02. Fantastico Pinocchio

Pier Luigi Priola was born in Liguria and moved to Veneto at a young age, earning his diploma from the Istituto Tecnico. In the 1960s, his encounters with renowned landscapers guided his career, which he continues to pursue to this day. Working alongside these prestigious figures gave him key skills in garden design, at a time when there was great interest in introducing perennials and ornamental grasses. The difficulty involved in obtaining these plants led him to travel extensively throughout Europe. This obligation was soon transformed into an opportunity: the chance to produce something not yet available on the Italian market. With more than 60 years' experience acquired both in the field and from books, Pier Luigi is embarking on this adventure, continuing his research and distributing new varieties while designing prestigious gardens. The store in Treviso, where the company is headquartered, is merely the visible part of a much bigger project: a 34,000 m² nursery, where production and experimentation allow them to offer more than 4,000 varieties. The company's catalogue is appreciated by professionals and enthusiasts alike, and is a source of inspiration for all. The company has won numerous awards at Italy's most prestigious trade fairs and shows, particularly for the new varieties it offers every year. Nowadays, Pier Luigi is joined by his daughter Valentina, who has a degree in sales techniques. For more than twenty years, she has carried on her father's work with passion, contributing essential elements to ensure the continuity and future of the family business.

Mauro Riello received his degree in agronomy in 1988 and joined the Padua Order of Agricultural Technicians in 1989. In 1992, he set up a sole proprietorship specialising in the design, creation and management of public and private green spaces. Over the years, he has taken a number of specialist courses in fields such as nurseries and historic gardens, with both certified and uncertified bodies. In 2012, he completed a Bachelor's degree in park and garden design, strengthening his expertise and commitment to the field.

Valeria Filosa is originally from Taranto and moved to Padua in 2003. After receiving her diploma in architectural sciences, she specialised in landscape architecture in 2011 at the Iuav University in Venice, with a thesis on the rehabilitation of the Cava del Sole in Matera, the fruit of two years of research into abandoned landscapes, particularly that in connection with mining. During this time, she also developed a passion for photography, working in the university laboratory and helping to organise several exhibitions. She is a member of the Order of Architects of the Province of Padua. After working for several years in interior design, where she developed a keen eye for detail, she returned to her original passion: landscaping. Since 2011, she has taken part in a number of seminars, including an ESF course on abandoned landscapes, a class on the Venice landscape organised by the Regional Landscape Observatory and Iuav University, and seminars on green infrastructure in contemporary urban planning, the role of play in landscapes, and on the Palazzo and Giardino Treves dei Bonfili in Ponte Corvo and the Giardino Treves in Trieste. For several years, she also attended classes organised by the Padua Historical Gardening Group. She currently works for the municipality of Padua, where she coordinates the office responsible for design, urban agriculture and the protection of private green spaces. In recent years, she has focused on designing parks and restoring historic gardens, particularly the extension to the Parco Iris, currently under construction, and the redevelopment of the Giardini Della Rotonda, completed in 2023. She is also involved in designing new developments for existing parks and planning the Parco Agropaesaggistico in Padua. She is a councillor in the Venice delegation of the Associazione Pubblici Giardini.

Irene Gomiero was born and lives in Mogliano Veneto, a rural village where she developed her interest in the environment and passion for nature. She obtained a degree in biology at the University of Padua, with a thesis in botany, and qualified to work as a biologist, contributing to a botanical scientific journal. She began her professional career in a regional analytical laboratory, where she worked on a research project for the Faculty of Agronomy of the University of Padua. She currently works as an ecologist in the Environment and Green Spaces Department of the Commune of Preganziol, where she manages environmental procedures and the technical and administrative management of public green spaces. She is also involved in the design and creation of green developments for infrastructure, such as cycle paths and urban beautification. She helped design a cycling and nature trail called Il Sambuco in Preganziol. She is a member of the Italian Association of Public Gardens and holds a position on the association's Regional Council.

Claudia Alzetta graduated from the University of Padua in 1988 and began her career in 1989 at the Azienda Regionale delle Foreste del Veneto, where she designed wooded areas on plains and in urban outskirts, and took part in landscape redesign by restoring rural hedgerows. In 2000, she joined the City of Padua's Green Sector, where she manages urban trees, from planting to replacement, and collaborates on the design of public parks and gardens, such as the Parco Europa - Parco Della Musica and the extension of the Parco Iris. She also takes part in designing flowerbeds for international festivals such as Meranflora and Euroflora. In 2010, she obtained a PhD in plant pathology from the University of Padua, with a thesis on mycorrhizae in urban lime trees. Between 2016 and 2019, she worked as a technical expert in the EnRoute project, supported by the European Commission, which aimed to study the impact of urban green infrastructure on urban ecosystems. Since 2022, she has worked for the Veneto Region on the protection of the mountain and forest landscape, and also devotes her spare time to this. She is actively involved in spreading knowledge about trees, through articles and seminars, convinced that respect is born out of knowledge. She has been a member of the Associazione Pubblici Giardini since 2001, and is the councillor for the Veneto region. She is also a member of the Order of Doctors of Agronomy and Forestry of the Province of Padua, where she sits on the Board of Directors.

Maria Cecilia Baschieri graduated with a degree in forestry from the University of Padua in 1981, with a thesis on the management of forests, particularly oak forests, in the Republic of Venice (16^th-18^th centuries), published by Prof. L. Susmel. She then worked at the university in the field of regional planning. In 1983, she joined the Research Centre of the Agricultural and Forestry Society (SAF) in Rome, where she specialised in climatology. She is a member of the Order of Agriculturalists and Foresters. From 1984 to 1993, she was “Ispettore Forestale” at the Forestry Department of the Veneto Region, where she worked on forestry planning, land improvements and projects funded by the European Community. In 1993, she moved to Bolzano, where, following an open competition, she was hired by the Gardens Division of the City of Bolzano. There, she carried out projects, developments and public green space management. From 1997 to 2021, she was head of the Green Planning Department at the City of Bolzano. She was responsible for urban landscape planning and designing and creating parks along the Isarco River, on a stretch of around 4 km. She also worked on developing green spaces in new districts (Casanova and Rosenbach), focusing on creating public parks accessible to all, with playgrounds, fitness areas, multisports pitches and dog-friendly areas. In the context of her work for the municipality, she also designs and develops gardens for nursery and primary schools. With the aim of encouraging social and physical activity among the elderly, she and her team have created almost 100 urban gardens. Thanks to the collaboration with the Forestry Services, five new walking trails have been created around Bolzano, giving citizens access to the natural environment without the need for a car.