Across Italy’s countryside, a quiet revolution is taking place. Led by the Rete Rurale Nazionale (the National Network for the Countryside), a series of projects is reshaping how young people connect with rural landscapes. With an eye toward economic revitalization and experiential tourism, RRN is turning history-laden rural environments into open-air classrooms—and students into active participants in the future of agriculture. Together with Peek, of course.
At the heart of this mission is La scuola in campo (“School in the Field”), an educational initiative developed by ISMEA (the government institute of Services for the Agricultural and Food Market). Designed for secondary school students—especially those attending agricultural, tourism-business, and gastronomy-focused technical institutes—the program blends learning, exploration, and digital engagement.
Learning in the landscape
The core of the project is a network of geo-educational trails, each carefully integrated into historical rural landscapes. These trails do more than guide students through nature and cultural landscapes—they invite them to investigate it. Through themes such as traditional rural practices, biodiversity, soil fertility, and the impact of climate change on crops, the trails are crafted to foster curiosity, reflection, and dialogue. Peek’s Trip Designers helped ISMEA to shape these excursions, both in terms of content and structure as well as the technical realization in My Peek.
Students don’t just observe—they interact. Using Peek as a dedicated mobile app, they engage in quizzes, photographic challenges, audio-based storytelling, and even plant and animal identification tasks. The hands-on format transforms a typical field trip into a fully immersive learning experience. What they see, hear, and touch becomes part of a shared educational journey, blending sensory experience with scientific inquiry.
From field to classroom
Each educational excursion is just the beginning. After their time on the trail, students receive personalized feedback—compiled from the activities they completed in the field. Teachers then guide their classes in creating final reports, anchoring field experiences in academic reflection. It’s a learning loop designed to reinforce key topics, stimulate critical thinking, and instill a deeper appreciation for Italy’s rural heritage.
A platform for the future
Schools are selected for participation in the project through a competitive process managed by ISMEA. Previous editions of the program have already engaged dozens of institutions across the country—each contributing to a growing community of young learners and future rural professionals.
By combining modern technology with traditional landscapes, “La scuola in campo” exemplifies how education, culture, and sustainable development can intersect. In the process, it offers students more than just knowledge—it gives them a sense of place and purpose within the agricultural world.
In addition to the design of the excursions and on-site guidance, Peek made a series of videos of the three newest excursions.
Pictures and video’s by ISMEA.
