Bringing Abruzzo Together Since 2007
Life in Abruzzo is a registered Italian cultural association - independently covering, celebrating and advocating for one of Italy's most extraordinary regions. No property agenda. No paywalls. Just honest, editorially independent coverage of Abruzzo life, created by people who live here.
The Neighbour Who Started It All
Italia di Bascianella, Teramo · The neighbour who inspired Life in Abruzzo in 2007
It Started with a Nonna
Life in Abruzzo was not created to make money. It was created to help a neighbour.
Italia di Bascianella was a farmer, a cook and a Nonna in the small frazione of Bascianella in Teramo province. Generous, active and endlessly busy, her afternoons were spent tending her orto and cooking for the local children and grandchildren she babysat. She was much admired in the village and the surrounding area - not just for her food, but for her warmth.
When she found out that her neighbour Sam did web marketing for a living, she asked her a simple question: could she write something about Abruzzo? Something that might bring people to the region, encourage young people to stay, and slow the depopulation that was quietly emptying the mountain villages she loved.
That conversation started Life in Abruzzo in 2007.
In 2026, when UNESCO formally recognised Italian cuisine as intangible cultural heritage, someone shared a photograph of Italia on a local news site. She received more than 60,000 likes. The grandmother who inspired this site - her kitchen, her orto, her belief that Abruzzo deserved to be known - was recognised by tens of thousands of strangers who had never met her but understood exactly what she represented.
She is the reason we exist.
Life in Abruzzo began in 2007 as an independent English-language platform covering a region that the wider world had barely discovered. Long before Abruzzo became fashionable, before the relocation agencies arrived and before the property portals found it, we were writing about its food, its history, its people and its extraordinary landscape.
In December 2024, after seventeen years of community building, we formalised as the Associazione Culturale Life in Abruzzo - a registered Italian cultural association, not-for-profit, with a clear mandate: to increase knowledge of Abruzzo in English, to support the region's communities, and to connect the global Abruzzo diaspora with the place they came from.
We have no properties to sell, no commissions to earn and no agenda beyond honest, accurate, editorially independent coverage of Abruzzo.
More Than a Blog
Any website can list restaurants and hotels. What Life in Abruzzo does is different. We are not a sales channel. We are a bridge between Abruzzo's small, authentic, often overlooked cultural organisations and the international English-language audience that would love them if they only knew they existed.
We have helped a Pro Loco in a tiny mountain village reach readers in Enchanted Landscapes magazine. We have brought international travel writers to walk ancient shepherd routes with a cultural association keeping transhumance alive. We have helped a community cooperative in an earthquake-damaged village attract international visitors. We have amplified environmental petitions, supported wildlife charities, and covered stories that the mainstream Italian press rarely touches in English.
We do this because Abruzzo deserves it. Not because it is profitable - it rarely is - but because this region has an extraordinary story to tell and not enough people telling it honestly, in English, without an agenda.
Six Pillars of Activity
Editorial Coverage
Free, paywall-free articles, guides and news about Abruzzo in English - covering culture, food, history, travel, practical life and current events.
Events & What's On
Free-to-view listings of sagre, feste and events across the region. A community calendar open to individuals and businesses to promote their territory.
Abruzzo Connections
A curated directory helping English speakers find Abruzzo businesses and services worldwide - searchable by location, category and speciality.
English in the Woods
English language camps held in small villages and countryside locations across Abruzzo - giving participants a different, deeper experience of the region.
Ancestry & Genealogy
Empowering those with Abruzzese heritage to explore their roots, share their family stories and connect with the region their ancestors left behind.
Living in Abruzzo
Practical, honest guidance for those relocating to or living in Abruzzo - from residency and healthcare to community life and local know-how.
A Safe Space in a Noisy World
The Life in Abruzzo community is one of the most active English-language Abruzzo communities online - and one of the most carefully managed. In a world of Italy Facebook groups overrun with property spam and unsolicited sales pitches, we built something different.
A Private, Moderated Community
Our members' community is private, moderated and spam-free. No property listings pushed at you without asking. No unsolicited selling. Just genuine conversation between people who love Abruzzo - travellers, residents, ancestry seekers, expats and those considering a move.
The Abruzzo Insiders Club is the members' community behind the site - offering monthly deep-dives, members-only guides, early access to events and direct access to people who actually live here and know the region well.
Milestones
Life in Abruzzo Founded
Sam Dunham launches Life in Abruzzo as an independent English-language platform covering the region - before it became fashionable, and with no property agenda.
L'Aquila Earthquake Response
Following the devastating L'Aquila earthquake, Life in Abruzzo organised an art auction to raise funds to help restore the city. Community fundraising at its earliest.
No Oil Abruzzo Campaign
Life in Abruzzo produced English-language editorial supporting the No Oil Abruzzo environmental campaign, bringing international attention to the threat of oil extraction in the region alongside figures including George Clooney and director Anton Corbijn.
Let's Blog Abruzzo
The first English-language travel event in the region, held at Santo Stefano di Sessanio in May 2013, bringing international travel writers, journalists and bloggers from the US, Australia and Europe to Abruzzo.
Words of Wine European Blogger Award
Sam Dunham awarded the Words of Wine European Blogger Award by Il Consorzio di Tutela dei Vini d'Abruzzo - recognising outstanding food and travel writing about the region.
Sunday Live in Abruzzo
During the pandemic lockdowns, Life in Abruzzo launched a series of video podcasts bringing stories, people and places from Abruzzo to an audience stuck indoors worldwide.
#CookForUkraine - €3,675 Raised for UNICEF
Life in Abruzzo organised an online raffle and awareness fundraising day in support of the #CookForUkraine initiative, raising €3,675.75 for UNICEF's Ukraine fund - with full public accounts published for transparency.
Marsican Bear Fence Appeal
Our community raised €990 on the first day of fundraising for protective fencing to keep Marsican bears safe. Further fundraising events supported the WWF centre in Atri and On The Road Cooperativa Sociale.
Borsacchio Nature Reserve - Advocacy Campaign
Life in Abruzzo published and amplified the petition by La Riserva Naturale del Borsacchio against legislation that would remove 78% of this protected coastal area - bringing international English-language attention to a local environmental fight.
International Press for Poggio Umbricchio Pro Loco
Life in Abruzzo helped the Poggio Umbricchio Pro Loco secure international coverage of their Tuber Magnatum white truffle festival in Enchanted Landscapes magazine with the article The Life-Line of White Truffles - bringing their small territory to a global audience. The Pro Loco subsequently joined the Abruzzo Connections directory.
Formal Registration as Cultural Association
After seventeen years of independent community operation, Life in Abruzzo formally registered as the Associazione Culturale Life in Abruzzo in December 2024.
Seminando Storie - Slow Food Abruzzo
Life in Abruzzo was invited by Slow Food Abruzzo, alongside Abruzzo's largest Italian-language blogger, to participate in the launch of Seminando Storie (Sowing and Spreading Stories) - a project in the Subequana Valley giving children a platform to tell their mountain stories to the world. The project's founding principle: that Abruzzo is an international region, that its large global diaspora deserves to hear directly from the next generation, and that young Abruzzesi shouldn't only be telling their stories to Italians.
Fano Adriano - Fanesia Community Co-operative
Life in Abruzzo created an event and weekend programme to bring international visitors to Fano Adriano, a small mountain village still repairing itself after earthquake damage, home to the Fanesia community co-operative with its new co-working space. The project gave the village international promotion and a platform to welcome visitors from beyond Italy. Fanesia subsequently joined the Abruzzo Connections directory.
Forte e Gentile - Portrait Exhibition
Sam Dunham was invited as one of the sitters for Forte e Gentile - i volti dell'Abruzzo, a portrait photography exhibition celebrating the evolving identity of Abruzzo. The exhibition ran from late 2025 into 2026, concluding in Pescara - a demonstration of how Life in Abruzzo works alongside the region's broader cultural associations.
Abruzzo Insiders Club - Official Launch
1st May, Life in Abruzzo will launch the Abruzzo Insiders Club - the members' community that had been building quietly behind the site for seventeen years. A private, moderated space for travellers, residents, ancestry seekers and Abruzzo lovers worldwide to connect, learn and belong. The natural next step for a cultural association that has always been about bringing Abruzzo together.
Fundraising & Advocacy
From earthquake relief to wildlife conservation, from Ukraine aid to local street charity fundraisers, the Life in Abruzzo community has consistently shown up when it matters. We have supported the Marsican bear conservation programme, the WWF centre in Atri, On The Road Cooperativa Sociale and a range of local causes.
All fundraising accounts are published publicly and transparently on this site.
International Reach
Life in Abruzzo has been a trusted resource for international media productions seeking to cover the region authentically. We have provided support, guidance and local knowledge to productions including Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy, A Place in the Sun, and a Jamie Oliver and Gennaro Contaldo series on Italian food culture.
We have also supported international tour operators and universities establishing programmes in the region, and provided English-language editorial support for regional environmental and cultural campaigns.
Sam's work and Life in Abruzzo have been featured in The Guardian, The New York Times, Food & Wine Italia, ANSA, Il Centro and Channel 4, among others.
The People Behind Life in Abruzzo
Sam Dunham fronts a team of collaborators, contributors and regional experts who between them cover food, culture, history, travel, ancestry and practical life in Abruzzo.
Founder of Life in Abruzzo and director of the Associazione Culturale. Winner of the Words of Wine European Blogger Award 2017. Organiser of Let's Blog Abruzzo 2013 - the first English-language travel event in the region. Creator of English in the Woods. Abruzzo resident and advocate since 2007, based between Rome and a little house in Bascianella (TE).
Peter has been visiting and documenting Abruzzo since 2001, building an extensive photographic and archival database of the region. He specialises in historical research and has been an invaluable resource for members tracing their Abruzzese ancestry, connecting descendants with images and records of the villages their families left behind.
Senior researcher in the Sociology of Tourism at the University of Teramo and Adjunct Faculty at the American University of Rome. President of Slow Food Abruzzo and member of the International Research Network on Agritourism. Rita brings academic rigour and deep regional knowledge to the association's work on sustainable tourism and rural development.
Philadelphia-based restaurateurs and Abruzzo advocates of 25 years. Operators of Le Virtu, an Abruzzese trattoria in South Philadelphia, and producers of regional culinary programming for US public television. Francis's roots are in Castiglione Messer Raimondo. Together they have brought Abruzzo's food and wine culture to American audiences through events, writing and media production.
A behind-the-scenes contributor to Life in Abruzzo since its founding in 2007, working in a technical and strategic capacity alongside contributing articles and graphic elements. Currently dividing his time between Rome and Abruzzo.
Born in Anversa degli Abruzzi, Nunzio returned to his home village after graduating in Economics at Sapienza University to found La Porta dei Parchi - a cooperative putting his thesis on the recovery of marginal areas through pastoralism into practice. His counter-current commitment to ethical, organic, solidarity-based agriculture and traditional breeding has earned him recognition as a "philosophical shepherd" - a voice for the territory, the traditions of Abruzzo and the living heritage of the central Apennines transhumance routes.
Based in Lanciano where he runs his own independent practice, Michelino specialises in civil law including contracts and sponsorship, and occasionally takes on criminal cases. One of that rare breed of Abruzzo lawyers who speaks English - an invaluable asset for an association whose members and partners span the English-speaking world.
Work With Us
We welcome collaborations with businesses, tour operators, cultural organisations, media productions and individuals who share our values. If you are interested in advertising in the Abruzzo Connections directory, contributing to the site, or working with us on a project, get in touch.
Advertise with Us Contact UsSupport Our Work
Life in Abruzzo has been free to read since 2007. If this site has helped you plan a trip, trace your roots, find a business or simply learn more about this extraordinary region, consider supporting our work.
Support Life in AbruzzoReaching 180,000 People a Year
Life in Abruzzo reaches 180,000 people a year across our website, Facebook and Instagram channels - English-speaking travellers, expats, ancestry seekers and people actively planning to visit or move to Abruzzo. An audience that Italian regional businesses cannot easily reach any other way.
"My cooking classes have been booked this summer by families and groups from Holland, USA and Iceland all because of being found in Life in Abruzzo. For such a small cost, it has an incredible reach."
Novelia, Cooking Class Owner, Sulmona
Work With Us →