'Enchanting' Venice

The Italian economic landscape is one of the worst in the Eurozone. The Italian Government, in its attempt to rebalance the budget is drastically cutting funding in many areas. These cuts are having many unintended consequences.

Colosseum in 'Eternal Rome'

A recent article in "Newsweek" (Italy's Luxury Bailout) looks into the impacts the economic austerity measures are having on Italy's Cultural Heritage and how business is coming to the aid of the problem. The following statement sets the scene succinctly.

"Italy has more UNESCO World Heritage sites than any other country in the world, yet its culture budget has been cut almost in half over the last 3 years, from US$603 to US$340 million, and now barely covers maintenance or preservation."

Pompei

Here are some of monuments and cultural icons most in need of attention

• Venice - with 60,000 tourists a day the grand canal has become an aquatic super-highway for boats Venice in danger
• The Duomo in Florence is cracking and flaking
• Norman-era churches in Sicily are so neglected and in disrepair they have been boarded up
• Since 2008 there have been 15 major archeo-emergencies in Pompei and more work is required to arrest the decay and deterioration
• Nero's Golden Palace in Rome has seen its gallery crushed and gilded ceiling destroyed after a roof collapse
• Crumbling mortar in the Colosseum makes it dangerous for visiting tourists

Preservation of Italy's unique and ancient monuments is important not only to its local communities. The fact is that Italy's millennia of temporal riches draw more than 45 million visitors every year, making tourism the country's primary industry and accounting for 8.6% of Gross Domestic Product.

Saving the country without selling its soul

Not happy to simply stand back and witness a deteriorating situation, Diego Della Valle (head of luxury leathergoods,'Tod's') and Luca Cordero Di Montezemolo (President of Ferrari), two prominent Italian businessmen have donated millions of Euros to fund key restoration projects. In part their reasons are selfish. Their businesses rely on the prestige Italy enjoys for its quality goods, aesthetic judgement, and high culture--a prestige under threat by the government's budget cuts to heritage and cultural works.

Della Valle has donated US$7 million towards restoration works at Milan's La Scala theatre (the largest donation in the theatre's 233-year history) and more than US$36 million to carry out restoration works on Rome's Colosseum.

The Newsweek article reports that:

In June, Montezemolo launched an initiative called Italia Futura with the goal of sponsoring projects across the country and shaming others who rely on Italy’s reputation to contribute. He likes to remind his peers that “made in Italy” means nothing if the headlines showcase only crumbling walls and scaffolding. “Culture is our core business,” Montezemolo said. “If we don’t invest in that business, we have no future.”

The 'Italia Futura' initiative, while promoting itself as part think tank, part networking community, with the aim to meld politics, philanthropy, economy and culture is endeavouring to generate funds for some of the most urgent projects in the country.

A glimpse of 'Il Duomo' in Florence