The paper discusses the after-earthquake strategy in Friuli in order to understand the basic methodological
tools used to provide an appropriate approach to reconstruction. The paper also analyses the evolution of the seismic
activity in Italy from the the Belice earthquake in 1968 to the recent Aquila and Abruzzo of 2009 delineating a weak
“Bel Paese” permanently under potential seismic attack. In order to face such kind of permanent fear of disaster is
important for a suitable approach to define an appropriate methodology covering the different phases of intervention
from the first-aid actions to the anti-seismic rehabilitation of the rural building as well as of the historical urban fabric. In
this perspective the action patterns of the Friuli experience are analysed in order to evaluate their capability to solve
the different reconstruction related problems. The positive results of the strategy adopted during the ten years of the
Friuli reconstruction after the 1976 earthquake are compared with the recent outcomes of the Aquila and Abruzzo after
earthquake reconstruction strategy.
