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Weaning is the biocultural process of introducing solid food at the end of the infant’s nursing phase during early infancy. Anthropologists collected extensive ethnographic examples of weaning practices in different societies, although a comprehensive, comparative analysis on the subject is still to be accomplished. In this article, the author proposes to take a step in the direction of an “anthropology of weaning” by bringing together the traditions of studies on nutrition and childhood and focusing his interest on the transformations of infant feeding related to the experience of migration. After introducing the weaning process from an anthropopoietic perspective, the article presents a critical analysis of some interviews collected thanks to an interdisciplinary project developed in Turin, involving a team of anthropologists and paediatricians. The conclusions of the contribution concern the interweaving of cultural, social, economic and political aspects that influence the change of weaning practices in immigrant families.

The phenomenon of social remittances has been investigated by authors of a vast literature who have also subjected to critical analysis the link between migration and development. The present paper explores the case of the Republic of Moldova in the context of south-eastern Europe, a region characterized by consolidated emigration that has generated a great flow of financial and social remittances over the years. Through multi-location research conducted in Italy and in Moldova, our goal is to analyse social remittances at the level of 'ideas' and the level of 'practices', discussing the conditions that have produced socioeconomic change in the localities of departure. This will show how this change does not always reflect the model of economic and social development sustained by international organizations and the European Union in the Eastern Partnership area.

The relationship between social remittances, integration patterns and intergenerational transmission has been the subject of several studies across Europe. This article aims to explore the complex links between migration, social inclusion abroad and social remittances between several generations of Moldovan migrants in Italy. The production of social remittances incorporates many variables: the exposure to remittances migrants had during their childhood in Moldova, the family relationships and the degree of involvement in collective initiatives. We took into consideration three dimensions: remittances’ directionality, including reverse social remittances, the role in the exchange (sender or receiver) and the intensity of exposure/involvement. Our analysis indicates that there is a difference in transnational behaviours between the first migrants and the new generation. Parents are often trapped in occupational and socially segregated niches, while their children have opportunities to develop greater social mobility and to strengthen cosmopolitan affiliations. Young people raised in Italy, compared to their parents, have more opportunities for meaningful social contacts that can be translated into innovative ideas in Moldova.

L’articolo presenta i risultati di un’indagine etnografica relativa ai progetti di accoglienza di richiedenti asilo e rifugiati messi in atto dalla Chiesa Cattolica in Italia, nel caso specifico della Diocesi di Torino. Si tratta di un’accoglienza diffusa, realizzata per lo più da parrocchie dislocate in comuni medio-piccoli della provincia, che pone numerosi interrogativi rispetto al rapporto tra migranti, territorio e società ospitante. Le interviste e le osservazioni raccolte sul campo permettono al contempo di sviluppare una più ampia riflessione sulle ambiguità della “ragione umanitaria”, nei termini concepiti da Didier Fassin. This article presents the results of an ethnographic survey on the reception projects for asylum seekers and refugees implemented by the Catholic Church in Italy, in the specific case of the Diocese of Turin. It is a kind of ‘widespread reception’, mostly carried out by parishes in small and medium-sized municipalities of the Turin province, which raises many questions regarding the relationship between migrants, the territory and hosting society. Interviews and field-notes collected during the research can contribute to develop a broader reflection on the ambiguities of "humanitarian reason", in the terms conceived by Didier Fassin.