Porta Capuana is the eastern gate of the historical center of Naples, and gives the name to the neighbourhood that developed around it. While the economic difficulties of its inhabitants are a long-known problem, a recent rise in the multicultural background of the neighbourhood residents has changed its dynamics. Some regeneration plans have been launched by public bodies, which co-exist with a renewed vibrancy in the local activities of associations and private stakeholders.
Since 2014, in the heart of the Giardini Margherita park in the city of Bologna 500 m² of abandoned greenhouses and 3000 m² of open-air area have been the subject of an incremental regeneration process that has given rise to Le Serre dei Giardini, a veritable ‘nursery’ of ideas: here desirable, sustainable and inclusive futures are brought closer to people through the realisation of tangible projects that propose a rethinking of the relationship between urban space, human beings and the natural environment.
Starting from an urban gardening project, the experience of Prinzessinnengarten extended to a wide range of innovative practices, political stances and networking activities fostering a DIY integrated approach. Since 2020, the gardens occupy two distinct areas, both organized on principles of self-sufficiency, food-independence and social inclusivity: the original site located in Moritzplatz (Berlin-Kreuztberg) and the recent acquisition of San Jacobi cemetery (Berlin-Neukölln). The Prinzessinnengarten project promotes gardening as a practice of community building and social emancipation from urban neo-liberal dynamics, while also offering its visitors and members a wide range of cultural and educational activities aimed at sharing different forms of knowledge and skills and at raising consciousness on current ecological issues and social challenges.