A Russian-Italian project for the development of solidarity organic agriculture has been launched

The three-year project "UCHASTIE" - Increasing the role of public organizations in the development of sustainable, healthy and inclusive communities in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, aimed at promoting the formation of sustainable, inclusive communities and social support for people from socially vulnerable categories.

The project is being implemented by a consortium of partners: Felcos Umbria (Italy), Aiab Umbria (Italy), Union of Organic Farming (RF, Moscow), Center for Women's Initiatives (RF, Leningrad Region, Tosno), Animation Studio "DA" (RF, St. Petersburg ) and is supported by the European Union.

The aim of the project is to develop social entrepreneurship, socially oriented and organic agriculture, as well as various forms of support for farming by local communities. Strengthening ties between producers of organic products and their consumers and the implementation of multilateral inclusive initiatives in the agro-food chain within the framework of the project will contribute to the sustainable development of communities and territories, creating conditions for equal participation in public life of socially vulnerable categories of people, including those most affected by the pandemic COVID-19 and lost their livelihoods.

Several interesting events have already taken place since the start of the project.

On June 11, an online seminar "Forms and practices of multi-stakeholder partnerships, organic and social farming and community-supported agriculture" was held. It was attended by the project coordinator and the expert of the applicant organization Felcos Umbria, who spoke about the main goals and working blocks of the project and about the technology and practices for creating and managing multi-stakeholder partnerships and initiatives in the field of social and economic development. Also at the seminar, experts from the partner organization Aiab Umbria spoke about organic and social farming as a model for sustainable development of the territory and local communities, which contributes to increasing the profitability of farms, along with social, labor, therapeutic, rehabilitation inclusion for people with disabilities.

In St. Petersburg, a meeting was held with employees of the inclusive workshops "Simple things", where adults with mental disabilities work ("Simple things" are inclusive workshops, the opening of which was supported by the animation studio "Yes"). At the meeting, it was told about the essence of the project and such concepts as "organic" and "social farming" - all this caused a response and keen interest among special craftsmen.
The project partners made a presentation of the UCHASTIE project at the ZaDelo meeting of environmental and urban activists in St. Petersburg. Tatyana and Alexandra, representatives of the UCHASTIE project, told the meeting participants about its main aspects and about the possibilities of multilateral partnership within the framework of the project, which, hopefully, will lead to the emergence of new joint initiatives.

The end result of the three years of the project is the creation of a multi-stakeholder partnership between civil society organizations and the agri-food sector, and the transfer to them of Italian experience in the practice of organic and social farming and entrepreneurship in the agri-food chain, as well as the launch and development of projects in this area in Russia, in particular in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region.