T.I.C.T.A.C., EAMISS and Canódrom are the venues where the activities took place.
The Cafè Barcelona 2026 (CafèBCN 2026) project, initiated by La Fragua Projects, continues to establish itself as a space for gathering and collective reflection on a range of issues. In recent months, three Participatory Spaces for Democratic Innovation (EPIDs) have been held, bringing together migrant, Roma and/or racialised participants to discuss rights, coexistence and access to opportunities.
Spaces for Participatory Democratic Innovation
Participatory Spaces for Democratic Innovation are safe spaces where migrant, Roma and/or racialised people can express their views and share their experiences on a range of social, political and cultural issues, amongst others. These spaces are based on a methodology known as the ‘World Café’, which brings together groups of four people at four different tables for successive rounds of discussion. This methodology, adapted by La Fragua Projects with an intersectional perspective, takes place in a café setting, to make the space safe and welcoming, encouraging participants to express themselves freely. This project has been running since 2025, and this is its second edition. At the end of the project, the participants’ experiences and opinions are gathered and analysed to identify their needs, with a view to advocating for policy change.
CafèBCN 2026 has created participatory spaces in which to address, from a variety of perspectives, key issues such as access to healthcare, culture, housing, working conditions and the use of public spaces. The sessions have provided an opportunity to share experiences related to city life and to initiate discussions on topics such as discrimination, social inclusion and relations with public institutions.
In this regard, the EPIDs have served as safe spaces where people can voice concerns and share their thoughts—things that do not always find a place in other contexts. The diversity of voices has enriched the dialogue, making it possible to identify common ground despite our different personal backgrounds.
Furthermore, the process has highlighted how many of the difficulties faced in everyday life stem from shared structural dynamics. This collective awareness paves the way for new ways of tackling social challenges through collaboration and mutual recognition.
Three forums for dialogue to address inequalities and community life
In the three EPIDs produced so far, participants have been able to discuss healthcare, culture, housing, migration and exceptional regularisation, amongst many other topics.
The project’s first event and launch took place at the headquarters of the organisation ‘Workshop for Critical Transfeminist, Anti-Racist and Militant Interventions’ (t.i.c.t.a.c.), a transfeminist, anti-racist and decolonial space. Marité from t.i.c.t.a.c. opened the doors of her home to us and welcomed us as if we were part of her family. One of the questions put to the participants concerned the extraordinary regularisation process and how this administrative measure would affect their lives. Opinions were largely in agreement from a positive perspective, as, for them, this measure represents a benefit both for people in an irregular administrative situation and for Spain. They hope it will help reduce situations of abuse, precariousness and crime; as one participant said, “those who are against this proposal are those who want to abuse us, treating us like slaves”.
The second session, held at the EAMISS Centre, focused on the city and access to it. One question that stood out concerned housing: “When looking for a place to live, have you ever felt that this city is for some people but not for everyone?” The responses were largely in agreement; for example, one participant commented that “the city should be for everyone, but the reality is that you need a lot of money”.
The third and most recent session to date took place at El Canódrom. Various topics were discussed, such as the Catalan language and social inclusion, the presumption of innocence, being in public versus private spaces, and religious education in schools. On this last topic, the question posed was: “Does the educational community take all religious or spiritual beliefs into account?” The participants highlighted the value of religious diversity and the importance of learning about different religions; consequently, they agreed that rather than selecting a single religion to study, this educational space should be turned into a subject called, for example, cultural diversity, where pupils can learn about different religions.
Shared challenges and lessons learnt
In general, the participants felt hopeful and optimistic that the abusive and precarious situations would come to an end. They were also very pleased to be able to share their views in a safe and welcoming space, and emphasised the need for such spaces where they could share their experiences and opinions and be heard.
The EPIDs from CafèBCN 2026 highlight the need to continue fostering spaces for dialogue and participation that bring diverse realities to the fore and help build collective responses to today’s social challenges.
CafèBCN 2026 is a project that not only encourages reflection, but also fosters connections and helps identify common concerns that cut across different aspects of urban life.
The next and fourth EPID event is in collaboration with Bayt Al-Thaqafa on 11 June. And the final EPID event will be organised by the Mujeres Pa’lante Cooperative, a safe space where women from different countries and with different backgrounds will take part.
Source: La Fragua Projects
Photo: La Fragua Projects