Social Practices in the Commons

The regeneration of the commons occurs through direct involvement of groups of people who interact closely with spaces and who aim to improve the overall quality of life and experiences connected with those spaces. This process starts from an increased consciousness towards places that do not belong to the private realm but are public or can potentially be used by the civic society. Revealing the commons means being aware of the potentialities of these “hidden places” to not only connect people with them, but for people to also create a sense of community and owner- ship among themselves that was previously unknown. By showing best practices developed by the Polimi DESIS Lab in the city of Milan and its surroundings, this paper reveals: how design relates to this process; the relationship between the time of involvement and the effectiveness of the result; the short- and long-term impacts of these interventions; and the legacy of the regeneration, including both failures and successes.