The project proposes a portrait of Rome as a ludic (relating to or characterized by play; playful) city by analyzing the presence or absence of public spaces dedicated to play and sport. Roma Ludica seeks to broadly yet not exhaustively reflect on both conventional and unconventional playgrounds integrated into Rome’s social and urban fabric. This reflection will be supported by gathering data from a wide range of urban stakeholders, including citizens, nonprofit organizations, professionals, social centers, and institutions. Considering the value of these spaces as nonremunerative “productive resources” and their impact on the city’s social and urban structure, my project will investigate these sites for interaction, creativity, psychophysical well-being, and democratic engagement.

Roma Ludica aims to contribute to worldwide research based on contemporary city models conceived as vast playgrounds: dynamic ensemble projects of spaces for leisure and well-being that create, at the scale of urban observation, patterns capable of embracing and encouraging the most plural human expressions, both individual and collective.

Furthermore, as part of Roma Ludica, I will develop a proposal for a linear playground within Mandrione (Municipio VII, Rome), located in the traffic-free zone near the disused Casilina railway station. This place, already informally repurposed for recreation, provides essential services for the neighborhood, fostering conditions for a community-based intervention of peacemaking promoted by the city of Rome and the American Academy in Rome.