The relationship between the Benedictine monks of the Camaldolese Congregation and the forest around the Italian Hermitage of Camaldoli in Arezzo can be considered as special case of sustainability. The agrosilvopastoral productive system established and managed for over eight centuries by the monks is a tangible example of multifunctional, flexible and sustainable management of environmental resources, and of socio-economic development. However, this relationship suggests an inner development chance for everyone, beside having a spiritual significance for the monks. All the activities performed by the monks had a meaning that trascended the practical dimension.

The paper aims to explain Camaldolese Forest Code, The roots of sustainability, an initially project launched by Collegium Scriptorium Fontis Avellanae in 2003 that has undergone further development. Moreover, it wants to suggest new approaches within the sustenability culture starting with a reinterpretation of the monks' agrosilvopastoral productive system to save the environment, saving the human.

Authors: Claudio Gambardella, Raoul Romano