What we believe
Differences are our strength
Differences are our strength
Differences are our strength
We don't seek uniformity. We celebrate the unexpected mix of perspectives.
Belonging is a choice
Differences are our strength
Differences are our strength
You don't have to be born here. You choose to show up.
Small can be revolutionary
Differences are our strength
Small can be revolutionary
While others chase scale, we prove that intimacy creates impact.
Our Vision
Building the future, one year at a time
2023 – Community hub opens
A shared space for locals, newcomers, and visitors to meet, work, and create together.
2025 – Creative residency
A residency program welcoming artists, writers, and makers to spend time in Gratteri.
2028 – Annual cultural festival
A recurring festival celebrating culture, food, and community in Gratteri.
Our Mission
To transform Gratteri into a village where people don't just live — they build.
To transform Gratteri into a village where people don't just live — they build.
To transform Gratteri into a village where people don't just live — they build.
We champion local makers, new businesses, shared spaces, and a strong community. We're creating a model for how small towns can grow again — sustainably, optimistically, together.
Builders welcome
To transform Gratteri into a village where people don't just live — they build.
To transform Gratteri into a village where people don't just live — they build.
You don't have to be born here. You choose to show up.
Small town. Big future.
To transform Gratteri into a village where people don't just live — they build.
Small town. Big future.
We welcome people who don’t just dream, but build. Makers, organizers, and quiet doers who turn ideas into shared spaces, projects, and everyday care for the village.
Little by little, so far.
building bridges 2023 - ongoing
La Buvette 2023 - 2025
One of our ongoing commitments is fostering dialogue between Gratteri's local community and its growing international population. Through cultural activities, informal gatherings and shared experiences, we work to create opportunities for meaningful exchange and mutual understanding.
La Buvette 2023 - 2025
La Buvette 2023 - 2025
A series of open-air gatherings in the streets and squares of Gratteri. What started as a simple aperitivo became a place where locals, newcomers and visitors could meet, talk and build relationships. A small excuse to be together, week after week.
Presentations & Conversations 2023 - ongoing
Mercato Minimo 2024 - Ongoing
Hosting authors, readers and curious minds through literary events and public discussions. Creating spaces where ideas, stories and different perspectives can meet.
Mercato Minimo 2024 - Ongoing
Terra Arsa – The Absence of Water and the Power of Fire 2024
Mercato Minimo 2024 - Ongoing
Small-scale markets organised alongside cultural events, giving residents the opportunity to participate actively, share objects, stories and skills, and contribute to the social life of the village.
Summer Cultural Programme 2024
Terra Arsa – The Absence of Water and the Power of Fire 2024
Terra Arsa – The Absence of Water and the Power of Fire 2024
Coordination and support for Gratteri's summer calendar of events, bringing together local associations, artists and volunteers. Exhibitions, concerts, theatre performances and public gatherings helped animate the village throughout the season.
Terra Arsa – The Absence of Water and the Power of Fire 2024
Terra Arsa – The Absence of Water and the Power of Fire 2024
Terra Arsa – The Absence of Water and the Power of Fire 2024
A contemporary art project born in response to the wildfires that threatened Gratteri and the Madonie region. Through exhibitions, installations and public conversations, artists and residents reflected on fire, drought, resilience and the fragile balance between humans and nature.
sunset yoga 2025 - ongoing
Divertimento – il circo invisibile 2025 - ongoing
Free and inclusive yoga sessions held in different squares of the village during the summer months. A simple invitation to slow down, reconnect with the body and experience public space in a different way.
Divertimento – il circo invisibile 2025 - ongoing
Divertimento – il circo invisibile 2025 - ongoing
An artistic residency that transformed Gratteri into a living laboratory of performance, sound and visual art. Residents, artists and visitors collaborated in the creation of a collective work rooted in the stories and spaces of the village.
Speak-easy (Spicchìsi) 2025 - ongoing
Speak-easy (Spicchìsi) 2025 - ongoing
A travelling series of cultural and social gatherings designed to bring people together. Conversations, shared meals, music, walks and unexpected encounters became opportunities to strengthen community ties and welcome new perspectives.
Towards a Community Cooperative - ongoing
Towards a Community Cooperative - ongoing
Speak-easy (Spicchìsi) 2025 - ongoing
Together with local associations, businesses and citizens, we are contributing to the creation of a Community Cooperative. The goal is to strengthen local services, cultural life and economic opportunities while keeping Gratteri vibrant and alive for future generations.
The People
James P. Gillis – President & Founder – Washington, DC
James P. Gillis – President & Founder – Washington, DC
James P. Gillis – President & Founder – Washington, DC
James P. Gillis came to know Sicily through his mother, who grew up in Palermo. Through his Italian family, he discovered Gratteri — a place that immediately felt singular and deeply resonant. From the beginning, he knew it was somewhere he wanted to belong, not only to visit.
“In the moment, in the mountains, in Gratteri.”
Alison B. Hooker – Founder – Washington, DC
James P. Gillis – President & Founder – Washington, DC
James P. Gillis – President & Founder – Washington, DC
Originally from the Washington, DC area, Alison B. Hooker was introduced to Gratteri over twenty years ago through a family connection to Palermo. While the village's beauty first captured her attention, it was the spirit of the Grattaluci — open, resilient and deeply human — that captured her heart.
“Connection, continuity and shared responsibility.”
Misha Capnist – Founder – Italy
James P. Gillis – President & Founder – Washington, DC
Gregorio Capnist – Founder – Italy
Misha Capnist's connection to Gratteri began in childhood, when his grandparents bought a house in the village. Over time, that place of return turned into a place of choice: today, the same house is his permanent home, making him the third generation of his family to live in Gratteri.
“A place to be lived — attentively, patiently, together.”
Gregorio Capnist – Founder – Italy
James P. Gillis – President & Founder – Washington, DC
Gregorio Capnist – Founder – Italy
Gregorio Capnist chose Gratteri as a place to live at a moment when he felt the need to step away from city life in search of nature, space, and a more essential way of inhabiting the world. In this village, he found what he was looking for: a possible balance between environment, time, and human relationships.
“Belonging is not about origin, but presence, care and participation.”