Alberobello, UNESCO plan: "Protect and enhance the trulli"

The Municipality of Alberobello approved the UNESCO management plan called "The Trulli of Alberobello" and signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Culture, the Superintendency, the Puglia Region, and the Metropolitan City of Alberobello for the updating, implementation, and monitoring of the plan. The plan defines objectives, actions, and tools for the site's conservation, aimed at enhancing its cultural and tourist potential and engaging local communities through integrated governance between competent bodies and institutions.

The city council failed to meet due to the political choice of failing to reach a quorum due to the absence of minority groups. Therefore, it was the De Carlo administration that approved the plan. The document, drafted under the close coordination of the Ministry of Culture (UNESCO Office) and several organizations specializing in strategic and operational plans for the protection and development of artistic and cultural heritage, outlines 26 operational plans at various levels. "The plan has been sent to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre in Paris to complete its process. This is a strategic planning document, but above all an operational development plan, born from listening to stakeholders, citizens, and our young students, who at times have proven even more visionary than adults in recognizing the value of walking more slowly through the streets of our city and wanting to share it with visitors, in remembering the smell of biscuits in grandma's trullo, and in appreciating the community library as a place of cultural and human exchange," explains Valeria Sabatelli, City Councilor for Culture, with responsibility for Cultural Heritage and UNESCO.

"This is a historic measure for our city, achieved thanks to the collaborative efforts of the ministry and the superintendency over two years of intense work," explains Mayor Francesco De Carlo. "It will need to be updated over the years, also based on the progressive achievement of the established objectives, to allow the beauty of its monuments and the citizens of today and tomorrow to pass on our history without sacrificing the livability and authenticity of the area." "I am delighted to share this significant new moment with the community of Alberobello, with whom just a few months ago, in Rome, we submitted the candidacy of the 'Pietramadre' project for Italian Capital of Culture 2027," says Regional Councilor for Culture, Viviana Matrangola.