SustAge and CISS-38 Workshop

Cuorgnè, 15 September 2026 – From needs to projects, from projects to possible actions. This was the guiding theme of the workshop organised by the SustAge project team in collaboration with CISS-38 (the Consortium of Municipalities on Social-Sanitary Services), held on 15 September at the Manifattura in Cuorgnè. The day brought together collaborative work and discussion on the future of community-based welfare and the development of shared responses to the social changes affecting the local area.

The workshop was attended by representatives of CISS-38, researchers from the SustAge-academic-partners Università di Torino (UniTo) and Politecnico di Torino (PoliTo),  no-profit organisations, citizen associations, local government officials and mayors of municipalities and mountain unions in the area covered by CISS-38. It offered an opportunity to identify the main needs currently emerging in social and health care and reflect on the challenges they pose.

The morning activities, led by SustAge-team-members Prof. Amina Pereno and Dr Martina Spinelli of the PoliTo’s Systemic Design Lab, involved the use of the Nominal Group Technique and the Participatory Needs Assessment Canvas. These tools enabled participants to compare and explore priority needs in greater depth.

In the afternoon, the focus moved on to defining possible responses. The identified needs were matched to the actions which are envisaged under the “Prossimità” project, using the Flourishing Model Canvas. The working groups, coordinated by Prof. Diana Rolando, architect Giorgia Malavasi and designer Lisa Panero (Department of Architecture and Design, PoliTo and SustAge), explored some of the key dimensions of community-based welfare: home-based care and local services, caregivers and active ageing, independent living and disability, and ageing in place.

The wide attendance and the variety of skills and experiences which were represented feeded practical discussions among the different stakeholders who live and work in the local area at stake every day. This helped define a shared understanding of needs and possible courses of action.

The workshop marks the first step in a process that will continue over the coming months, building on the needs and actions identified during the day. The aim is to gradually develop a coordinated system that strengthens connections between the various initiatives and assesses both their expected and actual impacts, ultimately leading to the validation of the results.

We would like to thank CISS-38, co-organiser of the event, and in particular its Director, Nicoletta Bellin, as well as Davide Milano and Stefano Rossetti, for hosting the workshop at a relevant venue such as the ‘Manifattura in Cuorgnè’, and for their contribution and ongoing dialogue throughout the process.