Ileana Toscano

Summary

I am an urban facilitator, passionate about community planning and social innovation to foster positive changes in cities, taking care that none is left behind. In my 19 years in the profession I have worked on several international and national projects, developing sound skills in applying innovative participatory methods for engaging with multi-level stakeholders and supporting the learning and experimenting processes for urban environments at local and transnational level.

My profound interest in inclusive urban planning and my experience in this sector led me in 2006 to be a founding member of Kallipolis, a non-profit organisation based in Trieste (Italy), dealing with sustainable urban development, inspired by the principles of the United Nations Habitat Agenda. As Kallipolis’ boarding team member (and president from 2006 to February 2020) I have designed, monitored and coordinated several cooperation projects, funded through international, cross-border or transnational cooperation on urban sustainable development in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ecuador, France, Vietnam, Argentina, Albania, Lebanon, Croatia, Slovenia and Italy. In the implementation of these projects, which all had an urban development focus, I worked with Local Authorities, NGOs and civil society organisations.

In addition to my work at Kallipolis, I have been engaged as a urban expert in several international projects, carried out by Municipalities, non-governmental and governmental organisations and Universities in Ecuador, Algeria, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and several EU Countries. Among others I have had the opportunity to work for UN-Habitat in Cambodia, Urban Innovative Actions, in Almeria (Spain), the Council of Europe in Bosnia and Herzegovina and URBACT in several EU cities.

From 2018 to 2022 I worked as a lead expert for the Transfer Network, Playful Paradigm (URBACT III), where I experimented with the huge potential of the URBACT method for supporting cities in boosting innovation and integrated urban development by involving citizens and local stakeholders. I am keen to continue the collaboration with URBACT for supporting European cities in co-designing and co-realising urban interventions to ensure equal opportunities and the inclusion of vulnerable people to improve cities livability.