shop The river and the adjacent walk The countryside The pastures The Folk and the secondary school

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The Green Everything!

Nature The reachness of the character The air The Mountains The villages and the mountains Pasta and beans. Sausages. Fruit. Tiramisu‘ The celebrations and gourmet festivals National Park of Abbruzzo and its philosophy (Education and Sustainability) The landscape The panorama The pleasant Idelness The championship of 3rd category Atina historical centre The people of Atina and its characters The green, the friendliness of the people, the food.

The nature and the limited amount of people Cannellini beans The panorama with views of all the villages that surround Atina The wonderful scenario of the mountains Atina

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CLEAR VILLAGE 4 Theatre Court Yard 1 New Inn Yard LONDON EC2A 3EE United Kingdom T +44 (0) 20 7682 2016

Thomas Ermacora CLEAR VILLAGE Founder & Strategy Director E thomas@clear-village.org T +44 (0)75 0300 1345

Fabiana Panetta Facilitator E fabiana.panetta@gmail.com T + 44 (0)79 3060 3139