Bridging Legacy and Innovation in Protected Areas for Nature Restoration. Navigating the Complexities of the Piedmont Po Park Plan

Protected areas play a crucial role in shaping territorial and landscape policies, especially in light of global challenges such as sustainability goals, climate change, biodiversity loss, the recent pandemic, and social and territorial imbalances. In particular, nature parks serve as vital guardians of both biological and cultural diversity. The planning of protected areas remains an essential tool for actively managing natural resources. Today, it serves several purposes: it legitimizes and diversifies protection efforts within complex environmental redevelopment strategies; addresses risks and conflicts, engages communities in democratic and transparent processes, and facilitates the integration of development policies between parks and their surrounding areas. These diverse purposes necessitate a holistic and dialogic approach to environmental policies through planning, which should incorporate various specialized methodologies and plans at multiple levels. This paper explores the innovative approach developed in the 1990s for the Park Plan of Piedmont Po (Italy), which is currently undergoing revision. As tools for territorial government, Park Plans must be updated to move away from purely restrictive approaches and towards more strategic, flexible, and integrated methods. Moreover, the revision of the Piedmont Po Park Plan should align with regional plans and directives to implement actions addressing contemporary planning issues, such as sustainable development, climate change, ecological transition, resilience, and ecosystem services. It becomes then essential to effectively integrate conservation goals with those of innovation and development when defining the organization of the park territory.