Paolab

Paolab is an organization that works since the 2006 in the field of culture in southern Italy. Before that year the organization was working as a non-formal group, by organizing festivals and local initiatives concentrate in Paola, a city on the Tyrrhenian coast of Calabria. On the beginning, most of the activities were concerts, cinema forums and workshops about politics and social problems. From the 2011, Paolab was increasing a lot by doing always more and new activities. In the last years the association was starting to become an organization with many students as activists; thanks of that Paolab was going to be a group involved in the European projects management (and not only).

Thanks, of the wish and work of the youth activists the association started to become always more popular. From the 2011 the organization is part of a big net of associations in which Paolab is cooperating in organizing events, festivals, book presentations, workshop and project management. The importance of defending human rights moved from the beginning our souls, to build up a better future, with actions within the present. Since 2014 Paolab is participating and organising projects and activities funded by the Erasmus+ programme.

The organization has among the members scholars, professions, students and as well workers and retired people.
Paolab is active in the field of youth policies and because of that organized several projects and initiatives with schools and other organizations to do laboratories of art and literature with kids and young people.

Another field in which is strong the activism of the organization is the environment. Paolab did a lot of efforts by coordinating and organizing several projects and initiatives to promote the sustainable development. Fostering the policy of the 4 R (reduce, recycle, reuse and recovering) was adapted in diverse situations. Promoting a development that enriches safeguard of the culture and territory is one of the goals of the organization.

Paolab participated in several initiatives connected with those topics. We organized with several stakeholders, such as schools, city halls and other organizations for the Festival of the sustainable development, which is a festival having several initiatives in the entire country, with government, institutions and enterprises as stakeholders.

The Festival organized by the ASViS is one of the most important moment in Italy when different actors meet and discuss about policies activated about the sustainable development. When we organized it we were able to organize a two-days in the town Cerisano, in the province of Cosenza. Here decision makers from the city hall, people form the board of the brand Patata della Sila IGP –Potatoes from Sila protected by local label, organizations such as Progetto Meridiano, Primavera della Calabria, scholars and professors form the university of Calabria, and people working in local enterprises for educational skills. The people attending the meetings were able to better feel conformable with policies and ideas to implement even in local actions activities involving citizens into sustainability.