On Wednesday, 1 October 2025, Cividale hosted the cross-border event of the MEDS GARDEN+ project “Roots in the future: how to grow conscious tourism”, a day dedicated to charting the course for a fairer, more educated and sustainable tourism sector.
Training, cooperation and care for the local area are the foundations of sustainable tourism, which is not only possible but already exists. This was the message at the heart of the cross-border meeting ‘Roots in the future: how to grow conscious tourism’, organised by Scuola Centrale Formazione (SCF) and CIVIFORM as part of the European MEDS GARDEN+ project.
The initiative, which took place on Wednesday, 1 October from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., charted the course for a more equitable tourism sector, far removed from the logic of overtourism, reaffirming the importance of training professionals who know how to combine the tradition of hospitality with innovation, based on the results of MEDS GARDEN+, a project co-funded by the European Union as part of the Interreg VI-A Italy-Slovenia Programme.
At the heart of the project is the ambitious goal of renewing the cross-border tourism offer by transforming Mediterranean educational gardens into real centres of development and attraction. The initiative aims to create a wider and more qualified network of these green spaces, enhancing the educational paths connected to them to make them more accessible, inclusive and educational.
The day, which saw the participation of 70 people, opened with institutional greetings from Federica Sacenti (President of SCF) and Roberto Molinaro (President of CIVIFORM), followed by the presentation of the results and prospects of the MEDS GARDEN+ project by Lorena Sassi (SCF). The debate was enriched by the concrete experiences of the Corte Natisonis District, the National Archaeological Museum of Cividale and DMO Turismo Benečija.
There were two key speeches in the morning: Professor Roberta Garibaldi, President of the Italian Food and Wine Tourism Association, illustrated trends and new skills in the sector, also in light of the new White Paper. The document outlines the roles, skills and prospects of one of the most dynamic sectors of Italian tourism, a growing phenomenon worth over €40 billion to the national economy.
This was followed by Dr Ivan Curzolo, an expert in cohesion policies and territorial cooperation, who explored the future of European funds for cooperation. The highlight was the signing of the Manifesto of Sustainable and Inclusive Educational Gardens, a concrete commitment for the future.
The experience continued with a “talking lunch”, combining local flavours with dialogue, and an afternoon visit to the Mediterranean Educational Garden of the Giardino del Chiostro, where good practices for inclusion will be shared.
Roberto Molinaro, president of CIVIFORM, emphasises: "In a region with a strong tourist vocation such as ours, Civiform offers its experience gained over more than 70 years to train professionals capable of adding value to all strategic sectors, from food and wine to tourism, from wellness to graphic design. The aim of events such as this is to offer concrete and flexible skills to a community that is evolving and demands skilled, knowledgeable and innovative professionals.‘
’Meetings such as this are essential for networking and for aligning training with the real needs of a market that demands authenticity, sustainability and high competence,‘ says Federica Sacenti, president of Scuole Centrale Formazione. ’ Networking our 50 organisations throughout Italy and collaborating at European level, as we do with the MEDS GARDEN+ project, means creating added value that translates into concrete opportunities for young people and for all those who, in these contexts, can rediscover the enthusiasm to continue cultivating their skills."
Lorena Sassi (SCF), project manager coordinator of the Meds Garden+ project, added: "The Meds Garden+ project is coming to an end after two years of activity. It is a project that capitalises on a previous successful project with our Slovenian partners. We have expanded the area of interest and involved new partners, and created five pilot actions to enrich the network of Mediterranean educational gardens and equipped them with even more solutions for biodiversity, sustainability and inclusiveness.
Today, we signed a manifesto for inclusive educational gardens in which we committed ourselves to continuing this model of inclusive educational gardens by adhering to principles that we share, maintaining the individuality and specificity of each garden, but all aiming together to be living laboratories for the growth of skills and for integrated design with the territories."
Among those present was the Mayor of Cividale del Friuli, Daniela Bernardi.
