Sorgente di S. Susanna, Municipality of Rivodutri, Province of Rieti, Water Resources for Human and Social Development

Dear friend,
2003 has been the International Year of Water and C.R.E. (European Rural Center Association) developed with the collaboration of several institutes the 1st Rural Eurofestival, an occasion to celebrate the 15th year of C.R.E. activities.Safeguarding and developing environmental and local resources, but also fostering exchanges between different cultures within Italy and Europe, in the social and economic context of the Valle Santa Reatina area, represented a new challenge and a commitment for all local development stakeholders.The 1st Rural Eurofestival has been the first opportunity to strengthen ties with other European rural communities and to design new initiatives, with a view to promoting the local systems and establishing permanent network between local governments in European countries and various associations, to safeguard rural areas and theirenvironment. Through this event, the organizers wished to promote an annual event, in partnership with local authorities and residents, businesses, trade associations and other associations and all those visitors who had the issues of rural communities and of new forms of alternative tourism at heart. But why the theme of water resources? The reason for this choice is that the Valle Santa Reatina area is very rich in water, a significant part of its water resources being protected since 1985, following the creation of the Nature Reserve of the Lungo and Ripasottile Lakes, the only existing remains of the ancient Lacus Velinus which, in antiquity, used to occupy the entire Reatino basin. Water, this precious element, is extremely rare in many countries, in others it is at risk, yet in many others it is wasted, so we think it is high time to raise awareness among the luckier populations, in regard to both saving such an important natural resource and protecting it. For this purpose 2003 has been declared the International Year of Water. The aim of the 1st Rural Eurofestival, promoted jointly by the Centro Rurale Europeo cultural association of Rivodutri, the local authorities of Rivodutri – Colli sul Velino – Contigliano – Cantalice – Sera Valle di Chienti, the Board of the Lungo and Ripasottile Lakes Nature Reserve, and the European towns of Candelario (Province of Salamanca, Spain) and Seregelys (Province of Feger, Hungary, with the collaborations of Rieti’S Province, Turist Office of Rieti,V Mountain Community (Rieti) has been to further investigate the historical links between similar rural communities in Europe and faraway countries, such as El Valle de los Ingenios city of Trinitad (Cuba). (.........)

Luca Bernardini, Alessandro Micheli, Claudio Rosati,
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