Small and precious

In our geographically diverse country, this is a knot (not easy) to unravel. We're talking about the so-called "internal areas" (as they are referred to, perhaps with an inclusive expression, who knows?).

This is not the point of getting into the sometimes heated debate on local autonomy. Let's focus on the facts: Italy is a country of 8,000 bell towers, each corresponding to an equal number of municipalities, with virtually no formal distinction between situations with a few dozen inhabitants and metropolises with countless populations, as is well known. Very different realities, obviously. Which, even just by looking at recent history from the 1950s onwards, paint a profile that has changed and been modified, due to internal migration, to the abandonment of sites deemed hopeless during the era of great industrialization and the subsequent growth of metropolitan areas. Unfortunately, there are still far from reassuring rumors and ulterior motives that are incapable of valorizing the inland areas, with their concrete problems for those who live there year-round (and not just during the holidays), instead of seeking an encouraging solution. Meanwhile, services and solutions for the people of these decentralized suburbs would be frozen or eliminated due to costs. As if they weren't valuable lands, no matter what. As if the people who live there weren't entitled to the same rights to support everyone else. Of course, there's no need to wax poetic about "Small is beautiful," because the problems are there. But the "small" is precious, because there are people, connections, stories, sacrifices, dedication...

Fortunately, there are those who don't accept these views, which are also a little painful, and are seeking a courageous revival by investing in the "inland areas," perceiving them as an opportunity, and managing them with foresight. Numerous bishops from dioceses in "internal areas" have also come forward to demand a different approach, to take responsibility for these fragmented realities, to care for them as if they were perhaps inaccessible but precious contexts, and to invest in a possible future, to protect everyone. And some signs that the game must be played to the fullest, without fear, are coming from the rebirth of Alpine and Apennine valleys, as well as from the revitalization of territories no longer imagined as being abandoned. There are also young people and young families who are betting on this reversal of the trend, settling precisely where too many have fled and where, perhaps, we don't care enough about what is being... abandoned. Something is moving. And let us ask ourselves dispassionately what can be done (even with public support) to ensure that this other Italy flourishes socially and is protected ecologically, allowing us to continue to share its enchanting landscapes without regret, especially in certain seasons worth framing.


Corrado Avagnina
NP October 2025