Using ICT, Social Media and Mobile Technologies to Foster
Self-Organisation in Urban and Neighbourhood Governance
Library at Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands
Building a community in virtual spaces to create real practices
The case of Italo-ArgentinianOutline
1) Theoretical Framework
2) Motivations for the choice of the Case Study
3)Research Questions
4) Methodology
5) Types of Analysis (Longitudinal and Content Analysis) and Results
6) Focus on Italo-argentinian Contents
7) Focus on their Self-organization
8) Conclusions
GLOBALIZATION =
intensification of global relationships
strongly increased in terms of intensity and fluxes of ideas, people, technologies, assets, information and images of the world (Appadurai, 2001)
Hybridization of cultures, lifestyles, customs and traditions
(Canclini, 2000)GLOCALIZATION =
new reconstruction of the local dimension in
interconnection with global aspects
(Robertson, 1995)TRANSNATIONAL APPROACH
MIGRATION
fluid cultural identitiesICT, SOCIAL MEDIA and MOBILE TECHNOLOGY
ideas, cultures and lifestyles can be shared even among people who have never concretely interacted with each other
Cultures and identities become more and more impure, hybrid, choose and the result of constant historical combinations
Emblematic case of Italo-argentinians
that have shared for centuries migratory movements, political, economic, social and cultural relationships
Research Questions
Italo-Argentinian people interact in virtual spaces in order to
build, re-build and reinforce a shared culture and identity
such interactions are always linked to real urban spaces,
where they can be practiced and where feelings of belonging
can strengthen
the use of ICT can help to foster self-organization and
participation in local contexts
Methodology
Surfing the Net
Institutions
Regional Associations
Mutual Assistance Associations Italian schools and universities
Newspapers, magazines and radio YouTube
Blogs
Social Networks
discussions on different themes
external links
organization of events
excluding specific groups
considering the updating times and the participation
Choice of one
The Virtual Community
Mission → To be a match point for all the Italo-Argentinians
...who currently live in Italy and have the same interests in culture, art, music, photography, cooking and so on
Basic information:
«it has been considered that 25 million of Argentinians have at least an Italian
ancestor, that this is the most numerous ethnic origin»
brief history of migrations from Italy to Argentina, with the reasons for the
expatriation and the typology of occupation overseas Partecipation under the date 1st May 2013:
3.735 people like the page 488 talk about it
Analysis
Longitudinal
Of Contents
useful to frame the development of the
community in its complexity
allowed the subdivision into different categories, and so, a more analytic analysis
Show progressive growth
Show
cultural hybridization
and
Longitudinal Analysis
Ju ne July Aug ustSeptem ber O cto ber No vem ber De cem ber Ja nu ary Fe bru ary M arch April May June July Aug ustSeptem ber O cto ber No vem ber De cem ber Ja nu ary Fe bru ary M arch April May June July Aug ustSeptem ber O cto ber No vem ber De cem ber Ja nu ary Fe bru ary M arch 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160Number of posts inserted in month of entry
since June 2010 to March 2013
June 2010: Foundation → presentation of the administrator and of the firsts members
Year 2010: 28% personal posts
April 2011: New admin → language changes: tender terms, direct and personal sentences, stimulating emotional side and feeling of belonging of the members
Year 2011: >30% posts share everyday life
Increase of the number of members
Year 2012 shows:
contents related to sharing everyday life, with constant symbolic references
to Italo-Argentinian lifestyle
expression of the strong relationship lasting between Italy and Argentina
many articles on institutional events aimed at reinforcing italo-argentinian
bonds
many stories about single individuals, representative in their own way of the
Italo-Argentinian aspects
March 2013: Pope's election
after a little decrease of partecipation, it can be noticed a new wave of comments
Ju ne July Aug ustSeptem be r O ctobe r No vem ber De cem ber Ja nuar y Febr uary M ar ch A pr il M ay June July Aug ustSeptem be r O ctobe r No vem ber De cem ber Ja nuar y Febr uary M ar ch A pr il M ay June July Aug ustSeptem be r O ctobe r No vem ber De cem ber Ja nuar y Febr uary M ar ch 0 50 100 150
Number of posts inserted in month of entry
Art: it includes TV programs, literature, comics, painting, music and
dance (tango)
Society: it includes numerous subcategories, that is politics, economy,
sport, religion, in addition to other news related to relevant issues at a
social level or current news
Pictures: photos, videos, links to articles that show real places, divided
into the subcategories Argentina and Italy
Sharing: it is divided into personal posts, in which the members talk
about themselves and their lives, and emotional posts, useful to express
the closeness to other members or to the Nation one belongs to
Italo-Argentinian lifestyle: it includes all the posts in which emerge how
this hybrid culture and identity is still shared and alive in real spaces
Italo-Argentinian lifestyle
indicators of institutional collaboration
indicators of self-organization
All formalized exchanges between Italy and Argentina that highlight the interrelation between the two Nations:
Conference, meeting, events, prizes Economic collaboration
Artistic relationship Cultural twinning
posts by single individuals or groups that:
try to create social networks
active on the territories
propose real practices to support
Italo-Argentinian community in specific contexts
On the page are promoted events with a strongly local connotation
Self-organization
Courses: language, history, theater, tango, etc
Conference and events
Support to commercial activities
Share of holidays
Find roots
Job demand and offer
Support for trip or transfer
Administrative support
Exchange of information for social and political partecipation
Mutual help
Preliminary Conclusions
Use virtual world in his transnational dimension
Allows people living in different places to
share ideas,
information, traditions, feelings and so on
Permit to built, rebuilt and reinforce a common
identity Let the possibility to
organize interactions in local contexts Strengthen the
feeling of belonging
Thank You for Your Attention
Luciana Taddei – University of Genoa – taddei.luciana@gmail.com
