A vision for the Parco Agricolo Community-based vision for the Parco Agricolo di Casal del Marmo. by OSMOS Network Adrian Vickery Hill & Stephan Kampelmann 11.01.2016 Snapshot of the site - 2 - What does it mean for an urban economy to be “green”? And what is the role of public authorities in “greening” their economies? This report takes a new look at these questions by exploring what local economies would look like if they were built around specific places and their communities. Genesis of the project sheep. However, most of the Parco was left fal- low after real estate speculation progressively The material in this report draws on exten- crowded out agricultural uses since the 1970s sive research that brought together scholars (Suchiarelli 2002). The Parco is surrounded by from different academic disciplines with ter- a partially abandoned complex of buildings ritorial authorities from Rome, Brussels and that was a mental hospital until around twenty London around innovative projects aiming years ago and of which the main one is cur- at local economic transitions. The research rently used by public administrations as offic- team worked hand in hand with a local ac- es. The vicinity is further marked by a hospital tion group led by the council of the Municio and several peripheral neighbourhoods of the Roma XIV and BIC Lazio. The work was part city of Rome. Around one fourth of the area of the TURAS programme, a research consor- is owned by public authorities, the rest is split tium exploring the transition towards urban between various private and ecclesiastical “lat- resilience and sustainability through action ifundistas” and a commercial bank. The entire research in 12 cities and regions across Eu- area has been earmarked as “collective interest rope. This report is based on the TURAS work area” (Bollettino Ufficiale della Regione Lazio package on governance and economic resil- 2014) and in land use planning as “agricultur- ience. Here we present the outcomes of a 3 day al park” (Art 70 Piano Regolatore Generale di workshop that occurred on the 18th - 20th of Roma 2008); a political decision that translat- June, 2015. The material in this report shows ed into a considerable financial loss for land- both the process and the results of this work- owners willing to develop the land. shop. The intention is that the work and con- clusions offer the first steps for transitioning In October 2014, the TURAS research group the site into a community-based system. was approached by the regional public busi- ness innovation agency (BIC Lazio) and the local municipality (Municipio Roma XIV) The Site & Context to consider the Parco Agricolo in the context of the TURAS project, a European research The “Parco Agricolo Casal del Marmo” is a project on sustainable and resilient cities. The 400 ha site situated in the Northwest of Rome. situation faced with can be considered to be It bears deep layers of topsoil that have been wicked problem. Firstly the problem state- cultivated over millenia - the soil is referred to ment was ill-formulated since it was unclear as “agro romano” and lies in the heartland of what the actual task or question was that we Roman civilisation. Some of this historical leg- were supposed to examine. Then informa- acy is exploited since the 1980s by a coopera- tion was confusing because the local actors tive and a small area serves as pasture for local possessed so many layers of often incommen- - 3 - Workshop, day 1 - 4 - surate knowledge about the site, including in order to help creating a future for the Parco. outputs of previous participatory planning actions for the site (Associazione Parco Ag- ricolo di Casal del Marmo 2012). There were The three-day participatory workshop likewise many clients and decision makers with conflicting values. TURAS was asked to In this section we describe how we applied work with local and regional agencies with the curatorial cycle to the “wicked problem” different agendas and interests in the site and we faced at the Parco. The first action was to also had to consider a wide range of other create a curatorial situation. We achieved this private stakeholders such as the landowners. by suggesting to the local authorities that the Part of the local business community and civil complexities of the Parco’s development could society has also (potential) interest in the de- be addressed by compressing a large variety velopment of the Parco. Finally the ramifica- of viewpoints and forms of knowledge in time tions of a project at such a large scale within and space, a compression that took the form the political and economic hub of the city of of a three-day, on-site, hands-on workshop Rome, with implications for social and natural with around 60 participants from the area that systems at different scales, struck us as truly was organised in June 2015. Due to high lev- perplexing - or wicked. A decision was made el of uncertainties regarding the unfolding of to frame the situation as a wicked problem the workshop, we structured it as flexible as and apply the above mentioned principles of possible; its programme consisted of blocks of the curatorial approach to system transitions The Curatorial Method PROCESS CURATORIAL 1 INTENTION Defining Framing focus area Dividing focus area 2 Channeling into themes Engaging Exploring 3 through actions signification Redefining 4 Rechanelling themes Reviewing the Reframing focus area 5 6 Documenting Positioning A B C - 5 - Workshop, day 2 - 6 - presentations followed by practical workshops Instead of neutrally referring to the aim of the whose content and sequence could be rear- project as “finding a sustainable future for the ranged in real-time. The overall architecture Parco Agricolo”, we clearly stated in all com- of the workshop, however, was structured in munications that the purpose of the workshop form of the six steps of the curatorial approach was to “create a community-based food sys- presented above. During the three-day work- tem” of which the Parco was to be the heart. shop we completed two full cycles: after finish- This reflected our intention and values in fa- ing Step 5 in the morning of Day 2, we started vour of a more localised food economy and again with Step 1. the importance we attach to community-based development. Step 1. Framing Step 2. Channeling We then further framed the workshop ex- Step 3. Engage via signification perience through a mix of visual artefacts, Step 4. Rechanneling physical exposure and presentations. For in- Step 5. Reframing stance, we prepared and exhibited on the site Step 6. Positioning of the Parco a series of large photos and de- scriptions of community-based food projects from different contexts across the globe, thus Step 1. Framing. providing references, even if indirect, to other experiences we wanted to incorporate into the Our working definition of the overall problem narrative for the Parco. Day 1 also included a area of the Parco embraced a non-neutral and guided walk around the site that heavily em- political stance: we decided to engage with the phasised current and potential agricultural local stakeholders and the site in order to help use of the Parco. This was followed by short co-constructing a meaningful vision. During impulse presentations that again focused on the initial conversations with the municipali- community-supported food projects in other ty and regional representatives, a meaningful cities. These presentations were given by five narrative first arose as an opposition to the individuals from different European countries mainstream of developing peripheral land for that we selected on the grounds of their exper- housing. Indeed, land such as the one at the tise related to community-based food systems. Parco is exposed to strong economic pressure Finally, the workshop gave reason to collect a from the housing market, which tends to turn vast amount of background data, reports and arable plots in peripheral locations of met- maps on the project. We curated this material ropolitan areas into allotments of suburban by emphasising references to the potential of dwellings for commuters - in fact most of the the site as a hub for a community-based food surrounding areas of the Parco went down this system and made this material available prior path. We wanted to promote a positive vision and during the workshop. that would suggest to the local and regional decision makers that the Parco could play a Neither during the first cycle on Day 1 nor completely different role in the urban system. during the second cycle on Day 2 the over- We will not argue in this paper whether our all vision of working towards a “communi- vision is sensible on scientific, political, moral ty-based food system” was contested. It was or any other terms, but rather show how we clear from the plenary presentation in the incorporated it in our curatorial approach. morning of Day 2 that most participants had While the representatives of the local munic- already come to the workshop with similar ipality shared our non-neutral assessment narratives (for instance in terms of “kilometro from the beginning, we further curated the zero” initiatives popular in Italy) or had adopt- narrative to help narrow the problem area. ed elements of the curatorial vision during the first cycle. - 7 - Workshop, day 3 - 8 - Step 2. Channelling. tor”. In addition, the research team (curators) assigned an international mentor to each Moving from the whole to the particular was group with the intention to provide referenc- achieved by channeling participants and con- es to community-based food systems at the versations into a limited set of themes: Steps sub-system level.