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How to contribute to just and sustainable futures in ageing and depopulating European localities, while at the same time offering a 'welcoming space' for non-EU migrants who wish to pursue their life elsewhere than in large European cities? That is what the Welcoming Spaces project is all about. Dr. Alberto Alonso-Fradejas explores the challenges and opportunities for the participation of (non-EU) migrants in depopulating and marginalized areas in Soria, Spain, and the role that pine resin plays in this.

The Spanish province of Soria is also known as the ´Spanish Lapland',  with 8 inhabitants per square kilometer. Many residents have left in search of a job or to pursue higher education. To keep their villages alive and promote the well-being of those who remain and those who arrive, state and civil society actors are developing a diversity of initiatives. One such initiative is the revival of the ancient tradition of pine resin extraction to supply this biomaterial to diverse industries ranging from food to cosmetics, paintings, and many others.

As a livelihood response to the economic crisis since 2008, and as a step towards a decarbonized economy, visionary mayors and civil society collaborators from several villages in Soria devised a plan in 2010 to support longtime residents and welcome newcomers. "For example, there was a campaign to subsidize housing and offer child support for newcomers who settled in the village to open a bakery or a bar, or to work in farming or forestry. A  package deal," Alberto explains. "There are parts of Soria which are known for their large endowment of the pine tree variety from which resin is collected. There, majors concerned residents, and the Soria-based Cesefor foundation for the promotion of forestry bio-economy, bet on the revival of the pine resin sector and the old profession of resin collector to fight back depopulation and socioeconomic decay."  A new resin processing plant was built in Almazán, immediately creating 100 jobs in the area. But the resin collectors, called 'resineros and resineras' in Spanish, are self-employed and work in forests that are mostly owned by municipalities to which they have to pay a resin extraction fee.

"For example, in Tardelcuende it all started with a few newcomers. They were trained in the craft by knowledgeable longtime residents and started to work on 7000 pine trees each, enough to make a living. Newcomers were offered subsidized housing for 150 to 200 Euros a month. Fine houses, like anybody else´s in the village. The work is intensive because resin has to be extracted manually and you have to spend long hours in the forest, in the rain or under the hard sun, and mostly alone. But you are your own boss and in control of the pace and times of your work. In winter, when the resin stops flowing, you receive a subsidy from the Provincial government to get you through the cold months," says Alberto. He spoke to a Moroccan family who decided to leave behind hazardous, painstaking and badly-paid work in the commercial farms of Southern Spain for their new jobs as self-employed resinera and resinero. In addition to having more time to spend with their children, the winter break allowed them to go on holidays for the first time in 15 years. 

The forward linkages in the resin industry were also considered. There are two main companies that buy the resin and process it for the national and international market. Gradually, more newcomers arrived in the area to join the pine resin bandwagon. Today, a significant share of the population in these ´resinero villages´ includes newcomers from other parts of Spain and from Morocco, Senegal, Bulgaria, Ecuador, Peru and other countries.

"We conducted interviews with longtime residents, migrant newcomers, administrators and officials. We visited the pine forests, recorded ´soundscapes´, took pictures and were treated to drinks in local bars. After all, that's where many resin collectors come together."

Alberto: "in collaboration with our Spanish partners in the Welcoming Spaces consortium,  and the  we identified Soria as a fertile region to investigate the migrant question in the so-called ´emptied Spain´. Despite important challenges ahead, we identified 3 factors by which you could say that the 'pine resin model' works, including: First, a warm welcome. Newcomers are relatively well-received in these resinero villages. Particularly in Tardelcuende, the school is again lively with kids, new stores opened, and there are now four bars instead of one.

Second: A caring community. People help each other. One of our interviewees, a resinero and father from Senegal, told us how their elderly Spanish neighbor was happy to keep an eye on their young daughter when he and his partner were at work. Since the pine forests were barely used there is no such feeling among longtime residents of newcomers taking over ´their´ jobs. Furthermore, resin collectors are recognized as forest stewards regardless of their place of origin.

Third, the common labor regime counters inequality and ethnic segregation. The fact that most resin extractors are self-employed and do not own the pine trees they work on keeps at bay extreme socioeconomic differentiation among them. And unlike in larger metropolis, working families from different ethnic and religious backgrounds and countries share the same living, leisure and labor spaces in the village.”