Social agriculture initiatives demonstrate the huge potential for fostering environmental sustainability and for citizens forming social ties with the local area. The team at the Guinardó Social Servicies Centre started a project in March by the name of ‘Anem a l’hort’ (Let’s go to the allotment), the goal being to introduce ten users at the centre to activity at the local cultivation patch.

Participants learn to work the land for self-consumption purposes, taking part in a community project based on social empowerment and equal relationships between people. In addition, they improve their diet and social skills and regain their enthusiasm for getting involved in what is around them. The group is varied in terms of age, sex and nationality, made up of people who for various reasons are going through a tough time and have approached the centres in search of new resources. One example is the case of Joel, whose story we tell in this video.

‘Anem a l’hort’ is part of the community vision of the work of local social services in Barcelona. The goal is to foster the autonomy and well-being of people and to strengthen social and care networks in the area.