Aperitivo Migrante – October 29, 7 pm – Jigeenyi

Since Scienza Migrante 2.0 is a project based in Turin, we try to bring you around the city’s neighbourhoods to discover gathering and community places through our events. This time, we have decided to take you to the Porta Palazzo area, a neighbourhood where migrant communities from all over the world live and work side by side. In particular, we are taking you to Borgo Dora, a historic district that was once located on the outskirts of the city and is now famous for hosting the Balon flea market where, if you look hard enough, you can find just what you are looking for. It is in one of these streets that we will host our next Aperitivo Migrante. 

Where and when?

Wednesday, October 29th at 7:00 pm at Jigeenyi, a social bar and restaurant on Via Borgo Dora 3/o. 

Managed by the Renken ETS Association – which has been promoting a decolonial, anti-racist and trans-feminist cooperation between Italy and Senegal since 2006 – Jigeenyi is also a social project for women’s empowerment and a cultural centre. In Wolof – language spoken in Gambia, Mauritania, and Senegal – women translates as Jigeenyi which offers training, social support, and job placement to people experiencing socioeconomic vulnerability.

A place dedicated to building community where its warm atmosphere is perfect for welcoming the migrant scientists featured in the stories we publish, who have decided to migrate to Italy to pursue their studies, research or careers. Their experiences are varied, each is unique and special, but they all share a passion for their work or field of research. The Aperitivo Migrante, is the perfect opportunity to hear four of these stories firsthand.

The Aperitivo Migrante is an informal and interactive evening of sharing, during which you will also be tested. Through a quiz proposed directly by the protagonists of the evening, you will have to answer questions about their countries of origin or areas of research, with fantastic project gadgets up for grabs.

Jordi and the duo Jack and Lo Smilzo will host the evening, in collaboration with RKH Studio and it will all begin with a free aperitif and, at Jigeenyi, African and Afro-descendant cuisines take centre stage. How about sampling typical West African drinks and dishes from Senegal, Congo, Morocco, and Gambia?

The evening will also be introduced by Ufficio Pastorale Migranti, a Scienza Migrante 2.0 project partner. You will know about its history and its activities aimed at welcoming and integrating people, families and migrant communities on the territory. 

They will tell you a little about their history and their projects of activities they organise to welcome and include migrants, their families and communities.

On October 29, you will meet: 

• Faiza Bouhaleb, who initially arrived in Italy from Morocco for a short research collaboration in the field of oncological hadron therapy, then moved permanently to pursue her PhD and research activities. Today she has founded her own company and, even though she has been living in Italy for years, her bond with her country is unique and strong, and she often returns there to recharge her batteries; 
• Paula Serrao, history and civics teacher in Argentina, moved to Italy to be with her partner. Here he is a research fellow in Education Sciences and finds it incredible to be able to live solely from her research. Her country, who she greatly misses, is present in her research activity and this allows her to have fruitful confrontations between her Italian and Argentinian colleagues. A great cultural exchange; 
• Oleksii Skorokhod, originally from Ukraine, he is now both a university professor and researcher. He teaches courses in biochemistry and natural sciences and, at the same time, conducts research on malaria to gain a deeper understanding of how it works. Although he has been living in Italy for over twenty years, he believes that one ‘s  country of origin should never be abandoned. He returns there as often as he can even though now, it is more difficult than ever.  

We look forward to seeing many of you there!