6. At the Water's Edge: The Salt Marshes by Kayak
COHABITING WITHIN WETNESS. VENICE AS A MODEL FOR THE FUTURE?
With the itinerant conversations of the cycle “Cohabiting Within Wetness,” the third chapter of the project “Venice as a model for the future?” developed by TBA21–Academy for its Ocean Space, we direct our eyes and walks toward the localized action of organisms and phenomena often disregarded, yet fundamental for the balance of this ecosystem.
The project “Venice as a model for the future?” was initiated in 2020 and is curated by Barbara Casavecchia and Pietro Consolandi. “Cohabiting Within Wetness” is part of the three-year research cycle The Current III—“Mediterraneans: ‘Thus waves come in pairs’ (after Etel Adnan)," led by Barbara Casavecchia.
6. At the Water's Edge: The Salt Marshes by Kayak
At Passo Campalto, right next to Marco Polo Airport, is one of the best preserved systems of salt marshes in the whole of the Venice lagoon. Known to few, but admired by thousands of people who land and take off every day, this complex network of canals (ghebi), pools (chiari) of sediment, and vegetation has resisted lagoon erosion for decades. Like all salt marshes, it is home to an incredible wealth of biodiversity, ranging from the classic halophyte (salt-loving) plants to migratory birds, crustaceans, insects, and fish that come here to breed throughout the year.
Here, the population took action with various demonstrations in the 1980s to protect the ecosystem, through direct action and the creation of associations. Among these, La Salsola, an environmental protection group that takes its name from the local plant salsola soda, has been active since 1989 in defending and rediscovering the ethnographic and environmental values of the Venice lagoon.
Tito Pamio, a long-standing local activist who has been protecting these salt marshes for decades and introducing them to visitors and lovers of the lagoon, will take us on a special kayak trip, traveling along the water's edge through the salt marshes.
INFORMATION
5PM: Meeting in front of Trattoria Al Passo, Passo Campalto. Departure for “Cohabiting Within Wetness. Venice as a model for the future?”
Reservation is required at this link. Limited places available.
IMPORTANT: this excursion will require renting a kayak, the necessary equipment, and individual insurance, amounting to a cost of 20 euros per participant. It will last slightly longer than the other programs.
TITO PAMIO
Tito Pamio, born in the Todori mill in Scorzè, has always loved water more than land, sailing more than swimming. He has lived in Campalto since childhood, on the shores of the lagoon with a large family. He graduated from the University of Padua, while teaching at Carpenedo primary school, with a thesis on navigation in the Lagoon. He has always been an activist for the ecological protection of the lagoon and his city, also through the activity of the Associazione Canoistica Arcobaleno: a fleet of about a hundred kayaks and canoes - "natural boating" - crammed into Via delle Barene, partly self-built with the local community, which have allowed thousands of people to experience the lagoon over the years. Tito's activity, together with that of many other local activists, makes this area of the lagoon gutter particularly attentive to issues of ecology and coexistence with nature. Despite various adverse forces, this experience endures and the floating pier installed here remains a unique point of access to the lagoon's ecosystem.
THE CURRENT III
“Cohabiting Within Wetness” is part of TBA21–Academy’s program, The Current III: The Mediterraneans: “Thus waves come in pairs” (After Etel Adnan), led by Barbara Casavecchia.
The Current III is a transdisciplinary program of perception, listening, thought and learning that supports projects, collective education, and voices on the shores of the Mediterranean through art, culture, science, and activism.