is a five-year journey into the story of a community that has lost its roots due to a silent epidemic, but it is also the story of a community working to rebuild those roots, healing a wounded landscape one olive tree at a time. 

For centuries, the olive groves of Salento, Southern Italy, have shaped both the landscape and the local identity, but over the last decade, a minuscule yet devastating bacterium, Xylella fastidiosa, has been rewriting this ancient story, wiping out over 20 million olive trees.

Considered by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) as one of the most dangerous plant pathogens in the world, it has spread across 700.000 hectares of land causing a 90% decline in olive oil production in a region renowned for its liquid gold. But the loss is not only ecological or economic – it cuts deep into the region’s identity. The olive trees of Salento are not just agricultural assets; they are the keepers of history, silent witnesses to generations of farmers who have tended them for centuries.

Yet, amidst the destruction, signs of resilience are beginning to emerge. Years of research have led to the identification of olive cultivars resistant to Xylella. Replanting efforts are now underway, driven by a collective determination to restore the land. New NGOs, have launched crowdfunding campaigns to provide resistant saplings to small farmers who cannot access public funding. Artisans have begun repurposing infected olive wood, crafting furniture and sculptures from the twisted trunks of ancient trees.

As the people of Salento attempt to rebuild, a deeper question lingers: In a world where environmental change is constant, can a community preserve its identity while adapting to survive? And if our landscapes define us, how much can we afford to lose before we no longer recognize ourselves?