Students from the Monash University (Melbourne, Australia) visiting the pilot site

January 10-11, 2020

On January 10-11, 2020, students from the Monash University in Melbourne had a two-day on-field study tour in the Cinque Terre National Park, with Professor Nigel Tapper, a former member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and of the research group that in 2007 received the Nobel Peace Prize.

During the first day, at the Castle of Riomaggiore, the geologist Emanuele Raso illustrated the actions put in place by the Cinque Terre National Park to contrast geo-hydrological instability, to encourage the recovery of drystone walls supporting terraces and to promote engagement with agriculture. After the presentation of the activities of the Geological Risks Research Center, whose main goal is to support the Park in the coordination of the interventions to limit the geological risk, the actions of STONEWALLSFORLIFE and the potential role of drystone walls as climate change adaptation tools were shown.

On the second day, students were accompanied by the members of the Fondazione Manarola to visit the STONEWALLSFORLIFE pilot area. During the field tour, students could see the work carried out by the Fondazione, which has already cleaned some abandoned plots from overgrown vegetation, repaired drystone walls and the terraces, and rent some of them to farmers in larger lots, with long-term contracts which can be withdrawn if maintenance is non performed properly