Explosion of Ligurian's flora on our green roof

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In 2016, our courtyard in Trastanello became a small experimental landscape where architecture, nature, and community came together. A group of architecture students from Slovakia joined us for a hands-on workshop to design and build a green roof—an idea rooted in sustainability but realised through improvisation and shared effort.

Using simple, locally available materials, we transformed an ordinary surface into a living structure planted with resilient species such as sedum, wild thyme, and small grasses adapted to dry conditions. Beneath the shade of the elderflower tree, ideas were sketched, tested, and built layer by layer.

The process was as important as the result. Everyone contributed, learning by doing. Over time, the roof has blended naturally with its surroundings, echoing the spontaneous vegetation of the Ligurian hills—aromatic herbs, hardy succulents, and seasonal wildflowers.

Looking back, it remains a moment where learning, making, and living merged into one.