“Stop 5G”. Residents, doctors and judges going against the grain of Italy’s infatuation with smartphones
European institutions, telecom corporations and national governments are rushing to roll out 5G on the continent. The technology is promoted as a driver of growth and employment, but questions remain unanswered about its real economic benefits for people. On the ground, some are getting worried…
Will coronavirus change tourism in Europe’s hotspot cities?
Tourism accounts for about an eighth of GDP in Spain and Italy, which were both badly hit by the coronavirus. Desperate not to lose the summer, Italy cautiously reopened its borders and Spain it set to follow. But no one expects mass tourism to resume…
The municipalist revolution
In Naples, the outsider candidate Luigi de Magistris, only supported by local movements and civil society, won the municipal elections in 2011. To be able to maintain their municipalist promise and face neoliberal challenges, there is a need for alliance with other communities. Photo: Lovefood…
Messina: Municipalism beyond the Municipio
The outcome of the municipal elections held on 10 June 2018 held in Mesina marked the end of Renato Accoriniti’s stretch in office and shut the City Council’s door on his three connected party lists, including Cambiamo Messina dal Basso (CMdB) – Messina’s new municipalist…
Regulating in the urban commons – what we can learn from Italian experiences
The international debate on the commons has a long history but only in recent years has it started gearing towards the definition of Urban Commons and what their role is in shaping our society, especially at the wake of the economic crisis. This debate developed…
Changing societies through urban commons transitions
This report examines the re-emergence of the urban commons as both a bottom-up emergence by citizens/commoners and a radical municipal administrative configuration. Starting with an exploration of the relationship between cities and the commons, with a particular focus on the recent revival and growth of…
What makes an empty building in Naples a “common good”?
Naples was the first Italian city to establish a “Department of the Commons” and the first to change the municipal statute by inserting the “commons” as one of the interests to be protected and recognised as a fundamental right. This italian city is just one…
Taking back Naples
In the absence of mass struggles, the radical left in Italy has declined as an electoral force across most of the country, even despite the PD’s abandonment of social democracy in favor of a US-style corporate liberalism. However, there is another side to the Italian…