Community-based processes and collaborative networks for social integration: an experience in Polígono del Valle Neighborhood, Jaen (Spain)

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on one of the main axes that must be developed by inclusion strategies: the improvement of disadvantaged people's community participation and integration. In the first part, general aspects of social participation in inclusion projects are revised. Indicative data about the reduced effective contribution of different social actors to this axis are also provided. In the second part, the project “Community of Neighbourhood” is presented as an experience of inclusióon. In this project, the local community has been integrated into a network, involving local NGOs, public administrations, citizen movements, formal and informal social fabric, low-income populations, and people in difficulty as a result of the economic crisis. The history of citizen involvement and the politicization of the neighborhood where it is carried out, together with social innovation through participatory actions and collaborative work between professionals and citizens, are the cornerstone of this successful experience which builds a real pathway towards community inclusion for low-income people, showing a different way to work, far from neo-charity practices or services privatizations.