By Filomena Cappiello
Fighting depopulation, promoting people’s well-being, and making the territory more attractive for families, businesses, and young talents — these are the goals underlying the collaboration launched between the Municipality of Alghero and the Bruno Kessler Foundation of Trento, a leading institution in the Italian and international landscape of innovation and research.
The institutional meeting, held on May 21 at the Foundation’s headquarters in Trento, included the participation of an Alghero delegation composed of the Councillor for Planning Enrico Daga, the Councillor for People’s Well-being Maria Grazia Salaris, Municipal Director Alessandro Alciator, sole director of Porto Conte Ricerche Gavino Sini, and the Family Policies Office, managed under agreement by the National Association of Large Families and represented by its manager, Filomena Cappiello.
The day was an important opportunity to share visions, experiences, and best practices in the field of People Strategy—an integrated approach that puts people at the center of territorial policy planning, with the goal of building more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable communities.
Welcoming the delegation were the Foundation’s Secretary General Andrea Simoni, Director of Strategic Planning Paolo Traverso, Research and Family Development Manager Luciano Malfer, and numerous professionals and researchers who, during the meeting, presented the Foundation’s main activities and the positive impact they have on the territory, businesses, and individuals.
The program “People Strategy, Territorial Attractiveness and Scientific Research” stems from the joint desire of the Municipality of Alghero and the Bruno Kessler Foundation (FBK) to create mutual value, highlight the uniqueness of each territory, and make both contexts more attractive and competitive for young people, families, researchers, and professionals. The discussion made it clear that only by systematizing a territory’s resources through corporate, inter-company, and territorial welfare policies can we promote the development of well-being and attractive ecosystems and strengthen the active policies carried out by local administrations.
“As a family-certified municipality in Italy and lead city of the National Network of Family Municipalities — founded together with Trento in 2017 and now consisting of over two hundred municipalities — we strongly believe in a family-friendly vision for public policy,” stated Councillor Maria Grazia Salaris. “The collaboration with the Bruno Kessler Foundation will help us reinforce this approach and translate it into concrete actions for the future of our community and the upcoming metropolitan city. As a pioneer municipality in family policies, Alghero carries a great responsibility: we are fully committed to fostering a fruitful dialogue with the region so that the northwest can become a truly attractive and people-centered area, capable of creating networks and enhancing local excellence.”
The path now foresees a study phase with an integrated approach that combines scientific research, innovation, social well-being, and sustainability, as well as the definition of targeted training programs to develop innovation capacity among youth, businesses, and the political and administrative leadership: an important first step toward making Alghero and the future metropolitan city a welcoming, dynamic, and forward-looking territory.
“The collaboration with FBK is a fundamental step toward building, also in northwestern Sardinia, an innovation ecosystem capable of attracting talent, families, and businesses,” emphasized Councillor Daga. “Alghero aims to contribute to the creation of a true ‘Inno-Bay’ in the northwest, built on scientific research, people’s well-being, sustainability, and quality of life. Only by bringing together human capital, knowledge, and strategic vision can we turn demographic challenges into opportunities for generative development.”
Thanks to the decade-long work of its Family Policy Office, which operates comprehensively on the theme of family well-being and family-oriented territorial welfare, Alghero is increasingly becoming a point of reference for family-friendly policies in Sardinia, Italy, and Europe.