Lucilla Troiano
Published April 14, 2025
Where is this grassroots initiative implemented?
Bisaccia is a small Italian municipality with 3,558 inhabitants, located in the province of Avellino in Campania. Although it has medieval origins, archaeological excavations have revealed that the area was inhabited as early as the 10th century BC. In recent decades, like many other inland areas of Italy, Bisaccia has been experiencing depopulation.
This small Apennine town is composed of several hamlets and districts. One of them, Oscata (https://maps.app.goo.gl/aQeA8hcLYzYB6qXu6), a rural area whose name recalls the ancient Italic Osci people, gave rise to the initiative known as OscataInVita.
Who are the promoters?
The initiative is led by the association Pro Loco Oscata inVita APS, which was founded to counteract the abandonment of the Bisaccia district. It aims to foster a community-based approach by revitalizing traditional festivals and rituals, promoting local tourism and hospitality, restoring communal spaces, establishing a social vegetable garden, and creating evocative murals.
Who are the beneficiaries?
The direct beneficiaries are the residents of the hamlet of Oscata, in the municipality of Bisaccia. However, the entire village and district are indirectly positively impacted by the project.
How does this initiative engage with climate? Does it address mitigation, adaptation, both, or other dimensions of climate change?
The initiative indirectly addresses climate change by promoting a sustainable lifestyle rooted in a conscious connection with the local environment. A prime example is the community’s approach to waste management. In this relatively isolated area, reusing materials and minimizing waste are central practices. Due to logistical factors (the nearest waste center is 7 km away) and deeply ingrained values passed down through generations, most waste is reused in agricultural production or recycled.
Furthermore, as explored in a Ph.D. dissertation, this community has also established its own energy community, based on the consumption of around twenty-five consumers. A CER envisions a group of participants organizing themselves to locally produce and share energy from renewable sources. It is considered one of the most effective tools for mitigating the effects of climate change, ensuring that energy produced for daily consumption has a lower environmental impact. The dissertation demonstrated that the success of a CER (Community Energy Resource) depends on community cohesion and shared values. Trust and cooperation form the foundation of the agreements needed to identify areas where the surplus energy generated by producer-consumers (the so-called “prosumers”) can be invested. In this regard, the work carried out by the OscatainVita project has provided fertile ground for the implementation of the CER by fostering collaboration and trust.
Additionally, initiatives like the community bakery and the social garden promoted by the association help raise awareness about food sustainability and environmental stewardship, promoting both adaptation to and mitigation of climate change effects.
On a broader scale, this type of project can encourage citizen participation in depopulated areas, such as villages in Italy’s inland regions. Numerous studies highlight that younger generations often leave these areas because they feel excluded from public debates about the possibilities and strategies for remaining in rural contexts.
By showcasing such best practices, the project could inspire young—and even highly qualified—people to return, potentially aiding in the repopulation of mountain areas where climate change and environmental neglect create serious challenges (e.g., abandoned farmland, hydrogeological instability, etc.).
What are the main objectives and values?
According to OscatainVita, the main objective is to keep Oscata alive through the act of “invitation,” seen as the first gesture of hospitality. Through this practice, Oscata inVita has found new ways to trace, rediscover, and highlight its identity to an ever-growing number of curious visitors.
The key values are:
- Solidarity, understood as the necessity and benefit of being together rather than alone.
- A sense of belonging and community, reflected in the shared value systems that have remained unchanged over time and are still embraced by those living in the village.
- Rediscovered identity, understood as the recognition and appreciation of customs and traditions still practiced by local inhabitants throughout the year.
- Educational continuity, seen in the similar values perpetuated over time and passed down from family to family.
What is the timeline? Are there visible effects?
In conversations with the president of the OscatainVita association, Domenico Lapenna, and as confirmed by various media outlets, the initiative began in 2019 with a series of public assemblies aimed at discussing the future of the Oscata site, which was at risk of complete abandonment.
Since its inception in 2019, the Oscata inVita group has defined a series of actions to combat depopulation. Every year, the group has expanded its activity plan, setting new goals and initiatives with the support of its dedicated members.
Oscata, with approximately 25 permanent residents, attracts around 3,000 visitors each year, and the number continues to grow. Many second- and third-generation emigrants are renovating houses for use as second homes, which is currently the most visible effect in the area.
Entrance to the Contrada di Oscata, in the municipality of Bisaccia (Province of Avellino). Photo by the author.
Who are the actors involved? What is their background?
According to Domenico Lapenna, president of the OscatainVita association, “The association involves various types of citizens who engage with the district in different ways: residents, enthusiasts, occasional visitors, holidaymakers, land cultivators, and locals.”
What limitations (institutional, physical, social, etc.) does it face? Are there any shortcomings or critical points? What other issues might arise from its implementation?
The limitations stem from a local culture that is resistant to change and somewhat insular, despite an awareness of the need for transformation. This mindset is often reinforced by outdated and regressive political practices, which prioritize the interests of local political elites over new initiatives, hindering independent projects.
Institutional and social obstacles also arise from the lack of collaboration among political, administrative, and social entities. While civil society quietly appreciates innovations, active support and participation in organizing these initiatives are rare. Often, efforts are reduced to conflicts between different political factions, even when the initiatives are not directly related to electoral competition.
How might this be replicable in other settings?
OscatainVita can be replicated, especially in areas experiencing depopulation and abandonment. The project has potential across Italy’s inland areas, both in the north and south. The initiative emerged primarily to combat the abandonment of a district, where a group of citizens decided to keep the area alive by inviting newcomers to explore their territory. The act of inviting creates a reason to welcome others and maintain vitality. Therefore, the experience is scalable and adaptable to various contexts.
Is this initiative conducive to broader changes (law, institutional arrangements, long-term sustainability, or community preparedness, etc.)? If yes, which?
Oscata inVita has brought together citizens, entrepreneurs, residents, second-home owners, and landowners. In 2024, it proposed a community pact to the Bisaccia municipality, which is currently under review.
Over the past four years, Oscata inVita has achieved the following results:
- Promoted the creation of three ring trails, with signposts and paths marked out by volunteers.
- Reclaimed a piece of land to establish a community garden.
- Restored an ancient communal oven.
- Promoted a literary exploration of the area through short stories and books written by local authors (7 books or short stories). This specific project, called “Oscata Borgo delle Case Narranti” (Oscata, Borough of Storytelling Houses), features audio guides and geo-localized podcasts. Visitors can explore Oscata like an open-air museum using their mobile phones.
- Supported local artists with literary-themed murals and an art gallery focused on the reuse of materials.
- Promoted local dairy and wine industries.
- Organized conferences and literary meetings.
- Fostered connections between young and old generations through workshops on beeswax candle making, basketry, beekeeping, ceramics, and weaving.
- Hosted festivals (linked to the August harvest and September grape harvest) to promote traditional cuisine using produce from the community garden.
- Contributed to the reprinting of two autobiographical books recounting the work, trades, and agricultural activities of the past that inspire the association’s present-day activities.
All of these activities are documented on social media channels dedicated to Oscata’s rural villa
Signage installed by the volunteers of the project to better highlight the recovered areas. Photo by the author.
References:
- Official website: https://www.oscataecomuseo.org/, Facebook page.
- Map localization: Oscata 83044 Bisaccia AV
- ISTAT, Le aree interne tra spopolamento e povertà (2022)
https://www.istat.it/it/files//2022/09/31_ISTAT_MILeS2022_Bianchino_Carbonara_Carucci_Tebala.pdf - OpenPolis, Le aree interne, tra spopolamento e carenza di servizi (2023)
https://www.openpolis.it/le-aree-interne-tra-spopolamento-e-carenza-di-servizi/ - A. Membretti, S.Leone, S. Lucatelli, D. Storti, G.Urso, Voglia di restare Indagine sui giovani nell’Italia dei paesi (2023)
- Corriere dell’Irpinia, Oscata in Vita presenta a Bisaccia il progetto di un Ecomuseo delle Cucine Rurali dell’Alta Irpinia (2024)
- Orticalab, A Oscata un ecomuseo di cultura e comunità, il primo in Irpinia (2024)
- Corriere dell’Irpinia, Oscata in Vita rilancia, dall’Ecomuseo a laboratori, studi sperimentali e tipicità (2024)
- AvellinoToday, Il caso Oscata, da comunità rurale a comunità energetica rinnovabile (2024)
- ViaggiOff, Oscata chiama il mondo: il caso del “mini borgo” che sogna in grande (2023)
- L. Troiano, Intervista a Domenico Lapenna presidente di Oscata inVita APS (2024)
