At Oltremani we promote a narrative of migration that moves away from the language of “emergencies” and is instead grounded in dignity and closeness. We encourage relationships between local people, refugees and migrants, based on sharing time, spaces and experiences as a way to build welcoming communities for everyone.
Opening your home means welcoming people who, after leaving the state reception system, need to build their future without doing it alone. Any of us can be “family”, regardless of age, nationality or formal ties. Welcoming someone is not simply providing food and shelter, but it is sharing daily life, spaces and needs, and building a path together towards autonomy in housing and work.
Relationships grow as people pursue concrete goals together – studying for a driving licence, improving their Italian or preparing a CV. Other times, the goal is simply to spend time together. These shared moments of everyday life become relationships where giving and receiving happen in equal measure.
Each local organisation, according to its own context and the needs of its area, develops activities in collaboration with other third-sector organisations, universities and institutions. We promote language courses and after-school programmes, multicultural workshops, sports tournaments and community dinners. These are opportunities for meeting and conviviality, where people can feel part of a single community: the places we share.
As a network, Oltremani Italia supports and amplifies the mobilisations and advocacy campaigns promoted by each association to raise awareness of human and civil rights, hospitality and multiculturalism. Everything Oltremani does is a translation of our values into everyday practice, to foster civic participation and encouraging people to take an active role in shaping the communities where we live.
