The democracy of the sun: Naples East: A just transition?
The eastern periphery of Naples, spanning Ponticelli, Barra, and surrounding areas, is a territory defined by profound structural contradictions. Historically an industrial and agricultural hub, it now bears the scars of deindustrialisation, illegal dumping, unremediated contamination, and systemic neglect.
This area exemplifies what several speakers termed “environmental violence”: a pattern in which economic marginalisation and ecological degradation mutually reinforce one another. Institutions are perceived as absent or complicit, leading to deep distrust and political disengagement among residents.
Our workshop, fieldwork, and the citizen assembly gathered in Naples from November 25 to December 5, 2025, has been a laboratory for a just transition. The central insight is that neither protest nor project alone is sufficient.
The discussions revealed two distinct, yet potentially complementary, approaches to confronting this reality:
The critical-structural perspective
Advocated by Casa del Popolo, Comitati Barra Resiste/Napoli Est.
- Focuses on historical memory and systemic injustice
- Argues that talking about “energy transition” or “urban regeneration” is hypocritical without first addressing root causes: contamination, corporate abandonment, and the failure of public remediation
- Emphasises collective identity and worker heritage as foundations for mobilisation
- Rejects piecemeal solutions that distract from the need for large-scale environmental justice and institutional accountability
The agency-oriented, bottom-up perspective
Championed by Maestri di Strada and others.
- Focuses on building concrete alternatives from below, citing the failure of top-down models
- Sees potential in existing resources: public schools, urban gardens, and, above all, youth and community networks
- Views energy communities (CERs) as both pedagogical tools and mechanisms for economic empowerment
- Stresses personal and community responsibility (e.g., the parable of the hummingbird) as a counter to paralysis
As Alice, from Maestri di Strada pointed out, despite widespread abandonment, Naples East holds a specific priority and privilege: the sun rises in the east. This means that Naples East is the first area to receive sunlight, and this potential should be used as effectively as possible.
In contrast, Salvio de Comitato, Popolare Zone Est-Napoli, who lives in San Giovanni a Teduccio, a suburb of Naples and one of the most polluted areas of Europe, argues that believing small energy communities can create meaningful transformation is unrealistic in a system marked by toxic waste, unenforced laws, and structural abandonment, conditions that have resulted in at least one cancer patient in almost every family
Despite challenges, several assets and opportunities were identified:
- Dense networks of associations (Casa del Popolo, Maestri di Strada, former Whirlpool workers)
- Educational Spaces: Schools as hubs for STEM workshops and civic engagement
- Emerging Economic Models: The Italian Green Factory (ex-Whirlpool) as a potential model for green industrial reconversion with worker re-employment
- Youth Population: A demographic resource whose energy and creativity can be channeled into community-led transition
- Agricultural Heritage: Urban gardens (orti) as sites of ecological knowledge and food sovereignty
During the visual storytelling workshop, we discussed how video activism and environmental action can be brought together. At the core of video activism lies the desire for change and transformation, and the intention to actively participate in building the world we want, in line with our values and goals.
The central aim of the video is to pursue transformation internally, in a way that aligns with the expectations and needs of the participants involved in the participatory video process.
Rather than offering a singular solution, the film seeks to create a shared space of reflection, where personal responsibility, collective memory, and systemic critique coexist and inform one another.
Videos and images: workshop, fieldwork, and the citizen assembly
Green Energies on the Ground Across the Mediterranean: Napoli part one
This video introduces the founding of Maestri di Strada and provides a brief history of the Ponticelli area (in Naples) where we are located, including references to the earthquakes and the partisan movement. In addition, there is a brief information on the institution’s stages in transitioning toward energy transition. There is a hopeful approach emerging from community-based organising.
