From soil to soul: How social farming is reconnecting a community

At the heart of Social4Food is its participatory approach. Through a series of sustainable initiatives, the project engaged Arsoli’s teenagers and invited immigrants, young children, and older people to work together in creating a local vegetable garden. This space now serves as a hub for physical activity, stress relief, and social interaction – especially benefiting disadvantaged individuals.

This process focused on specific steps in the lifecycle of fagiolina arsolana, from growth and harvest to cooking. Under the guidance of older people, younger participants learnt about traditional agricultural techniques and recipes – building skills that might otherwise be lost to time. Meanwhile, a cooking challenge encouraged the community to showcase Arsoli’s unique gastronomic heritage by developing their own dishes featuring fagiolina.

For the people of Arsoli, Social4Food strengthens the connections that make a community resilient. The project’s engagement of both young and older people created an intergenerational dialogue, in which ideas, stories, and traditions were shared and preserved. The project has also helped to reclaim an abandoned green space in the town, transforming it into a social farm that serves as a peaceful retreat from the pressures of modern life. For the community, the social farm has become a vital resource, allowing for physical activity, social engagement, and connection with nature, which has contributed to improving mental health and creating a strengthened sense of belonging.

Social4Food was made possible by the EIT Community NEB’s Connect program, which provided nearly 15,000 euros in funding. This support enabled Social4Food’s organisers to implement their participatory approach on a meaningful scale, involving over 10% of Arsoli’s population in its sustainable activities. The EIT Community NEB’s support has been instrumental in overcoming key challenges – particularly those related to the pandemic. As lockdowns and social distancing placed a strain on the community, the project created new pathways for engagement and connection, reinvigorating social spaces and building a deeper appreciation for the town's natural resources and culinary heritage.

Social4Food has long-term aspirations that extend beyond Arsoli. The project’s participatory approach, combining hands-on training and collaborative design, is a model that could be replicated across rural areas of the Aniene Valley, where other local foods, such as olives, grapes, and indigenous legumes, are also at risk of fading from memory.

To ensure the sustainability and scalability of its model, Social4Food plans to build partnerships with local governments, educational institutions, and community associations. These partnerships aim to institutionalise the project’s training programmes, integrating them into educational curricula and creating annual community activities. By embedding these traditions into the fabric of daily life, the project hopes to inspire a new generation to value, and continue, their cultural heritage.

Technology, too, will play a crucial role in Social4Food’s future. Digital tools can help preserve traditional recipes and agricultural techniques, making them accessible to a wider audience. For Arsoli’s younger participants, many of whom are digital natives, integrating technology with traditional practices could offer a compelling way to engage with their heritage.

The impact of Social4Food has been widely recognised within the Arsoli community. Local leaders, including the town’s mayor and representatives from the Association of Local Producers, have praised the project for creating “new opportunities for young people” and for its “importance in preserving local food traditions.” The president of Arsoli’s Pro Loco Association highlighted the “exchange of ideas” that Social4Food facilitated, while the president of the town’s residential care centre recognised the value of passing down knowledge through collaboration.