The Governance of Multi-Ethnic Neighborhoods Characterized By High Social Conflict: The Case of the Piave Street's Area in Mestre (Venice, Italy)

The paper is based on a research work lasted three years that focused on some Italian neighborhoods adjacent to the railway stations and therefore more affected by an increased presence and visibility of immigrants and socially excluded people in public spaces and by phenomena of urban conflict.    
In particular it will be here analyzed the case of the “Piave neighborhood” in Mestre, belonging to the Venice municipality.  
First, some contextual data on the Piave neighborhood and on the elements of conflict between different social groups will be reported. These conflicts have caused the establishment of “citizens' committees” that involve autochthonous residents and shops owners protesting against what they perceive as the degradation of their neighborhood.           
Second, the intervention that the municipality of Venice has promoted in the Piave neighborhood to address these conflicts will be analyzed. This is an interesting and innovative intervention in the Italian context, in which the municipality, through its own service of street educators and community leaders, has promoted the activation of a group of neighborhood residents who work in collaboration with municipal social workers to increase social cohesion and intercultural dialogue and to improve the image of the neighborhood. Both the strengths and weaknesses of this intervention will be highlighted.