FLAGSHIP PROGRAMMES
National Network
Italy
Address
contrada testa dell'acquaCountry
City
notoProvince
SRMobile Phone
+37120123466Telephone
+37120123466E-Mail (2)
mark.redmonkeylodge@gmail.comWebsite
Click HereYear of Establishment
2024Contact Person1
Mark DielerJob Title 1
general secretary and partnership managerContact Person 2
salvuccio iaconoJob Title 2
treasurerOrganisation Type
Non-Governmental OrganizationFields of Activity
Arts, Democracy and community development, Environment/Sustainable development, International/Cultural relationsGeneral Information
The non-profit cultural association "Meraki Testa Dell'Acqua" was registered in August 2024 to organise cultural initiatives for its members of the local community in rural Sicily.
The founding members have extensive international experience with event curation, organisation, community and network building
Currently no full time staff is employed and the association is run by a core group of a dozen volunteers and the over 300 members focus on various activities with different workgroups.
Meraki Testa Dell Acqua is a place for artistic residencies, multidisciplinary collaborations, and a project incubator.
Partners range from local organisations to international stakeholders from the cultural ecosystem.
Mission and Objectives
We provide a welcoming, safe space for artists and creatives — a place to simply be present and focused, free from distraction. Here, we offer time, space, and a supportive environment that nurtures creative freedom, integrity, and mental-well-being. We believe that such grounding is fundamental to meaningful artistic work.
Our core activity is to develop projects at the intersection of culture and agriculture, rooted in the Mediterranean region, in recognition that the Mediterranean is fundamentally one region, one people — diverse yet interconnected. Through residencies and wide-ranging collaborations, we seek to amplify the positive narrative of migration: highlighting how migration has brought wealth, knowledge-sharing and exchange throughout the Mediterranean. At the same time, we point to the emerging challenge of youth out-migration and rural abandonment in Mediterranean rural areas, and aim to respond through culturally-led, agrarian-anchored creative initiatives.
In doing so, we align with ALF’s values of equality and respect for diversity, solidarity and empathy, and accountability and transparency.
By joining the ALF network, we commit to contributing to intercultural dialogue, creating meaningful partnerships across the Euro-Mediterranean region, and promoting inclusive, creative, cross-sectoral action that bridges culture, agriculture, migration and regional identity.
Main Projects / Activities
We organise art residencies through the newly established network we are co-founders of : AMARI – Mediterranean Rural Art Residencies, which brings together rural residency sites across the Mediterranean region to offer artists dedicated space and time in rural settings.
In collaboration with the Sicily Music Conference, we act as an international connector and creative breeding ground, facilitating new interdisciplinary collaborations among musicians, visual artists, rural communities and are developing a collaboration with Athens Music Week, Babel XP in Marseille and Visa For Music in Rabat.
We host a monthly farmers’ market in the village, creating a dynamic interface between local producers, residents and visiting creatives — promoting local agro-culture while strengthening community ties and intercultural exchange.
We run regular community-focused events such as concerts, workshops, cinema nights and performances, offering opportunities for local people and visiting artists to engage, co-create and enjoy shared cultural experiences rooted in Mediterranean identity and rural life.
How can you contribute to the Network in your country?
We offer a safe and supportive space where artists, cultural practitioners, and communities can connect and collaborate through non-transactional approaches based on trust, reciprocity, and shared values. Our work promotes cooperation and interconnection between people and initiatives that might otherwise remain isolated, especially in rural contexts.
Through our residencies, cultural programmes, and international collaborations, we bring valuable experience, networks, and know-how from across the Mediterranean and beyond to our local rural area and to the wider regional cultural ecosystem. In this way, we contribute to the Anna Lindh Network’s mission of strengthening intercultural dialogue and solidarity by fostering meaningful exchanges that link local realities with global creative practices.
Why do you want to join the ALF Network?
We feel that the values and mission of the Anna Lindh Foundation fully align with our own — promoting dialogue, mutual understanding, and cooperation across the Mediterranean. Based in Sicily, at the very heart of the region, we are deeply connected to its diverse cultures, histories, and shared challenges. Joining the ALF Network will allow us to contribute to and benefit from a community of like-minded organisations working to strengthen intercultural exchange, solidarity, and creativity across the Mediterranean.