Application of the DNSH Principle to the Restoration and Enhancement of a Historical Garden: The Project “Well-Being and Spirituality: Orto-giardino Laudato Sì”

The application of the “Do No Significant Harm” (DNSH) principle, as foreseen by the Italian Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR in Italian), intends to demonstrate that a project intervention does not cause significant harm to the environment and can produce positive impacts. This chapter describes the results of a preliminary analysis of environmental aspects and impacts, in accordance with the DNSH, related to the restoration and reforestation of the historic garden of Villa San Leonardo al Palco in Prato. Alongside the care and restoration of the villa, which already hosts events, conferences, and retreats, the project “Well-being and spirituality: Orto-giardino Laudato Sì” will enhance the garden and preserve biodiversity, with benefits for citizens and tourists. One of the main objectives is the adoption and development of ecosystem functions in the garden, with direct and positive environmental effects. The principles of both circularity and sustainable agriculture inspire the creation of a bioactive garden to cultivate local biodiversity for self-consumption, with the possibility of enhancing sustainable food models, health, and well-being. The garden will become an ecological, economic, and social laboratory capable of strengthening and spreading scientific, technical, botanical, and environmental knowledge.