Why Sardinia may soon have no population left | Beyond Borders

A snapshot of one of the world’s most rapidly ageing and shrinking populations. By 2050 the overall population of Sardinia is expected to halve due to ageing, emigration and falling birth rates. We speak to different generations, from the young thinking of leaving the island due to narrow economic prospects, to centenarians in a society which is trying to attract more incomers with cheap housing schemes.

#documentary #beyondborders #sardinia #italy #bluezones #science
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Beyond Borders is a location-based documentary show telling the human stories at the heart of the trends shaping our world.

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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
1:45 Traditional Sardinian singing
2:30 Father and son sheepfarmers
5:07 Town with centenarians
6:54 94-year-old Sardinian
8:19 Local mural artist
9:29 Young and old Sardinians
12:18 Sardinian familiy moving abroad
13:40 English language school
15:04 Kyrgyz shepherds
16:50 €1 Ollolai homes
19:15 Depopulating town
22:05 Sardinian cheesemaker
24:55 Credits

[luciusverus]

I am a 56 year old Sardo, have lived in The Netherlands, NZ, Cuba, London and Germany. Studied at Amsterdam and Antwerp.. now I am going back, to my beloved island.. and work as an osteopath. My Madre terra. I will live and work there, till I die. The circle is closing.

[delavan]

Sardinia is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. I was there for 8 months in 1979 and loved every minute of it.

[trekkingcottageapartmentsa]

I moved here 20 year's ago from the UK and I can honestly say it was the best decision I have ever made. This is a wonderful place to live if only they realized what they have here.

[SenzaTetto-fh]

Sardinian man here, the real reason why we are leaving is just huge propaganda that encourage us to leave for a "better" place which actually doesn't exist but only economic statistics which don't really make any real difference to individuals, people are taught to hate their place, I left Sardinia 20 years ago to London after 6 months I wanted to go back because my life was very miserable compare to mine in Sardinia but my family locked me out and so I lost my home and my family, I will regret this for the rest of my life

[LAM_AUT_ECU]

Some of my ancestors left Sardina over 100 years ago. As far as I know, none of their descendants ever returned, I hope to be the first. I have even been considering retiring there.

[fritula]

Those local women are 95 years plus: the fact is longevity is the key to Sardinia.
And their health and mobility are extraordinary!!

[antoniescargo]

I am from the Netherlands. I live outside of the Netherlands. About 300 km from the Adriatic. The Netherlands will not make you happy. Do not sell your house on Sardinia. You can always go back.

[villalunaesole]

I moved to Sardegna permanently 8 years ago...best place to live. Beautiful nature, great food, warm honest people, less stress etc 🥰☀️

[roxannaramirez]

I would move there in a heartbeat if I could. Having done the college thing and professional life for over a decade, I find more satisfaction working my garden and being outside when I can.

[Sharky]

Imagine leaving that place to spend your time in a box in the city.

[ericchristen]

Thank heaven for the artist who paints old folks! ❤

[wernerdanler]

To many people in many western countries have been sold on the idea that they must go to university to get a good job and have a good life and raise a family.
This is a fallacy that has made universities prosperous, but the graduates do not prosper in many cases because there are not near enough good paying jobs for all of them.
The corrupt government of Italy needs to invest heavily in Sardinia and southern Italy to bring industry to these places so the young people can have a future there.

[libertas]

Grass is not always greener on the other side. I personally know 10 people who have returned to their parent's homeland and are very happy there.

[grovermartin]

In building the most environmentslly caring "green" house possible to me at the time, I chose to use cork tiles for one half of the house, from kitchen, dressing room, through to the master bedroom. Cork grows naturally without intervention, exfoliates from the trees, and is ground and compressed into usable forms for use. It suppresses fire, is largely impervious to water and staining, returns to shape even after decades of compression. Wonderful stuff! What was not green was that it takes a lot of oil to load it onto a ship and send it across oceans.

Would it not be a good investment for someone to establish a plant there on site to process the cork?

Edit: Cork is cool underfoot in the summer, and feels warm in the winter.

[jokersolitaire]

What a privilege to get treated to a live a cappella concert at the local bar! I love singing in a cappella ensembles, so I'd have a great time there! But in all seriousness, it feels so confusing to see this region emptying out when it still has so much beauty and natural resources to support its population. There is such desperate competition for housing and natural resources in other places, yet entire towns are being abandoned in this beautiful region. I understand the economic factors, but it still feels counterintuitive.

[markspano]

My grandfather left Sicily 135 years ago. Young people still have to leave southern Italy today for the same reasons. There is no opportunity. This is a failure of leadership both nationally and at the local levels.

[nenem.]

People are leaving those precious places in search of city life. But what they don’t know is that these places is where you will find peace of mind and tranquility. The young ones don’t want to live the way their ancestors lived. Mostly farming and simple life. I pray that they keep those areas alive and return to keep the legends of their ancestors alive 🙏

[RiverJames]

Our friends just moved there over a year ago to Bosa. They have two teenage girls and there are many festivals, restaurants and activities for them. Seems Sardinian is far more than what this report depicts.

[goingwalkaboutnow]

We spent 2 months in Sardinia this year in winter, it was magnificent. You’ve done an excellent job depicting the place and people.

[asiersanz]

It would be nice to see new people settling in Sardinia but, please, learning their language and culture and respecting their traditions, like those wonderful poliphonic songs