School children launch crowdfunding campaign to buy idyllic island to keep it out of bankers’ hands
School children in northern Italy are raising money to buy a paradise island to prevent it from being sold to ‘strangers’
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Children in Italy plan to crowdfund €3 million to buy an unspoilt island to keep it out of rich buyers' hands, La Stampa reports.
The youngsters, from a middle school in Mosso, Piedmont, want every Italian child to donate 50 cents so they can buy the island which they would rename ‘isola dei regazzi’ – The Children’s Island.
Budelli, currently known also as the Rose Island, is an uninhabited island in the Maddalena archipelago, between Sardinia and Corsica, famous for its pink sandy beaches, and is considered the most beautiful in the Mediterranean, the website reports.
The children said: “The message we want to convey is this: if all Italian school pupils donate €0.50 each we could raise the €3 million needed to win the next auction, which means this piece of heritage won’t fall into the hands of a stranger.”
They have so far raised €75 from the town’s 1,500 residents, which they said “seems small, but it’s a first step”.
The island has been at the centre of political wranglings for several years, with New Zealand banker Michael Harte having paid €2.94 million for the island when it was auctioned in 2013.
According to La Stampa, the business tycoon had initially drawn up conservation plans for the island, but local politicians opposed them and wanted to bring the island back under state control following the previous owner’s bankruptcy.
Although the Kiwi businessman eventually won custody of the island, the New Zealand Herald reports he has since given up on the project, with his lawyer citing “persistent opposition” as the reason.
The children got the idea for the project after they read the news about Mr Harte in Sunday’s La Stampa, and had a discussion about what might happen to the island in class.
Francesco Grillo, a student at the school, told the paper: “We read about the businessman trying to buy it and at the point we thought ‘we could make the dream of maintaining it in public hands a reality’.”
They have since launched the campaign, called Non si s-Budelli l’Italia, on Facebook.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments