April 11 — the beginning of a circle of co-creation
There are moments in a journey when you realise that a dream is no longer yours alone.
April 11 was one of those moments.
We gathered at Borgo Orfeo with people from different generations, cultures and backgrounds. Some had known the place for years. Others were discovering it for the first time.
And yet, as we sat together, something became surprisingly clear:
beneath all our differences, there was a shared longing.
A longing for a place where we can feel safe.
A place where we can be ourselves and still belong.
A place where connection, individuality and contribution can exist together.
A NEST.
Creating the space together
What touched me most was not that we agreed on everything.
It was that we could bring our different perspectives into the same space — openly, honestly and sometimes vulnerably — while remaining connected.
We mirrored one another.
We challenged one another.
We inspired one another.
And somehow, the space remained compassionate.
Harmonious.
Safe enough for different voices to be heard.
That experience itself became part of the discovery.
Perhaps co-creation is not about finding people who think alike.
Perhaps it is about creating a space where our differences can meet without losing the deeper connection between us.
What does a NEST really mean?
During our conversations, many different images and ideas emerged.
A homecoming.
A place where you can breathe.
A community around a campfire where everyone has a voice.
A place where you can focus rather than constantly being distracted.
A place to share food, knowledge, creativity and life.
A place where you can have both connection and privacy.
A place where nature is not simply something around us, but something we remember ourselves to be part of.
Someone spoke about connection, co-creation and contribution.
Someone else about the importance of safety.
Another about the natural rhythms and cycles that sustain life.
Different words.
Different experiences.
And yet, somehow, the same underlying feeling.
Remembering what this place already knows
As we listened to one another, the history of Castelvecchio became part of the conversation too.
This village once had its own rhythm of community life.
People gathered on the piazza.
Bread was baked in the communal oven.
Food and produce were shared.
There was a school, a shop, a post office and places where people simply met.
The community was not an abstract idea.
It was everyday life.
And perhaps this is one of the questions we are carrying forward:
What can we learn from what this place already knows?
How might we bring some of that sense of belonging, rhythm and mutual contribution into a contemporary way of living?
Not by recreating the past.
But by allowing its wisdom to inspire something new.
From conversation to movement
Looking back, I can see that April 11 was not an isolated gathering.
It was another step in a journey that had already begun.
One conversation had led to another.
People came to visit the Borgo.
Others shared their ideas.
New connections appeared.
Architectural possibilities began to emerge.
And gradually, the dream started to move from something we carried within us towards something we could begin to explore together.
This is the part of the journey that continues to fascinate us.
We don't know exactly what Borgo Orfeo will become.
And perhaps we don't need to.
The people who enter the story will inevitably shape it.
Their experiences, talents, questions, dreams and contributions will become part of the place.
The beginning of a circle
We left that April gathering with more questions than answers.
And that felt right.
Because perhaps the purpose was never to define the NEST.
It was to open the space for it to emerge.
A space where people can meet.
Listen.
Share.
Create.
Challenge.
Laugh.
Eat.
Walk.
Dream.
And gradually discover what becomes possible when we bring our unique expressions into relationship with one another.
That is what we mean by co-creation.
And perhaps this is where the journey of Borgo Orfeo truly begins.
Not with a finished vision.
But with a group of people sitting together around a table, asking:
What could we create here — together?
And listening for what wants to emerge.
April 11, 2026
The first circle of potential future custodians of Borgo Orfeo.
