The concept of the “ecovillage” is a community designed for sustainability. The essence of this ecovillage community is that it co-exists with old communities but responds to the current trend towards the break-down of their cultural and social fabric and rebuilds them. ‘Ecovillaggio Diffuso Garfagnana’ aims at self-sufficiency, in order to satisfy its members’ every possible need; it integrates the social, cultural, economic and ecological dimensions of the community in an all-round, inclusive approach to sustainability.

“Diffused” hospitality is interlinked hospitality: a solution which turns a range of local housing, spread across the territory to which it belongs, into accommodation opportunities for tourists. This approach helps to revive the social, collaborative and artisan life of the villages, to restore often unused properties, maintains and manages the real estate in order to avoid the risk of degradation, and to bind together the features of the surrounding areas in a qualitatively relevant way to provide tourism and accommodation facilities.

The practical aims of the project underpinning the construction of a sustainable and self-sufficient “diffused ecovillage” in Molazzana, Northern Tuscany, on the hills of the Garfagnana, are based on these principles. They are ecologically sustainable in the long run, economically viable, ethically and socially fair towards local communities. They are created in the short term, but designed for the medium and long term.