Empowering social neighborhood networks. A Research-Training with operators of a community work project in Reggio Emilia

Abstract

This paper is an evaluative research of a project developed by Ce.I.S. of Reggio Emilia whose aim was to empower community networks in order to achieve the full inclusion of poverty-stricken families, mainly of non-Italian citizenship. The project is mainly described from its educational profile, concerning the activities undertaken to promote the participation of families in economic difficulty in a delivery and food distribution service, and the formative effects on the people involved, including the operators. The research we present focuses on the management and decision-making of the service activities, the meanings experienced by the participants, and the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to the effectiveness of the main project. Furthermore, documents and research-reflective tools are presented (socio-personal and cultural-professional information sheets, focus-groups, structured interviews, and meeting diaries). These resources were developed by the research group (DESU – UNIMORE) as tools to be used by Ce.I.S. operators to monitor and improve the project itself.