Resilient Venice. Mitigation and monitoring measures to manage change

The book, published in November 2020, collects the results of a research funded by MiBAC (Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism) within the project entitled A Strategy for Sustainable Tourism in Venice and its Lagoon: Management, Mitigation, Awareness. Three phenomena in particular are considered strategic for their role in the use and perception of the Old City’s historic centre: housing, occupation of public property, and maintenance of urban spaces. The impacts connected to the three contexts taken into exam strongly affect the quality of life in Venice, from the point of view of resident citizens and city users as well as visitors. These phenomena have in fact particular influence on controlling city transformations and the different urban domains, such as, for example, changes in the use of building units, replacements of [traditional] old plasters, and fitting of new stalls. These issues undoubtedly have an impact on the integrity of the entire urban system and therefore require actions of control and mitigation. If we consider that this research was drawing to a close in early March 2020, when the Covid-19 health emergency was just at its beginning in Italy, the implementation of some of the proposed scenarios acquires even more strategic value, and represents a great opportunity to reconsider the social, economic and development models for a city of international importance such as Venice.