1 November 2021
A balloon for biodiversity. This is the idea that Lavica association with the support of Life Ponderat led to the event "Celebrate islands" that every year is organized to highlight the importance of small islands as laboratories to try out solutions for today’s sustainability problems. This year was held the 8th edition of the theme "Let’s take care of our islands". A video contest entitled "My project in 120 seconds" was up for grabs the funds to carry out activities that combine sustainable tourism and nature conservation. So why not recover the tradition of balloons launched during the religious feast of Santa Candida and create an event outside the summer season and with a program of activities that speak about nature conservation. The idea was especially liked by the audience who voted for the video of Lavica association on youtube. And now, a few months later, the idea has been realized.
A weekend with an intense program that brought tourists to the island to discover all sides of Ventotene. A boat tour of the island gave visitors the opportunity to observe the island from a different perspective and was an opportunity to talk about seabirds and what you do for their conservation. The guided visits to historical places such as the Villa di Giulia and the Roman cisterns reused over the centuries in different ways have traced the long history of this island inhabited for millennia. Finally a walk to remember and tell the story of the island in the twentieth century when it became a place of political confinement and where was born and developed the idea of Europe united in the Manifesto of Ventotene written by Altiero Spinelli and Ernesto Rossi in 1941 and published by Eugenio Colorni. All accompanied by lots of popular music and with some events to taste local food.
At the end, the "balloon for biodiversity". It was made in the previous days by children and teenagers of Ventotene. For those who do not know this local tradition, we remember that during a religious feast dedicated to Santa Candida (patron saint of the island), on September 20, balloons are launched into the sky. In this case, just to underline the eco-sustainability of the entire event, the balloon was not released in flight to avoid dispersion in the environment.
Congratulations again to the Lavica Association. With the hope of being able to propose "A balloon for biodiversity" also next year.
