Chinese life in Prato - A guided walking tour outside the walls
3.00 - 4.00pm, Wednesday 22 October, 2008

China has become an important source country for immigration to Italy since the opening up of the Chinese economy in the late 1970s. The flow of migrants from China to Italy has shown rapid growth since the beginning of the 1980s, such that the Chinese are now the fifth largest immigrant population group in Italy. A large proportion of Chinese immigrants to Italy are concentrated in Prato, where they now form the largest Chinese community in Europe.

Prato has always been a popular destination for Chinese migrants as the city supports a large textiles industry and a ready-to-wear garment sector keen on flexible and low-cost labour. Since the early 1990s, pockets of the Chinese migrant population in Prato have turned entrepreneur, embarking in textiles and clothing sector-related manufacturing, importing and exporting activities.

While Prato's Chinese community was once considered very closed, their immersion into the local economy has meant that increasing contact between the Chinese migrants and the local Prato population has become unavoidable.

This tour will take us beyond the historic walls of the town to the new suburbs where the Chinese community live and work. We will explore this area of the town on foot to gain the best perspective, to see the factories and workshops, the new residences, the meeting places and markets.

This is where the Chinese migrants live. The Chinese graffiti, the meat drying in the sun, the wall covered in job vacancies - all of these elements of this distinct community demonstrate their differences to the Italians.

We will meet outside the Monash University Prato Centre at 2.45pm for departure at 3pm sharp.

The tour is free to delegates and their guests and families. Tick the acceptance box on your registration form so that we get an idea of numbers.