6/8/2024
Chometemporary

A new way of thinking about the world: thinking with bread

A new way of thinking about the world: thinking with bread

Those who know us know that we at Tirelli&Partners are staunch supporters of initiatives that generate a positive impact on the community. When we discovered MotherProject, The School of Bread and Places through the City of Milan's civic crowdfunding campaign, we were deeply impressed by their mission and innovative approach. Supporting their campaign not only allowed us to contribute to the project, but also to participate in a team-building day that was different from the usual: we experienced firsthand the ritual of collective baking, reinforcing our values and understanding even more the importance of supporting initiatives like this.

Pictured is Silvia Rota, a MadreProject student, who explains the art of bread making with sourdough and teaches us the ingredients, amounts and methodologies of bread dough.

We interviewed Andrea Perini, co-founder of the project, to let him tell us about the idea, vision and mission of MadreProject.

"Good morning Andrea, tell us what is MadreProject and how did this project come about?"

Good morning everyone! MadreProject, School of Bread and Places, is an initiative born in Milan in the Chiaravalle neighborhood-burg. Our mission is to train a new generation of women bread entrepreneurs who are capable ofregenerating cities and activating communities. The project was born thanks to Terzo Paesaggio ETS, a nonprofit organization that focuses on culturally based urban regeneration, and has seen the collaboration of partners such as Avanzi S.p.A. S.B., a benefit company with 25 years of experience in sustainability and innovative urban projects; a|cube, a social impact startup accelerator; and Davide Longoni, a master baker and co-founder of the P.A.U. Panificatori Agricoli Urbani movement, the first national network of agricultural bakers. Initially, we started with experiments that allowed us to grow into an ever-expanding learning community.

"What have been the milestones of your journey so far?"

Since 2018, every year in October, we sow 10 hectares of agricultural fields to produce Milan's first city bread. In February, however, we dedicate ourselves to planting trees for CO2 sequestration in our agroforestry Grain Library, located 5 km from the Duomo. In addition, we have a mobile bread laboratory container that is available in Chiaravalle or other locations for collective baking rituals, small and large events.

Container laboratory

"We know that you have also inaugurated a master's program. Can you tell us about the educational program?"

Certainly. We opened our first Master's program in September 2023. The course is spread over six months and consists of six practical-theoretical weekends, seven online theoretical classes in the evening hours, and three intensive weeks. Each training moment is focused on three main themes: Bread, Territory and Enterprise. The teaching approach is strongly influenced by the experience of Davide Longoni and all the actors in the agricultural and artisan supply chain, from growers to millers, from bakers to consumers.

"What is the impact you hope to achieve with MotherProject?"

We hope to inspire, support and accelerate a process of change that is already underway. We want to create a network of artisan farm bread stores that can offer social, cultural and educational services to local communities. Our goal is to connect people through bread, fostering urban regeneration processes and creating sustainable social impact businesses. We have already trained 13 bakers as part of our Master's program, and next October we will open a new bread store in Milazzo.

"What are the next steps for MotherProject?"

We will continue to expand our learning community and engage organizations interested in supporting our social and enterprise experiments. We are excited to continue working with artists, experts and professionals from various fields to further our mission. In addition, we are developing new collaborations and projects to broaden our impact and reach a wider audience.

For information. MotherProject The School of Bread and Places.:

www.madreproject.org

madreproject@terzopaesaggio.org

Andrea Perini

T: 3294113807

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