Sustainable Agritourism Intensive Week (SAIW)

• Challenge-Based Learning: Students tackle real, context-based challenges related to the sustainable management of natural heritage, working on issues grounded in the territorial and socio-ecological realities of agritourism.
• Experiential & Field Learning: On-site activities, field explorations, and direct engagement with local stakeholders transform Agriturismo Il Piastrino into a living laboratory for agro-ecosystems, biodiversity, and rural sustainability.
   

• Transdisciplinary Collaboration: Multinational and multidisciplinary teams integrate ecological, social, economic, cultural, and technological perspectives to co-design feasible solutions.
• Stakeholder Engagement & Service Learning: Interaction with local communities and practitioners fosters reciprocal learning and socially meaningful outcomes.

By the end of the in-person intensive phase, participating students will be able to:

• Apply multidisciplinary knowledge and academic tools to concrete, place-based challenges through fieldwork and stakeholder engagement.
• Integrate scientific, cultural, and territorial perspectives into feasible project-based solutions.
• Collaborate effectively with peers and stakeholders in international and transdisciplinary teams.
• Design creative, agile, and context-sensitive strategies to address real-world sustainability challenges under conditions of uncertainty.
• Reflect critically on the social, ethical, and environmental implications of proposed solutions.

Introductory lectures and methodological framing, followed by a field visit to the Migliarino–San Rossore–Massaciuccoli Regional Park as an internationally recognised benchmark reality of natural heritage management, including relevant rural areas.

Visit to a sustainably managed agritourism site in the Province of Massa, focusing on their heritage foundations and ecological, social, and economic practices.

Immersive, on-site activities in a multifunctional agritourism setting. Students work in international, transdisciplinary teams to address a real-world challenge on sustainable agritourism management, co-designing feasible solutions with local stakeholders.

Participants are responsible for covering their own travel to and from Pisa, as well as all meals and accommodation costs for the entire duration of the programme, including the stay at Agriturismo Piastrino. Students eligible for an Erasmus grant should consult their home university for reimbursement procedures and conditions.

The organisation will cover all coffee breaks, local transfers from Pisa to the various programme locations (including field visits and transport to/from Piastrino), and the farewell lunch.

IMPORTANT: As this is a Blended Intensive Programme (BIP), students from universities outside of Pisa may be eligible for financial support through Erasmus mobility funds. For questions related to funding, ECTS recognition, mobility, please contact the Circle U. office at your home university (see contact section below).

Accommodation at Agriturismo Piastrino—combining rustic charm with refined comfort—will be available from the night of Tuesday, 29 September (check-in) until the morning of Friday, 2 October (check-out). Please note that the cost of this stay is to be covered by the participants, in line with the programme’s general financial arrangements.

During this period, participants will stay in shared rooms (double or triple occupancy). For all other nights (before and after these dates), participants are kindly asked to arrange their own accommodation in Pisa.

As finding well-located lodging in the city can sometimes be tricky—particularly on platforms where listings may appear central but are not—Alessandra Meoni (alessandra.meoni@unipi.it) will be happy to assist with suggestions or guidance; participants are warmly encouraged to get in touch if they would like support in choosing a suitable option.