Activism and participation in small municipalities with high immigrants presence in Latium Region
Fo.Cu.S. (Formazione, Cultura, Storia, http//w3.uniroma1.it/focus - ), is a recently established (2007) research centre of Sapienza University of Rome. Its goal is to pursue the enhancement, rehabilitation and management of small historical centres and their landscape through appropriate policies based on an integrated sectorial and territorial approach.
Actually Focus is developing an academic research titled “Urban regeneration policies for small historical centres with high presence of immigrants”, that will be ended on February 2012. After a first step dedicated to the definition of the key questions and quantitative analysis, the focus is now on the identification of the case studies, that have to be faced with qualitative and depth investigations to identify the main strategies adopted by local administrations to encourage cultural integration processes.
The population of the data analysis is represented by the municipalities of Latium region of less than 20.000 inhabitants (2009) and with an immigrants presence higher than medium regional value (8%). It’s about 130 municipalities non homogeneously distributed on regional territory, with a clear predominance of municipalities of the first and the second metropolitan belt of Rome.
The attention is therefore directed to smaller municipalities, that in most part of cases are characterized by the presence of ancient nucleus; because of the great number of these centres (that represent the 90% of all Latium municipalities), it is possible to find heterogeneous situations.
In the wide theme of … the research try to emphasize and describe the different forms in which immigrant presence becomes part of local balances and “alters” them, exactly where the small dimension of communities could favour a larger visibility of this presence, and the simpler relationships system, the community life and participation tools could request a lower level of relationships formalization.
How it will be shown, there is a clear difference between the centres internal or external – in functional and physical terms – to metropolitan area of Rome according to the evolution of the Capital role. This is progressively changing from an initial and apparently indisputable primacy on regional territory (till all ‘70s), to a redistribution of urban functions towards other great municipalities of the Rome province, that produces a definition of a new multipolar metropolitan region. What is outside this area shows social-economic characters deeply different from metropolitan municipalities; it defines an offer system equally attractive for localization of immigrants nucleus. (accordingly to specific answers …)
In Italy, during an elder phase of immigration history, small municipalities have represented the simplest and immediate accommodation solutions, and therefore temporary.
A recent Caritas inquiry – that will be largely treated forward – shows that this kind of localization is assuming the form of a growing permanence stabilization; these centres are finally seen as real solutions for residential and job problems, because of the decreasing of the attractive power and the labour supply of metropolis.
The goal of the research group (coordinated by professor Manuela Ricci of Faculty of Architecture and director Focus research centre) is to individuate possible scenarios of small historical centres enhancement and development in which immigrants presence can be considered as a resource.
Regarding the topics proposed by the conference, the present work wants to contribute showing the preliminary results of the first recognition of the definition of intervention policies and of the characteristics of immigrants participation to community life; it also tries to show the strong relationships between both of that themes and the conditions of centrality/peripherality of inquired municipalities (not only in infrastructural, but also in social and functional sense) as regards the metropolitan district of Rome.
Regarding the reflection and discussion topics proposed by this conference, the present work wants to contribute showing the first results of our Latium region’ reality inquiry, having two main finalities:
- The individuation of specific interventions policies, related to local contexts;
- The description of the relationships between immigrants presence and participation and the conditions of centrality/peripherality of inquired municipalities (not only in infrastructural, but also in social and functional sense) as regards the metropolitan district of Rome.
We illustrate the most interesting results of quantitative analysis and explain the research hypothesis together with the qualitative inquiry, directly conducted by Pierpaolo Porto in some sample municipalities, equally divided between metropolitan and peripheral areas of region.
Immigration in Latium. Prevailing settlement forms of immigrated communities
Settlement and transformation of urban spaces forms of immigrated communities have been widely studied and described by many authors, with different finalities (for example the case of Palermo by Lo Piccolo).
it is useful to mention how Lanzani’s work has already emphasized the difficulties to describe this phenomenon using a few and stereotyped models. Settlement modalities, and the relative effects on the local community organization and on the use of urban spaces, change remarkably not only together with the urban zone (historical centre, semi-rural zones, public housing settlements, industrial dismissed areas, …), but also with geographical region: for example, appropriation forms of historical urban spaces are completely different in the Northern, the Central and the Southern Italy.
However, it has to be remarked that small municipalities – especially historical nucleuses – have demonstrated a better adaptability to life requirements of immigrated communities, that, for example, suffer less than autochthones the weakness of filter between public and private space, how is easily visible thanks to the new vitality of alleys and little squares of historical centres abandoned by the original inhabitants and re-occupied by immigrants. These open and common spaces become true extensions of residential private space.
Obviously the new inhabitants provenience influences largely the spaces use modalities. On these aspects, the contents of the Annual Report of the Roman Observatory on migrations, VI Edition, Roma Caritas – realized in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce and Rome Province - can be very useful. Fundamental informations about the phenomenon quantification, that represents the necessary base of our research plan, can be drawn up by 2010’ Caritas Report.
First of all, the dimension of immigrants presence in the Latium region is 500.000 units (2008), and more than 336.000 lives in Rome provincial territory (that, in absence of a formal perimeter individuation, is usually identified as the metropolitan area). Municipalities with higher presence of immigrated population – besides the Capital – are about 15, all localized in the metropolitan area, and they all exceed the 20.000 inhabitants threshold fixed by the research plan.
However, in a dynamic sense, the other provincial territories show an increasing rate of foreign presence (people coming from abroad but resident in Italy) higher than the Capital one, due both to the better conditions of housing market and to better job opportunities.
For example in the case of Latina, that actually shows rates of foreign presence lower than other Latium provinces (for what only three municipalities of this Province are selected in our research sample), the fast increasing in the agriculture sector might explain the extraordinary growth (30%) of foreign presence registered between 2007 and 2008.
Data shows how job placement opportunities of Rome province are certainly lower than in the others Latium provinces. It is interesting also to examine sectorial better opportunities: as said, agriculture in Latina, and construction in Rieti e Frosinone. In Viterbian territory – where the phenomenon of immigrated localization is older than in the other provinces (excluding Rome) (how the primacy of foreign scholastic population demonstrates), and the cohabitation with immigrated communities has created less social problems (sixth position in Italy for lower rate of immigrants involvement in crimes, and higher naturalizations rate in Latium region) - job sectorial supply is more various and articulated.
Other interesting considerations, emerging from Caritas report, concern the different inclination of ethnic groups to the localization in regional territory. It has to be noticed that Rome and the major municipalities of roman hinterland are chosen by Asians and Africans, while Europeans prefer to localize themselves in the minor and more marginal municipalities: in detail, Bulgarians (more than 70% lives outside Rome province), Romanians and Albanians (50%). In these realities also the presence of Moroccans and Tunisians is significant.
In that articulated situation, it’s important to signalize the existence of a regional law (n. 10/2008) that affirms that immigrants “participate at local public life” in a condition of full equality.
The results of quantitative analysis of Focus research: main characters of foreign presence in minor centres of Latium region
The cluster analysis conducted by the research group on 130 municipalities, selected according on the mentioned criterions, evidences an unexpected phenomenon variability: it emerges, in fact, the existence of homogeneous groups of municipalities presenting very articulated profiles, and showing a variety of situations for immigrants localizations not banally reducible to stereotypes.
The statistical analysis utilized a data set concerning: demographical aspects (population variation in the last decade, old population incidence, immigrant residents presence); economical and employment structure (income, total employees and construction sector employees presence, because of the importance of this sector as a relevant job opportunity for immigrants); housing market characters (unutilized residential buildings incidence, share of buildings realized before 1919, location fees in historical centres); accessibility (distance from main center of Local Work System (defined by Italian Statistics Institute), distance from nearest railway station, both measured in transfer time).
The finality that guided to the selection of indicators is the trial of existence of relationships between immigrants settlement modalities in the minor municipalities and their socio-economical and accessibility conditions. The procedure adopted carried to the individuation of five municipalities groups identified by profiles clearly distinguishable (a sixth cluster, identifiable in the only municipality of Ventotene, has not been considered in data interpretation).
First of all, indications provided by the analysis of correlation between utilized variables show some partially expected but nevertheless significant relationships between characters. The stronger correlation showed by the variable measuring the foreign presence is with the population increase, that surely individuates the most relevant dynamics related to foreign localization on regional territory.
Even the variables referred to demographical decline (old population, historical and unutilized buildings incidence) and those relatives to economic condition (income, rent fees in historical centres) reveal a high and expected correlation level.
The axes describing, in effectiveness order, the groups formation are coherently characterized: the first one explains demographical increase – certainly the most relevant dynamics in the region – through the relationship between population variation an incidence of old people presence; the second one expresses proximity/marginality of municipalities (time to reach the centroid of Local Work System and the railway station); the third one describes the realities in which a strong connection between the presence of economic activities and the level of accessibility (proximity to railway station) is evident.
The outputs of cluster analysis have to be contextualized in order to the prevailing regional demographic dynamics. Latium region shows a clear positive trend: its population – non computing Rome – grows up more than 13% in the period 2001-2009, while Rome municipality’s value is less than 7%. The most part of this increase is due to migratory flow, and in particular to foreign arrivals, that in the same period grew up almost the 200%, passing from 150.000 to 450.000 units).
The municipalities with less than 20.000 inhabitants, opposite to an intensive population growth (more than 11%), recorded an extraordinary increase of foreign presence (285%).
To sum up, the attractiveness of minor centres, connected, as said, to housing market and labour supply saturation of the bigger towns, has significantly raised up. For the most part of these municipalities, a foreign presence – that in 10 centres exceeds the 15% of resident population – can represent an essential demographical and socio-economic regeneration factor.
In the selected municipalities these values are naturally higher: population growth is 19% and foreign population is more than 300%. Real estate characteristics are between the peculiarities of these centres, because of the high presence of historical buildings, while old population incidence is lower than the relative regional value, because of the “injection” of young people, thanks to immigration flow.
The highest concentration of foreign residents is relievable in two of the five clusters emerging by analysis – the third and the fifth ones, in which the foreign presence value is higher than 11% - that present opposite characters. In short, the phenomenon of immigrants presence – that represents the great majority of the foreign population relieved by census, especially outside Rome metropolitan district – is polarized in two opposite situation: the most dynamic and accessible one, connoted by the highest income level (cluster 3) and the most marginal (cluster 5), extremely slight (only 5 units).
In this table are illustrated the clusters profiles, evidencing the values assumed by indicators compared to medium regional values.
Indicators / cluster 1 / cluster 2 / cluster 3 / cluster 4 / cluster 5N. of municipalities / 57 / 15 / 32 / 19 / 5
Income (2007) / + / -- / ++ / ++ / -
Variation % pop. 2001/2009 / + / - / ++ / + / --
% foreigners residents (2009) / ++ / + / +++ / ++ / +++
% old population (>65) 2009 / + / + / - / + / ++
% buildings <1919 (2001) / ++ / ++ / - / + / +++
% empty dwellings (2001) / + / + / - / + / ++
Medium rent fees (2010) / - / - / ++ / + / -
Dist. centroid LWS (2011) / + / + / ++ / - / ++
Dist. Railway station (2011) / + / + / - / -- / ++
% employeed/pop (2007) / -- / - / - / + / ---
% empl. construction/pop. (2007) / - / +++ / ++ / + / -
This condition corresponds precisely to a double geographical localization:
· The third cluster identifies the first metropolitan belt, with a particular concentration in the northern part of the region (along the direction of Flaminia/Cassia/Nomentana routes) and in the south (Castelli Romani);
· The fifth cluster includes peripheral municipalities, unfavourite by the accessibility point of view, and in critical demographical and employment situation.
The most numerous cluster is the first one (57, a few less of the sample half) that is characterized by a medium situation, that evidently represents the typical and majority condition of small municipalities of the region, connoted by the high presence of old population and historical buildings, and by a low presence of economic activities, because of the weakness of local system. This cluster collects municipalities concentrated in the eastern part of the second metropolitan belt.