"Old and new projects for Ospedale al Mare and the sustainable development of Venice", were under discussion on 3 March, in the Marciana National Library. Ambassador Umberto Vattani, President of Venice International University, moderated the multi-faceted interventions.

Present at the meeting were Luisella Pavan-Woolfe, director of the Italian office of the Council of Europe;  Nelli-Elena Vanzan Marchini, President of the Centro Italiano di Storia Sanitaria e Ospedaliera del Veneto (CISO); Emanuele Meleleo, Commander of the Carabinieri Unit for Heritage Protection; Emanuela Vassallo, President of Italia Nostra – Venice;  Annalisa Rossi, Veneto Archives Superintendent;  Andrea Grigoletto, CISO Veneto;  Leonardo Filesi, Professor of botany, IUAV; Federico Antinori, Italian Bird Protection League.

The vast complex of buildings and beach at Lido, once hospital of the Venetians, has been in a deplorable state of neglect for years. Local residents hope for a recovery respectful of the cultural and material identity of the site and fight against real estate speculation projects, drawing inspiration from the principles of the Council of Europe's Faro Convention.