Shared lessons: the importance of learning and changing together

In the ongoing discourse about ecological transition, several unyielding pillars come to the forefront: the ideology of growth, the central role of business and the market, the defense of the Western lifestyle, unwavering faith in technology, depoliticization, and a technocratic inclination - all underpinned by a fundamental anthropocentrism. Within the confines of this predetermined framework lie the proposals and official policies. The crux of the matter is that genuine socioecological transformation is unattainable within this scope. What is being presented is not a transition project but rather an adaptation and conservation - an endorsement of a "green" capitalism. It is imperative, therefore, to carve out space for novel questions and perspectives, to venture beyond habitual trajectories, and to nurture new "heresies" around which to conceive and facilitate a comprehensive socio-ecological transformation. What we urgently need are "shared lessons" - experiences of collective self-learning, the establishment of spaces and contexts for intergenerational and interdisciplinary exchanges, between formal and informal learning and knowledges, between human and non-human beings. Therefore, in this contribution, starting from the insights gained from some experiences of critical consumption and contemporary social movements, such as the Bilanci di Giustizia Association and Landless Rural Workers Movement, the transformative and prefigurative nature of these initiatives will be highlighted. Indeed, while on one hand, consuming and producing food sustainably constitutes a direct action against climate change and the depletion of ecosystems, on the other hand, these initiatives imply a clear pedagogical element aimed at shaping a citizenship that transcends boundaries and lays the foundations for an ecological and global citizenship based on the principles of care, fostering good relations between generations, living and non-living beings, as well as diverse identities and genders.