Presented at Teatro Pavone, the new edition was unveiled. Certificates were awarded to the protagonists of 2025. Mayor Ferdinandi and Councillor Stafisso: “Taking care of the city has become a shared asset of the community”
 

Perugia is preparing to host the second edition of the Week of Guardianship, scheduled from 14 to 20 September 2026—an initiative dedicated to the care of common goods, civic participation, and the enhancement of the local area through collaboration among citizens, institutions, associations, and businesses.

The new edition, presented at Teatro Pavone by Luca Ginetto, editor-in-chief of Tgr Umbria, also served as a moment to thank the protagonists of the first edition. During the event, certificates were awarded to citizens, schools, associations, neighborhood committees, and companies that contributed to the success of the 2025 edition.

The numbers from the first edition highlight the scale of the initiative: over 500 participants, 22 neighborhoods involved, more than 60 local organizations engaged, and 46 interventions carried out across over 40 municipal areas through cleaning, maintenance, urban decor, and regeneration activities.
 

For 2026, the project continues to grow, with the involvement of new neighborhoods, greater participation from schools, and a program enriched with cultural initiatives and opportunities for public engagement.

The network of promoters is also expanding. Alongside the Municipality of Perugia and the Brunello and Federica Cucinelli Foundation, the Conservatory “Francesco Morlacchi” and the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape of Umbria have joined the initiative.
 

Mayor Vittoria Ferdinandi emphasized how the Week of Guardianship has evolved into a wide-ranging exercise in community-building, capable of engaging hundreds of people and strengthening the sense of belonging to the city. “Guardianship means not only taking care of what exists, but leaving places better than we found them. The beauty and care of public spaces generate relationships, shared responsibility, and social cohesion. This initiative has become a model that places the community at its core and also represents a tangible response to the isolation and fragility affecting contemporary society.”

The Rector of the University of Perugia, Massimiliano Marianelli, highlighted the cultural value of guardianship as a responsibility toward places, relationships, and collective memory. “Taking care of the spaces we inhabit also means safeguarding the past and keeping its dialogue with the present alive. For this reason, the University will continue to support the initiative, promoting a culture of care as a fundamental element of community life.”

The Rector of the University for Foreigners, Francesco Asdrubali, recalled the involvement of Italian and international students in activities carried out in Parco Santa Margherita. “The experience had significant educational value, allowing students to contribute concretely to the city that hosts them. The Week of Guardianship strengthens that network of relationships and participation that makes communities more inclusive, welcoming, and resilient.”

Also present was Carolina Cucinelli, who announced the dates of the new edition. “After last year’s success, we want the Week of Guardianship to increasingly become an opportunity to experience the city’s spaces together, as well as to care for them. We invite all citizens to contribute ideas, energy, and participation to make the 2026 edition even richer and more engaging.”
 

Satisfaction was also expressed by Councillor for Economic Development Andrea Stafisso, who noted the project’s steady growth. “The results of the first edition demonstrated the strong willingness of Perugia’s citizens to get involved for the common good. With new partners, new neighborhoods, greater school participation, and an expanded cultural program, the Week of Guardianship confirms itself as a virtuous model of collaboration between institutions and citizens.”

Giovanni Delogu spoke on behalf of the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape of Umbria, conveying greetings from Director Francesca Valentini and announcing the institution’s contribution through awareness and information activities. “We will provide citizens with guidance on required authorizations and best practices for the maintenance of cultural heritage, with the aim of increasing awareness of the value and protection of the widespread heritage that characterizes our region.”
 

Marco Lena, Director of the “Francesco Morlacchi” Conservatory of Music in Perugia, expressed satisfaction with the institution’s inclusion in the project:
“We are especially pleased to become part of the Week of Guardianship, an initiative that represents not only care for places, but also a powerful example of unity, collaboration, and participation—values that are deeply rooted in the world of music, where achieving a common goal is only possible by working together in the same direction. As a Conservatory, we are daily engaged in the guardianship and transmission of cultural heritage through the education of new generations, as well as through artistic production and research. We want to help make the city even more vibrant by bringing music, culture, and opportunities for gathering into community spaces. Today, research also extends into the fields of social innovation and urban regeneration, areas in which the artistic and musical world can offer an important contribution to territorial development and citizens’ well-being.”

Vice President of the Regional Government Tommaso Bori, sharing the vision of President Stefania Proietti and the entire Regional Executive, recalled the Region’s collaboration with the Municipality of Perugia through the Urban Agenda program, which includes sustainable and inclusive urban transformation projects in the neighborhoods of Sant’Erminio and San Sisto, as well as interventions funded by the Development and Cohesion Fund, with significant investments impacting the city—particularly for Teatro Turreno and Piazza Partigiani—always in coordination with the municipal administration. Moreover, in full alignment with the principles of the Week of Guardianship, the Umbria Region has implemented, for the first time, the Art Bonus measure, launching the process for the first identified asset and compiling a list of priority public cultural heritage sites on which to activate the measure. A central aspect for citizens’ lives is also the Region’s ongoing effort to reclaim public spaces in the city’s most strategic district, Fontivegge, through the acquisition of premises within the area below Palazzo Broletto, the main hub for regional offices. These spaces will be dedicated to culture and administrative strengthening, reimagining urban areas in line with the words of Danish architect and urbanist Jan Gehl: “first life, then spaces, then buildings.”
 

Giovanni Parapini, Director of Rai’s regional headquarters for Umbria, confirmed the renewal of the partnership with the Week of Guardianship for the 2026 edition, underscoring its national significance.

“Rai will continue to support this project which, born in Umbria, has become a model for other Italian contexts as well. Through the ‘Ripartiamo dai territori’ initiative, we have helped promote an experience that goes beyond the simple care of public spaces: the Week of Guardianship embodies and promotes fundamental values such as participation, solidarity, responsibility, and social cohesion. In a complex time marked by divisions and inequalities, initiatives like this represent a concrete and positive response. For this reason, I congratulate the Municipality of Perugia, the Brunello and Federica Cucinelli Foundation, and all the associations involved for creating a project capable of becoming an example for other cities and regions across the country.”
 

In the coming months, the detailed program of initiatives and participation guidelines for the 2026 Week of Guardianship will be announced.