When Will We Return to Venice and Should We?

Venice is living on borrowed time. In 2020, COVID-19 brought tourism in Venice to a halt, damaging the economy while giving the city a respite from the regular onslaught of tourists. The pandemic highlighted the precarity of the city’s position, dependent on a tourist economy that has rendered the city uninhabitable for many and has caused continuous damage to the built environment. At the same time, rising sea levels pose an existential threat, necessitating fundamental changes to Venice’s architectural and infrastructural fabric.

On Thursday, March 25, WMF hosted an in-depth discussion on the monumental obstacles Venice is facing and the seismic shifts in mindsets and actions it will take to overcome them. Featuring Jane da Mosto, environmental scientist and Executive Director of NGO We are here Venice; Tomás Saraceno, visual artist and activist; and David Landau, respected scholar, curator, philanthropist, and author. The Heritage Now discussion was moderated by Bénédicte de Montlaur, President and CEO of World Monuments Fund.