Lazzaretti Veneziani

In 2020, a year that was globally marked by the pandemic, the Foundation has chosen to support the Lazzaretti Veneziani, symbolic and precious places, still an authentic part of Venice, symbols of identity and resistance in an area put to the test by mass tourism and climate change. The Lazzaretti system consists of a Lazzaretto Vecchio and a Lazzaretto Nuovo, distributed on two islands in the Lagoon.

Thanks to a pioneering non-profit recovery project, the Venetian Lazzaretti, for three centuries the gateway to Venice, now tell thousands of visitors an important story, through an eco-museum and various activities, which preserve and enhance a delicate territory.

A crossroads of passages and encounters between cultures, the Republic of Venice implemented the first real public health strategy for the control of infectious diseases as early as the 15th century. The Lazzarettos were in fact the centre of an innovation that made it possible to overcome the fear of disease and make systematic methodologies that still today - that have become once again incredibly useful- make it possible all over the world to imagine a serene future and innovative solutions to complex problems.

From a landscape point of view, Lazzaretto Nuovo also tells a story of enhancement, that of biodiversity, thanks to the Sentiero delle Barene: a nature trail along the old military ‘patrol route’, set up with the Natural History Museum of Venice, dedicated to the typical environment of the Venetian lagoon and a rare ecosystem at risk of disappearing.

Thanks to the Foundation's support, the Venetian Lazzaretti will be able to create the new website and launch a series of virtual tours, opening up to a new, increasingly digital dimension. In addition, the fund will guarantee free tours of the island to twenty school classes during 2021.