Citizens Participation in Improving Rural Communities Quality of Life

The concept of participation is very difficult to clearly define, because of the complex framework and the experimental nature of any participatory process. These processes are more difficult to implement in small and isolated communities because of the particularities social structure. I several cases technologies can help citizens in participating in these activities, but the result is strongly related to the predisposition of a communities to use theses ICT tools.

“Hack my town” was an “hackathon” among Universities in order to find solutions to “smart villages and territories” problems. It took place in Glorenza, a small medieval village located in the North of Italy, in Val Venosta, near to Swiss boundary. The introduction of smart solutions in a small rural context could be not very easy: Glorenza is, in fact, characterized by a limited predisposition for both technological and social innovation. Participants experienced how a small mountain village can become a smart village through the synergy between students and their professors, stimulating from one side scientific discussion and from another side a creative environment, where new con-ceptual solutions can be found.