Who are the new generations? What challenges does climate change pose for us? How to reconcile quality of life, business enterprise, and environmental protection? As we await the final event of the Dolomiti Paganella Future Lab, scheduled for 29 October, we asked some Altopiano della Paganella residents to give their own views about the 4 tough questions that underlie the project: the DNA of our holiday destination, new generations, climate change, and tourism in balance.

• Chiara, what does it mean to you being part of the family business, as the youngest family member?

When I was little it was always fun, because living in a hotel I passed my childhood playing with the children who were staying at our family hotel. As I grew up I started doing little chores to get used to this type of work. It was something I enjoyed right from the start.

• How come you decided to follow in the footsteps of your parents and become a hotel owner?

I did have some inclinations to follow other paths, but my parents, and especially my grandmother had passed on their love for this work to me when I was small, and so it was quite a natural development for me to carry on.

• As a new generation hotel keeper do you think your children will also follow in your footsteps?

I hope my children will follow their own dreams. I will be happy to try and pass on my enthusiasm for the work, just as my parents did with me.

• Some of the people of your age who grew up on the Altopiano della Paganella instead chose the option of moving away. Do you have any idea why?

Lots of my friends decided to move to the city because the only jobs available here are linked to tourism. If you want to do something else you have to move to the city, where there are many other options. Working in the tourist sector is not easy. It is demanding work, with long hours, and you need plenty of enthusiasm and motivation to do it.

• Is there a reason why you did not make the same choice as your friends?

I studied in Bolzano and then in Milan where I lived for many years, but the call to return to Molvena was too strong for me. It is a special place, every time you get up in the morning, you open the window and see the lake, the Dolomites, and a quality of life that is hard to find in the frantic rhythms of big cities.

Next 29 October the definitive results of the Dolomiti Paganella Future Lab project will be presented to the local community of the Altopiano della Paganella. The initiative was officially launched exactly two years ago, on 29 October 2019, in order to involve the public in the conceptualization of a development path for an entire community that lives from hospitality and tourist services.

In the meantime we will review the results achieved to date together with the international work team of the Dolomiti Paganella Future Lab.
(Italian audio only)

‘Pillole dal Futuro’ is an editorial project created to guide the community to the final event on October 29, a way to keep the discussion alive on the 4 tough questions of the Future Lab through the voice of some relevant figures of our destination. The six ‘pills’ were delivered to the homes of all residents during the summer months.

Download the sixth and final ‘Pill’ here (text in Italian only)