This year, the Festival of Sustainable Development organized by the Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development (ASviS) made a stop in Venice with an event held in collaboration with the Biennale of Architecture. The event, to which the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) was invited to contribute, took place on the morning of May 13 at Palazzo Cà Giustinian. It was part of the Public Program Gens of the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale.
The debate, titled “Gone with the (Hot) Wind? Cities and Cultural Heritage in the Face of the Climate Crisis,” focused on the urgent need to protect cities and other human settlements from the increasingly severe effects of climate change. Phenomena such as rising sea levels, extreme weather events, wildfires, and high temperatures threaten not only human lives but also monuments, historical buildings, and urban spaces. Venice stands as a symbol—both of the fragility of historic cities and the cultural heritage that represents a unique identity for the entire world, and of the commitment to their protection.
In this context, the integration of sustainable architecture and climate adaptation policies becomes essential to ensure the safeguarding of cities. The event explored innovative solutions that combine respect for historical heritage with urban resilience and transformation strategies.
Participants included experts, public administrators, journalists, and citizens. Representing the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, architect Alessandra Credazzi Salvi, an official with the Environment and Land Use Office, gave a brief presentation on the Agency’s approach to environmentally sustainable urban development and territorial resilience within Italian Cooperation initiatives, focusing especially on the poorest and most informal areas of partner countries’ cities, such as slums and secondary cities.
