Migrants’ activism for development: challenges and opportunities to sustainable agricultural development in Italy

This qualitative case-study highlights the importance of the phenomenon of migration, under the aspect of civic activism of migrants, and its impact on Italian agricultural sustainable development. Migrants are too often seen as a burden rather than active agents of development. The present research investigates how political activism of migrants develops and eventually affects the sustainable development of the sector. It also focuses on the reason behind Italian workers inhibition towards protests against exploitation and indecent working conditions, in the agricultural fields. It analyses past protests, captures the voices of immigrants and local activists and their consequences on sustainable development. The results suggest that immigrant civic activism, even if limited in size, enhances development under different perspectives, particularly taking into consideration two arameters: Sustainable Development Goals 8 and 10. The strength of this study, is the added value of a spotlight on the differences between social groups in agricultural work exploitation, in this case natives and migrants. Through the investigation on their living and working conditions, the reasons which push them to collaborate or be in conflict in their activism for social change emerge.