Preview Book

3.3.9 Leila Bologna

The problem addressed: We live a world ruled by logic consumerism and individualism but we don't want objects and possesions to be the most important things in peoples' lives. By putting people and their lives back in a central position, giving objects the right value and humanizing the idea of trade, a small cultural revolution get started that invest in citizens' daily habits and the concept of buying and posessing.

The culture of sharing can be an important instrument in the process of giving back a renewed center to the inhabitants of towns, pushing them to cooperate with each otherin order to solve the challenges of socities and everyday life. Challenges that have been generated by a crisis that is not only an economic crisis but also a crisis of values.

The good practice: Leila-Bologna is the first "Object-library" in Italy.

it is a place where people can borrow objects, so they don't have to buy them. A place where the process of sharing things with strangers become the opportunity to socialize and to exchange past experiences.

This is how Leila-Bologna works: people who want to join the project bring an object they want to share and after having their membership card, they can borrow any object that have been shared by all the other members.

Evidence of succes: Thanks to the offer of particular (and often expensive) objects for free, Leila-Bologna improves the quality of life for citizens, as it increases the number of opportunities and gives the possibiity to iive an experiences that otherwise wouldn't have been possible.

In particular, Leila-Bologna procides

  • Economic advantages, since people don't have to buy objects they will use only a few times
  • Environmental and ecologic advantages thanks to the possibiity of sharing things, people will buy less things and will produce less packaging and less waste
  • Cultural advantages, because citizens will have the opportunity to reflect on the quality of relations.

Finally, Leila-Bologna gives the possibility to try an object before buying it, so the purchase can be more aware and useful.

For more information: Facebook: Leila-Bologna