Publications
From common land to farmhouses: agricultural penal colonies and the project of modern rurality in Sardinia, Italy
Sardinia's agricultural penal colonies, established between the 1860s and 1960s, served as 'institutions of dispossession' that accelerated the ideological shift away from feudalism, commonality, and pastoralism. These colonies, part of a broader European trend, were designed to reshape rural landscapes through large-scale spatial planning, intersecting with internal colonization and settler colonialism. The study analyzes their role in Italy's political transitions, comparing them to similar projects like the Dutch 'Colonies of Benevolence' and France's Mettray penal colony. It highlights their impact on Sardinia's rural domain, linking them to later civilian agrarian plans such as Fascist reclamation efforts and post-war reforms.
Colonies of benevolence: A carceral archipelago of empire in the greater Netherlands
The Colonies of Benevolence, an early 19th-century Dutch social experiment, emerged as a model for pauper relief and rehabilitative discipline, challenging traditional notions of imprisonment. This 'carceral archipelago' served as a blueprint for domestic settler colonialism and was widely emulated across Europe and in Java, lasting over a century. The study reveals that this system addressed Liberalism's contradictions by disciplining the property-less without incarceration, offering insight into its dual role as both a colony and a 'prison designed not to be a prison.' By analyzing Foucault's omission of colonialism, the research contextualizes the experiment within broader imperial dynamics.
Levende cultuurlandschappen als Werelderfgoed
This study highlights that change within UNESCO World Heritage Sites, particularly 'living' or 'continuing' cultural landscapes, is feasible but requires careful management and a focus on quality. The research challenges traditional European notions of heritage authenticity and the nature-culture divide by incorporating perspectives from Asia and Africa. It emphasizes the importance of involving landscape architects and adopting concepts like layered landscapes and path dependency to guide sustainable development. The study examines five case studies, including the Colonies of Benevolence, to illustrate these principles.
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