On most mornings, Mylène Ebrard hops on a waterbus from her home in Giudecca, a neighbourhood of Venice with a village-like feel, and across the canal to her favourite bar, where over a hot chocolate she works from her mobile phone.

The ritual has become sacred to the rhythm of her day in Venice, where the French communications specialist has lived since October as part of a project aimed at attracting remote workers to help repopulate the lagoon city.