Slowness to discover the ordinary italian landscape

Abstract

“The history of walking is the story of each of us”, Rebecca Solnit wrote. The ordinary Italian landscape, without ostentatious of magnificence, modest but fascinating as it can be scrutinized in its most intimate aspects, is varied and articulated, beautiful and simple, the best place to feel in its slowness of everyday life (walking, cycling, contemplating). From here telling slowness in the Italian landscape between these quite invisible characteristics is certainly a must. Studying the statistical data about Italy we discover that it’s a Nation of territorial inequalities, but if we initially suppose that these are well defined between North and South, then we understand that we are wrong: there are gaps both in the North and in the South, both on the mountains and on the flat lands, both along the sea coasts and internal areas, both in rural and periurban areas. A geography where creation of new opportunities not only improves the economic aspect but also the will and empathy of the communities: the goal could be to intend this territory as a unitary cultural heritage, where culture stands for knowledge and participation; a landscape connected to daily life and therefore not superbly evident but a needful production landscape to look at through a new systemic approach.