Italy's greenest newsagent: the story of Mauro Silenzi, who with his committee is planting hundreds of trees at Porta Portese (photo)

In Rome, an example could transform the green face not just of a neighborhood, but of a city. €100 to adopt a tree. Plant it, water it, and care for it. A plaque commemorates this generous gesture.

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the voice of Porta Portese association

THE VOICE OF PORTA PORTESE ASSOCIATION

Mauro Silenzi, 59 years old, Roman, it's the greenest newsagent in ItalyHis story is an example, in a city where trees are not only not planted but usually destroyed, of how the green destiny of a neighborhood, and potentially a city, can be changed thanks to citizen mobilization.

ALSO READ: Planting and adopting trees is the latest trend among green-loving citizens. They're also urban gardeners (photos).

MAURO SILENZI, ITALY'S GREENEST NEWSPAPER

Silenzi, a newsagent for generations, has managed to create a real transversal movement around his newsstand in Largo Alessandro Toja, to plant trees in the area of Porta PorteseThe initiative was born after the inglorious end of the neighborhood's redevelopment work. Once the construction site was closed, Silenzi and the other residents of the area discovered the bitter truth: the sidewalks and road surface had been fixed somehow, but the trees, even though they were foreseen in the contract, had not been planted. The reason? The money for the work had mysteriously run out. Thus, the area risked being a concrete maze, without a shadow of a corner of green.

At that point Silenzi got moving and formed an association, The voice of Porta Portese, and asked 100 euros to adopt a treeTo plant it and care for it for several years, in agreement with the local municipality. Over 100 trees arrived, all planted, and the neighborhood changed. Each resident who chose to adopt was able to place a plaque on the trunk in memory of a family member or with a specific dedication.

TO KNOW MORE: Mustafa, the Moroccan gardener who emigrated to Naples and created a flowerbed on the city's sidewalk

Mauro Silenzi's initiative to plant trees in Rome

To finance the project, Silenzi has also changed the management of his newsstand. They no longer just sell newspapers, periodicals e subway tickets, but also used books, donated by citizens, to raise funds for the management and planting of trees in the Porta Portese area.

Silenzi's initiative in Rome did not go unnoticed and spread to other neighborhoods of the city, starting in Testaccio, near Porta Portese, and then extending to Trastevere and Parioli.

(Cover image source: Corriere della Sera)

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