“Venice as a dual model for climate adaptation – Infrastructure meets nature-based learning” is the title of the side event organised by Venice Sustainability Foundation at the Italian Pavilion “Made for Our Future” at COP30 in Belém, Brazil.

The event presents Venice as a dual model of climate adaptation, where advanced engineering solutions combine with the resilience of nature, while integrating a widespread system of education and continuous learning.

The MOSE system – an integrated complex of works inside and outside the lagoon – is proof of how large-scale infrastructure and nature-based solutions (NBS) can work together. The morphological restoration of the lagoon, plant-based purification systems (phytoremediation), and ecological corridors have, in fact, enhanced the effectiveness and adaptive capacity of MOSE in the long term, contributing to the restoration of the lagoon’s balance.

At the same time, the City Campus project – a VSF thematic area dedicated to developing the knowledge economy in Venice – aims to transform Venice into a veritable open-air laboratory, where researchers, institutions, and citizens collaborate to test local climate adaptation strategies through field learning.

Venice thus positions itself as a place that is both a barrier and a laboratory against the climate crisis.
This event aims to share replicable methodologies and governance models that can transform vulnerable coastal areas into campuses for resilience education, offering a sustainable adaptation model that is scalable globally and paving the way for a more resilient and inclusive urban future.

The initiative is organized by VSF with CORILA, Iuav University of Venice (UNESCO Chair on Heritage and Urban Regeneration), the University of Southern Denmark (SDU, UNESCO Chair on Urban Resilience), and in collaboration with Climate Policy Initiative (CPI), SAVE Spa, and Thetis Spa.

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Rising sea levels are a global phenomenon that endangers not only the environment and the economy, but also the very identity of coastal communities. Coastal areas are among the most densely populated regions on the planet, hosting 11 of the world’s 15 largest megacities. Over 600 million people currently reside less than 10 metres above sea level, a number that is projected to double by the end of the 21st century. These territories, which serve as nerve centers for many human activities, require adaptation strategies. 

In this scenario, Venice appears as an international model of resilience. 

As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Venice has already experienced the consequences of sea level rise and is currently developing innovative solutions to protect its cultural heritage. For these reasons, it has been recognised as a Resilience Hub as part of the “Making Cities Resilient 2030 (MCR2030)” campaign promoted by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). 

How, then, can we safeguard our cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible, in the face of this challenge? How can we ensure the resilience of coastal cities while preserving the link between urbs (the physical city) and civitas (the community)?

Aligned  with the programme of Biennale della Sostenibilità 2025, which is dedicated to the balance between urbs and civitas, Venice Sustainability Foundation is organising a day of reflection and international dialogue on the theme of resilience.

The event is structured in two parts:

1. International conference “Coastal cities, climate resilience and cultural heritage protection”

9.30 am – 1.30 pm (admission from 9.00 am), Teatro Piccolo Arsenale

This meeting, organised by VSF in collaboration with UNDRR, aims to create a space for discussion among coastal cities worldwide, to develop concrete initiatives and foster a lasting network of relationships.
The event aims to promote constructive dialogue between experts, public administrators, and citizens to define adaptation strategies that take into account both the urbs – with its physical vulnerabilities – and the civitas – with its capacity for resilience and its deep connection to the territory.
At the end of the conference, a new publication by VSF will be presented: “History of Venice’s resilience. Economic, social, and urban challenges and transformations over the last two centuries” (“Storia della resilienza di Venezia. Sfide e trasformazioni economiche, sociali e urbanistiche degli ultimi due secoli”, currently only available in Italian). 

A light lunch will be served (1.30 pm – 2.30 pm).

2. Closing event of the exhibition “Intelligent Venice: the oldest city of the future”, Special Project of Venice Sustainability Foundation (VSF) for the Biennale Architettura 2025

2.30 pm – 4 pm, Tesa dell’Isolotto, Darsena Grande dell’Arsenale

The exhibition tells the story of an extraordinary millenary project, a history of medieval inventions and contemporary technologies, of interventions on nature and anthropisation, of survival and resilience strategies, through which the city’s ability to survive a hostile environment has unfolded over centuries, thanks to the constant exercise of intelligence.

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The transition to a climate-neutral economy requires systemic action in the energy and mobility sectors. In this context, clean hydrogen (H2) is a decisive factor in the decarbonization of heavy transport and industry, the integration of renewable sources, and strengthening cooperation between territories.

“The Evolution of Clean Hydrogen. Perspectives from production to use in mobility and industry” is the final event of the European project H2MA – Green Hydrogen Mobility for Alpine Region Transportation, co-funded by the European Union through the Interreg Alpine Space Program. H2MA aims to accelerate the development of hydrogen infrastructure for public transport and freight. Among the results achieved are a shared tool for planning hydrogen refueling networks, pilot strategies for developing H2 corridors, a Green H2 Route Masterplan, and Roadmaps for H2 Valleys to guide investments, financing, and synergies. These outcomes pave the way for sustainable hydrogen mobility that is truly extended to the entire Alpine area.

The conference, co-organized by Venice Sustainability Foundation (VSF) in collaboration with Codognotto and included in the official program of Biennale della Sostenibilità 2025, offers a forum for institutions, businesses, and research centers to share experiences, findings, and new opportunities for the large-scale dissemination of hydrogen applications in Europe and the Alpine region.

The event program includes a session organized by VSF on ongoing initiatives in the Venice and Veneto areas, with contributions from institutions, operators, and businesses. Developments in hydrogen production and pipeline infrastructure, transport solutions, and sustainable mobility will be presented, along with projects for the port and airport of Venice related to sustainable logistics. The local focus will show how clean hydrogen can serve as a lever for ecological transition and territorial development, connecting innovation with real applications in transport, logistics, and industry.

The event was held in English with simultaneous translation.

On Wednesday, October 29, AVM provided free hydrogen-powered vehicles for all participants, subject to availability (the capacity for each bus is 70 passengers).

Departure for Venice Heritage Tower (Via dell’Azoto, 4)

• from Piazzale Roma (lane A8)
  • first departure at 8:15 a.m.;
  • second departure at 9:00 a.m.;
• from Mestre railway station (Piazzale Favretti)
  • first departure at 8:15 a.m.;
  • second departure at 8:45 a.m.;

Return from Venice Heritage Tower

• to Piazzale Roma
  • first departure at 2:00 p.m.;
  • second departure at 2:30 p.m.;
• to Mestre railway station
  
  • first departure at 2:00 p.m.;
  • second departure at 2:30 p.m.;

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Intelligent Venice
The oldest city of the future

Special Project by the Venice Sustainability Foundation (VSF)
for the Biennale Architettura 2025

May 10 > November 23, 2025

Tesa dell’Isolotto, Darsena Grande dell’Arsenale, Venezia

A living laboratory of innovation and adaptation, Venice is the complex result of multiple intelligences. The exhibition narrates an extraordinary millennia-old project, a history of medieval inventions and contemporary technologies, interventions in nature and human settlement, and survival and resilience strategies through which the city has, for centuries, succeeded in thriving in a hostile environment, through the constant exercise of intelligence.

The “Intelligent Venice” exhibition occupies the Tesa dell’Isolotto, located on the Darsena Grande of the Arsenale. It is the only surviving building of eighteen 14th-century boatyards, demolished in 1880. The installation covers an area of 500 square meters and is designed with a series of apses, vertical panels, and a central spine represented by a long table. It includes over 5,000 archive images, over 1,000 historical maps from the most authoritative databases, over three hours of video projections, and five interactive multimedia panels.

Inside the pavilion, an architectural basilica interior with wooden trusses, five “Apses of intelligences” offer an immersive journey into the history and management of the lagoon and the city: “Millenary Time”, “Regulated Lagoon”, “Anthropized Nature”, “Venice of the People”, “Urban Form” will allow the public to explore the “intelligent” evolution of the city and its lagoon – which, for a long time, acted as its walls – along with the inventions and strategies developed for its use, and for the protection and enhancement of its cultural heritage, through immersive projections and interactive multimedia stations, offering an experience that combines science, technology, and visual storytelling.

The Venetian Abacus table, which extends 30 meters along the central axis of the Tesa, is dedicated to Ingenuities and represents the objects, tools, mechanisms, and technologies with which Venetians turned an uninhabitable place into one of the most important testimonies of global urban history.

The “Actors of today and tomorrow” section animates the connecting walls between the Apses of Intelligences. It presents visions and projects of various public and private actors operating in the city.

Organizations and institutions working to preserve and design the future of Venice and its lagoon have contributed to building this vision: Almaviva, Assicurazioni Generali, Autorità di Sistema Portuale del Mare Adriatico Settentrionale – Porti di Venezia e Chioggia, Autorità per la Laguna di Venezia, Comune di Venezia, Conservatorio di Musica Benedetto Marcello di Venezia, Consorzio Venezia Nuova, CORILA – Consorzio per il Coordinamento delle Ricerche inerenti al sistema lagunare di Venezia, Enfinity Global, Eni, Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, Fincantieri, Fondazione Diabete Ricerca onlus, Istituto di Scienze Marine del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (ISMAR-CNR), Mare Technopark, Microsoft, Procuratoria di San Marco, Regione del Veneto, TIM, Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia, Università Iuav di Venezia, Venice International University.

The initiative also benefits from the support of Alilaguna, Camera di Commercio Venezia Rovigo, Fondazione di Venezia.

Curated by Benno Albrecht (Università Iuav di Venezia), Renato Brunetta (VSF e CNEL), Pierpaolo Campostrini (CORILA), Paolo Costa (C+3C Sistemi e Strategie)

Scientific coordination: Pierpaolo Campostrini

Organizers and collaborators: Alessandro Costa, Jacopo Galli, Marco Marino, Tania Schiavon, Eleonora Pagan, Francesco Marcello Falcieri, Elisabetta Russo, Emilia Siffredi Duranti, Alessandra Aureli, Alessandro De Sanctis, Alessandro Spezzamonte

Exhibition design: Benno Albrecht, Jacopo Galli, Marco Marino, con Nicolò Genovese, Marco Turcato, Pietro Zandonella Maiucco

Visual identity: Stefano Mandato

Video content of the Apses “Millenary time”, “Regulated lagoon” and “Anthropized nature”: Carmelo Marabello, Luka Bagnoli, Elisa La Boria

Immersive installation “Urban Form” by Ludovica Galeazzo, responsabile scientifica del progetto ERC “Venice’s Nissology. Reframing the Lagoon City as an Archipelago”, realised with the contribution of studio camerAnebbia di Milano e con il supporto del Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale e di Venice International University (VIU).

PRESS KIT

Intelligent Venice Press Kit