Next Generation Prato: scientific supervision for the PNRR local strategy in the Municipality of Prato
With the Next Generation Prato, the document outlining strategies and projects to exploit the opportunities offered by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), the Municipality of Prato continues its process towards ecological, digital and circular transition. The document Next Generation Prato is the result of a participatory work, which stems from the permanent working tables of Prato Circular City and involves different actors from the productive, social and academic sectors. The document is a first example at national level not only because it identifies a strategy and presents 24 projects ready to be launched, but also because the Municipality activated a collaboration with academics to ensure the scientific supervision of the whole strategy. The Municipality of Prato involved Leonardo Borsacchi and Daniela Tacconi from ARCO’s Circular Innovation and Sustainable Commodities Unit to accompany the document elaboration and the drafting of the project ideas.
Next Generation Prato: towards the ecological, digital and circular transition
The 24 projects included in the document, divided according to the missions outlined by the PNRR and linked to the 17 SDGs of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, demonstrate the will to promote major concrete changes in Prato: by fostering circular economy practices in the textile production district, the city will be able to become a European hub for fabrics recycling; promoting the urban reforestation project, the city will be able to reduce its CO2 production levels and new local infrastructure projects will give new momentum to sustainable mobility.
The identified projects stems from the the work of Prato Circular City and its permanent tables, which have worked to create projects based on the real needs of the city’s main stakeholders. PCC is a project of the Municipality of Prato that takes the form of a Smart Living Lab to encourage sharing and participation in order to identify concrete actions able to generate a significant impact on the transition of the city and the local productive district towards the circular economy.
Scientific Supervision
ARCO’s Circular Innovation & Sustainable Commodities Unit was involved to take care of the scientific supervision of the whole document and in particular to identify the strategy behind the Next Generation Prato. The Unit has retraced the 6 missions outlined by the PNRR to reinterpret them in a strategic key for Prato and its textile district, considering both the projects on digitalisation, circular economy and social innovation already underway and the potential ones. The latter are, thus, the ones that have been included in the NGP document.
The Circular Innovation & Sustainable Commodities Unit has also been involved to outline the PCC’s methodology and to ensure the scientific and technical supervision of the permanent tables results and propositions.
Read more on our Circular Innovation & Sustainable Commodities Unit