The Wetland Contract as a Governance Tool to Manage Conflicts in the Venetian Lagoon

Venice and its Lagoon, a vulnerable UNESCO World Heritage
property, requires innovative governance tools to manage its
complexity amid intensifying impacts of climate change. The
local community has the potential to act as a living laboratory
for testing new approaches to climate change mitigation and
adaptation. This article examines the participatory process behind
the Wetland Contract for the Northern Lagoon of Venice,
a government instrument designed to strengthen protection
of the lagoon’s wetlands. The initiative brings together diverse
stakeholders and local actors who commit to managing, restoring
and protecting wetlands in a coordinated manner. The contract
aims to balance competing priorities of socioeconomic
development and biodiversity conservation.