Margini di rigenerazione. Laboratorio di antropologia applicata in territori interni

This article reflects on the concept and the learning outcomes of the second edition of the Summer School of the Italian Society of Applied Anthropology (SIAA), which will take place in September 2025 in Castel del Giudice (Molise, Italy). Rather than a simple training initiative, the Scuola di ri-gener-azione – #appenninoincammino is conceived as a laboratory of/for applied anthropology, examining the intersections between regeneration processes and public engagement in inner and marginal areas through an immersive learning experience. Drawing on ethnographic practice, participatory methods, and interdisciplinary collaboration, this edition explores how processes of territorial regeneration intertwine with community welfare, creative industries, and ecological transition. It focuses on the role of anthropology in understanding the complexity of the dynamics related to the cooperation of multiple actors—local administrations, cooperatives, enterprises, and residents—while questioning conventional measures of success in regeneration policies, proposing an ethnography of friction and fracture as a productive lens to reimagine alternative futures for fragile rural territories.