The Ecotopia 2121 Project details the futures of 100 cities across the globe as though they've somehow overcome all environmental challenges and become super-ecofriendly. This month, we highlight the future of the Italian capital. In the 13th century, when Francis of Assisi was a youngster at a flashy ball among the sons and daughters of noblemen and women, he was asked this: "Now Francis, will you not soon make your choice from these beauties?" He is said to have replied "I

THE ECOTOPIA 2121 PROJECT PREDICTS / PLANS THE FUTURES OF 100 SUPER ECO-FRIENDLY CITIES ACROSS THE GLOBE. THIS WEEK, WE FOCUS ON THE BLACK SEA CITY OF VARNA. Varna, the marine capital of Bulgaria, is a city with a long and tortuous path to utopia... 4000 BC: Varna flourishes as a key trading site in the Copper Age on the western coast of the Black Sea. 600 BC – 300 BC: Varna is re-founded as a trading port by Greek merchants. The city is later claimed by Darius, the Persian