Greenpeace Italy launches campaign to protect the Strait of Messina from bridge construction

Greenpeace Italia has started the "Aggiungiamo bellezza al mare" campaign to defend the Strait of Messina, a fragile Mediterranean ecosystem, against the planned bridge project. Four Italian artists – writer Rosella Postorino, painter Francesco De Grandi, poet Laura Fusco (a.k.a. L’aura) and visual artist Massimo Catalani – placed their works on the seabed through underwater immersions, using the artworks as a symbolic protest.

The campaign highlights the strait’s scientific and environmental value, citing its Natura 2000 habitats and rare marine species. Greenpeace cites its "Mare Unicum" briefing, warning that the bridge construction would damage habitats, disturb migration routes and add pressure to an ecosystem already stressed by coastal urbanisation, waste management issues and climate change. Alessandro Giannì, Greenpeace Italy’s head of institutional and scientific relations, said: "The bridge site risks compromising precious habitats, delicate seabeds and key migration routes for many marine species."

By merging art and activism, the initiative seeks to shift public discourse from large‑scale infrastructure to preservation and cultural appreciation of the strait’s natural heritage.