Futurama, the FirstLife path: shaping the citizens of the future

As part of the Futurama project, the "Experimentations in Civic Applications of New Technologies – FirstLife" course recently concluded. Its objective was to develop students' digital skills to turn them into active citizens, utilizing technology and the EduLife methodology to explore and enhance their local territory. Two third-year classes participated in the course, one from the “G.B. Odierna” Higher Education Institute in Palma di Montechiaro (AG) and the other from the "Sciascia e Bufalino" Secondary Education Institute in Erice (TP).

The Futurama project is selected by "Con i Bambini" as part of the Fund for combating educational poverty among minors and co-financed by the Cassa Depositi e Prestiti Foundation.

FirstLife, a Collaborative Digital Platform

The collaborative digital platform FirstLife is designed to integrate various functionalities into a single tool supporting active citizenship: sharing reflections and ideas, participating in surveys, exchanging opinions and in-depth materials, representing networks, and connecting content of public utility. Furthermore, FirstLife offers an educational opportunity because, thanks to its capabilities and multifaceted nature, it provides young people with a tool to critically observe their surroundings and express their needs, opinions, and proposals. For this reason, theedu.firstlife.org platform, dedicated to teaching, inspires civic education paths that draw from new disciplines such as neo-geography and integrate topics ranging from cartography to digital skills, allowing in-depth exploration of contemporary issues such as the impact of social media, the social sustainability of territories, and the relationship between physical and virtual reality.

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The Path for Futurama

This is what the students from the two classes involved in the Futurama project faced alongside trainers from the University of Turin and the Community Foundation of Agrigento and Trapani. The 35-hour course, divided into 14 sessions, began with theoretical explorations of the aforementioned topics and then focused on the needs of adolescents, reflecting on whether and how local places could meet them. Subsequently, field activities were carried out, consisting of exploratory outings in the urban centers of Palma di Montechiaro and Erice, which were “captured” using street photography and participatory journalism techniques. These activities aimed to map the places that meet adolescents' needs, engage with the entities managing these spaces, get to know them and ask questions, and identify the absence of spaces and activities. This activated a genuine process of civic participation that became the heart of the project itself.

Erice

In Erice, the students developed proposals to improve a place they frequently visit, the Pala Ilio, and presented them to the OUT - Officina Urbana Trapani association, which is dedicated to urban regeneration, during a meeting at Beehive, the coworking space and social enterprise for South Working and digital training. The students interviewed the association members to better understand their work and receive feedback on the proposals, and together with Ignazio Corte (president of OUT) and Antonino Rallo (member), they discussed the importance of civic participation in analyzing territories and seeking innovative and participatory solutions to improve them.

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Palma di Montechiaro

In Palma di Montechiaro, following a territorial exploration, two gathering places were identified: the municipal library and "u falò." In the former, a meeting was organized with Dr. Rosa Di Blasi and Dr. Giuseppina Zarbo to reflect on new proposals and ways to use the library to attract adolescents. In the latter case, Florinda Saieva, founder of Farm Cultural Park - an art gallery and artist residency in Favara (AG) - intervened in the classroom. She has launched an urban regeneration project in Palma di Montechiaro for the place identified by the class as “u falò,” providing an opportunity to delve into the importance of art and community involvement in regenerating urban spaces.

The Final Presentation

The interviews were transcribed, and the contents were elaborated and reported on theFirstLife platform dedicated to the project, using participatory journalism techniques and activities. Finally, the students participated in a public speaking workshop to learn how to effectively present their ideas in preparation for the final presentation and public showcase of the course and proposals, which were held in two meetings. The first took place in Palma di Montechiaro, where the Community Foundation of Agrigento and Trapani, represented by Daniela Avanzato, attended, and where the students presented the following proposals: making the library more digital by adding tablets and computers to bring young people closer to books and the internet, updating the book list with titles suitable for their age group, and organizing video game and board game tournaments; beautifying “u falò” with murals, collaborating with Farm Cultural Park artists, and animating it by organizing outdoor film screenings, sports events, and concerts.

In Erice, the president of the Community Foundation of Agrigento and Trapani, Pietro Basiricò, Alessia Gambino, and the councilor for Social Services, Family Services, and Labor Policies, Giuseppe Virzì, attended. The students presented their proposals for the Pala Ilio green area: an equipped meeting area for outdoor picnics, a Skate Park involving local associations offering skateboarding and parkour courses, organizing sports tournaments, film screenings, and musical events and festivals.

The FirstLife course empowered the students to become protagonists of their territories, teaching them to critically examine the places they frequent daily with a critical and proactive mindset, experiencing the transformative power of active participation firsthand. Moreover, these activities were a significant step in forming the citizens of tomorrow, active, aware, and responsible, who will be the true protagonists of a future that we hope will be increasingly sustainable and inclusive.

If you want to continue following the activities of the Futurama project, you can check the project sheet (here's the link), visit the project blog (here's the link), and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. To participate or get more information, contact Daniela Avanzato at d.avanzato@fcagrigentotrapani.it.

The Futurama project has been selected by Con i Bambini as part of the Fund for combating educational poverty among minors and co-financed by the Cassa Depositi e Prestiti Foundation. The Fund was created through an agreement between banking foundations represented by Acri, the National Forum of the Third Sector, and the Government. It supports interventions aimed at removing economic, social, and cultural barriers that prevent minors from fully benefiting from educational processes. To implement the Fund's programs, the social enterprise Con i Bambini was established in June 2016, a non-profit organization wholly owned by the CON IL SUD Foundation. www.conibambini.org

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