Elisa Fornero
Degree in social work
Social worker Project Manager , Cooperativa Sociale Alice ONLUS , Neutravel Project
Turin - ITALY
About
Elisa Fornero has been working as outreach worker since 2010 and from 2015 she is coordinating Neutravel Project and she is been contributing in the Italian drug checking development. She's been attending free parties since 1999. Member of NEWNet and TEDI, member of the Italian Network of harm reduction (ITARDD) and CNCA. She also works as a teacher for NHS and NGO professionals and she's a tutor in practice learning at the University of Turin, social work degree course.
HARM REDUCTION IN ITALIAN “FREE PARTY” SETTINGS: THE ONGOING PROCESS FOR A JOINT ACTION
Harm reduction in free party settings in Italy started from the grassroots. Lab 57 was the main promoter, since 90s, of an integrated intervention where harm reduction workers were organizers (Bologna street rave parades) or strictly working with sound systems, to create a safer environment in a free party (Labirintz decade -2016).
From the 1st decade of 2000, harm reduction in free party settings was carried out also from the so called “institutional” projects and organisations. The dialogue between the militant part and the institutional one has not been easy, since different ways of intervening were blocking a dialogue and a joint action, despite the objective was the same: guarantee health and well being of partygoers.
In summer 2021 the 1st step for a better cooperation was done, in a big summer teknival. The process to create a national outreach network to intervene in illegal raves begun and from that point, many joint interventions were carried out.
The process of cooperation is still ongoing. In this presentation we will focus on the strengths and weaknesses of this process and joint action, giving a view to cooperation between national and international projects, the importance of the dissemination and sharing, to improve and update one another's practices. This is also in terms of dealing with organizers, local authorities and media, on how to raise awareness on the issue of gender-based violence as well as how to counteract the stigma on free parties.
