Articles by: Letizia Airos

  • Gianfranco Rosi
    Art & Culture

    Gianfranco Rosi: a Citizen of the World with a Migrant Heart

    Eritrea. Italy. Turkey. US. The life’s journey of Gianfranco Rosi has always been the one of a traveller, a citizen of the world with a migrant heart.

    Born in Asmara, Eritrea, during the War of Independence, at age 13 he escaped his country on a military plane to find refugee in Italy. He lived his youth between Rome and Instanbul before moving to New York City to attend the New York University Film School.

    His life story sounds like a movie, and it sets the cultural background with which Rosi always approaches story-telling. He has a distinctive aesthetical style, telling the stories of real people, told from their points of view: stories of migration, alienation, social struggles. These narratives are witness and reported with such honesty that they almost seem surreal.

    Critically acclaimed all over the world, Gianfranco Rosi’s documentaries have always received international attention and won prestigious prizes like the Golden Lion Award at the 70th Venice International Film Festivals with 'Sacro GRA'.

    His last effort, ‘Fire at Sea’ (Fuocoammare), recently won the Golden Bear at the 66th Berlin International Film FestivalFestiaval, and it was selected as the Italian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the upcoming 89th Academy Awards.

    Shot on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, the documentary chronicles the European migrants crisis and the travelers’ dangerous crossing of the Mediterranean Sea. In the background the ordinary life of the islanders is depicted through the eyes of a twelve-year-old boy from a local fishing family and a doctor who treats the migrants on their arrival.

    The movie already received rave reviews from the American press like The Guardian: “a distinctive, human cinematic style, a collection of tiny details that morph, against osmosis, into a shocking excavation of the mechanics of crisis”. Meryl Streep, chair of the Berlin jury this year, called the film “a daring hybrid of captured footage and deliberate storytelling that allows us to consider what documentary can do. It is urgent, imaginative and necessary filmmaking”.

    Recently screened and previewed at the New York Film Festival, the documentary is gaining large attention from North American audiences and thanks to the film distributor ‘Kino Lorber,’ the film will be screened in all major American theaters.

    We met Gianfranco Rosi during the Columbus Day celebration, and we had the chance to interview him about the movie and its reception here in the US.

    You presented your film here for the first time in New York. How did it go? What feeling did you get?

    It was a fantastic welcoming. It couldn’t have went better! Today there were two beautiful screenings, and they were both packed-out! The reaction of the press and the public was fantastic. And now there’s another preview set for October 16th. It was such an amazing reception, above anything I could have imagined before.

    How would you briefly present your film?

    In a few words, it’s a cry for help against a tragedy, which the film is trying to highlight. It’s a tragedy that thousands of people are living every day as they try to escape from Africa, and many are faced with death. The movie is a story about the island of Lampedusa, but it’s also a cry for help to make people realize that we can’t just turn a blind eye to the tragedy that is occurring right now.

    We are all crossing our fingers for the Oscar. Presenting a documentary is very courageous.

    It’s definitely courageous, and it had been born courageously from the jury that picked it. It has seen some controversy in Italy, but it was received very well here both by ‘Variety’, by the big named people, and by the public. Now we’re beginning a very long road. It is nominated in two categories, for best documentary and for best foreign film. That’s why I’m here; the journey has already begun.

    Is there anything in particular that struck you about Americans’ reactions? Clearly they are also dealing with the important concept of immigration at this point in time.

    I was struck by the point that the film is a collection and a microcosm of a universal message that is arriving in Lampedusa. People are often dying in the desert and out at sea because of their attempts to break free and their desire to escape from tragedies. The people who died in the desert are like the people who died at sea. The Mediterranean sea has become a tomb for 25,000 people who were trying to reach Lampedusa, and the same thing is happening in the desert at the border between the United States and Mexico, so the film was seen as a very moving piece.

     

  • As seen on i-Italy | TV. Chief Operating Officer John Viola
    Facts & Stories

    Rebuilding NIAF Anew

    Let’s make an appraisal of your first term as the President of NIAF. What did you want to achieve when you started, and what have been your major accomplishments so far?

    We don’t necessarily have term limits with this position. My seat as President of the Board is ex officio to my job as Chief Operating Officer, so I’m not necessarily looking at my work here in the same way as others in term-limited positions might. When I came here, the Foundation was clearly going through significant changes, and I wanted to make sure we started at the bottom by rebuilding how the Foundation did things. So far, our major accomplishments may not be glamorous ones, but we needed to spend these years doing things that would make the bones of the organization truly sound. We were able to create our first ever 3-year plan, and we actually executed it over the past 3 years. For example, for the first time in the Foundation’s history, we were able to successfully publish our first 3 annual reports so that our members and the general public can be kept abreast of all aspects of our operations. We have been able to give more large educational grants and high dollar grants to projects in Italy that are very important both to me and to the Board of Directors. 

    Are you satisfied with your tenure thus far? Is there anything that you wanted to accomplish but still haven’t?

    I guess I could say I’m never going to be satisfied with my tenure here. I came to the Foundation because I really believe that our community can do so much more together, and while we’ve accomplished great things in building our organization, there are still so many things that I see down the road that will be imperative for the Italian American community. The one thing I think we can do better is reaching out to other groups. It’s my hope that people in the community see me acting on my promise to make NIAF into an ego-free leader of the community, but there are still hesitations when it comes to working together among the many groups in our community, and I really want to focus on bridging those gaps and tearing down those walls in the coming years. I believe if we don’t, our community is going to lose valuable institutions that cannot only survive but thrive and grow stronger together.

    Some people out there may not fully grasp what it is that NIAF does on a daily basis. In a few words, please describe the day-to-day challenges you and your staff face. Day-to-day operations at NIAF are incredibly diverse, particularly at a time like now where we are in the heart of what we call “Gala Season,” which is the late summer through October when every spare moment is spent focusing on the massive Gala Weekend that we put on here in Washington. But operations in the Headquarters are a mix between incredibly buttoned up and business oriented, and incredibly casual and family-like. We have to be able to do a lot with a little, and sometimes I don’t think people realize exactly how much it is that we’re doing out there in the community. We have hundreds and hundreds of scholarships; we have programs both here and in Italy, events around the country, our magazine, our web resources, and the list goes on and on. And of course we have to be ready to react to events like the recent earthquake. So while there is a lot of fun to being part of our team day to day, it’s also, in many cases, a very frantic work place.

    What have you specifically done to rejuvenate NIAF and to reach out to younger generations?

    Our strategy on reaching out to younger generations has been to acknowledge that it’s not enough to simply have a young person at the helm of the organization, and it’s not enough to simply go out and try to create programs that will draw young  people. We must bring young people into our organization, give them a voice in where this place is going, and show them how we serve our community. Something I’m really proud of is that we’ve been able to create multiple series of fellowships that have allowed us to integrate, at many different levels, young people into NIAF’s operations. For example, our Italian American Leadership Fellows come from 8 – 10 universities around the country and are selected to participate in a yearlong fellowship in which they attend our Gala Weekend.

    The Leadership Fellows will participate in meetings with mentors and faculty from their own home universities, so they can work with leaders of our organization in order to develop better strategies and systems to integrate Italian American clubs with NIAF, which will act as a central place for those clubs. We’ve also done a lot of work to convert our stately DC Headquarters, the Ambassador Peter F. Secchia building, into a publicly accessible museum and learning center so that Italian Americans from all over the nation can find a resource for the preservation and propagation of our history and culture here in the nation’s capital. We’re really proud that we were able to do that with the program for museum fellows.

    We’ve got 3 incredibly intelligent young women working 3 days a week in our Headquarters on not only preserving and categorizing the entire collection of artifacts of the Italian American experience, but also deciding, under the tutelage of a mentor-curator, how they would tell the Italian American story in our inaugural exhibit. We brought these young people in and gave them real responsibility to make decisions that will effect what NIAF is for the community. We’ve also really worked hard to go back and create an alumni network for all of the students who’ve received scholarships or been a part of our “Voyage of Discovery” program; by rebuilding those ties that we had neglected for so many years, we’ve been able to bring them out to participate in our New York Gala and our Washington, DC Gala Weekend. We’ve created a much more multigenerational experience from what we used to have at the Gala Weekend.

    Forgive us for tooting our own horn, but we at i-Italy are proud of the fact that, thanks to you, we’re entering the second year of a fruitful partnership with NIAF.

    We’re so proud of the relationship we’ve been able to build together as well. I think beyond the fact that we share so many goals and visions for the Italian American community and the Italian diaspora everywhere, the specific projects have been really amazing.

    We are particularly happy with our joint internship program in “Journalism and Italian-American Affairs.” Four wonderful interns selected by you have just begun working at our headquarters this year.

    This is a great example of a program that, while it may have taken us a while to develop the specifics, ended up being so incredibly useful for our community and useful for the Italian diaspora. As you know, when we were faced with the incredible amount of exceptional applicants, I made the decision to change the program from 2 to 4 people! I feel these programs are not just about investing in making young Italians and Italian Americans better, but investing in making them active parts of the community. When a young person leaves an internship like this, there’s no way he or she is not going to want to participate in what we do, both at i-Italy and NIAF. And when these great young kids come our way, it’s our responsibility to make sure we are engaging as many of them as we can.

    Second, and most importantly, we began co-producing a series of televised interviews entitled “Italian Leadership in America.” And we started at the very top with a long, deep conversation with Justice Alito.

    This is a great project other than the fact that I look kind of goofy introducing such luminaries at the beginning of each video!
    I must say this is really a project that I think has a bright future. Often times people forget that Washington, DC is home to some incredibly accomplished Italian Americans and how much our community has achieved in so many different halls of power here in the nation’s capital. Sitting down with someone like Justice Alito, in such a humbling and special environment like the Supreme Court offices, really makes me feel great about our efforts because I know that each and every one of these interviewees said “yes” immediately to our requests.

    They did so because they felt good about sharing their Italian story, and that makes me feel like everything we do is for the right reasons. Even these incredibly accomplished individuals remember that their Italian heritage is at the core of who they are, and

    I think that is something that will work to encourage in future generations as well.  

    To see the video of i-Italy at the NIAF's headquarters >>>

  • Letizia Airos in a pause during the shooting of the video "Design Speaks Italian" at Ferrari Store in Manhattan
    Facts & Stories

    Editorial: Viva la lingua italiana in America!

    Buon Autunno

    They may belong to a sociolinguist, rather than to a poet as I normally prefer for this opening piece, but the words above sure sound like poetry! Talk about truth!
    My intention in quoting them is to encourage everyone to consider learning Italian, especially people’s children and grandchildren. In our latest issue we address the importance of learning the language of Dante. Obviously Italians no longer speak like the Florentine poet, yet the language still retains the history of an extraordinary culture. It’s the key to understanding the country.

    To prove our point, we asked various people to comment on their relationship to the language, like Jhumpa Lahiri, the Indian-American author who wrote her latest book in Italian; Lucio Noto, an accomplished businessman of Italian extraction whose career owes a debt to his knowledge of Italian; and Dacia Maraini, a true ambassador of Italian culture worldwide. Their special stories provide food for thought.

    As I write, an important event is under preparation in Italy. The States General of the Italian Language in the World is going to be held in Florence in October to kick off the XVI installment of the Italian Language Week. This year’s theme is “Italian and Creativity: Brands and Customs; Fashion and Design.” I-Italy had the honor of collaborating with the Italian Cultural Institute of New York on a promotional video that takes you on a journey through the streets of New York in search of Italian design, as seen through the eyes of a group of curious, spellbound kids. Stay tuned!

    We also pay a visit to Washington to get to know Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito a little better. Our exclusive interview is part of an ambitious

    new video project co-produced with NIAF entitled “Italian Leadership in America.” We’ll be telling you more about that project in the future.

    Ditto the television series we’re particularly proud of, “Grandparents and Grandchildren in Italian America.” Following our rst conversation between Matilda Cuomo and her granddaughter Amanda Cole, next up is a conversation between New York State Poet Laureate Emeritus Joseph Tusiani and Paula Tusiani. Theirs is a story of emigration, reunion, poetry and culture.

    October in New York is “Italian month,” which centers around the famous Columbus Day Parade on 5th Avenue organized by the Columbus Citizens Foundation. (We’ll be there in our tricolor FIAT 500 designed by Massimo Vignelli!) This year i-Italy has consolidated its special partnership with the Columbus Citizens Foundation to produce an exclusive insert in our Events section featuring articles and interviews with President Angelo Vivolo, Grand Marshal Robert LaPenta and this year’s two honorees, Federica Marchionni and Mario Batali.

    This year also marks the 40th anniversary of the Italian Heritage and Culture Committee of New York, which traditionally puts on many Italian events in the fall. Its president, Joseph Sciame, tells us all about them.

    As always, after Columbus Day i-Italy will head to Washington to participate in the annual NIAF convention. Thanks to our interview with president John M. Viola, you can come along for the ride.

    These are tricky times in the US, politically speaking, what with the election in full swing. So we decided to present the two candidates “our way,” entrusting the task to a pair of American columnists with Italian roots. Founder and President Emerita of NOIAW Aileen Riotto Sirey covers Hillary Clinton while Chairman of the Suffolk County Republican Committee John Jay LaValle gives us his take on Donald Trump.

    Of course we couldn’t do without our political commentator Jerry Krase’s analysis of how Italian Americans have voted in presidential elections over the last two decades. Read on. There are tons of stories on tons of topics. In particular I’d like to thank my friend Fred Gardaphe for collaborating on our reviews section and his original take on the controversial Italian television series Gomorrah upon its release in the US. I’d also like to thank all of our collaborators for providing us with a cross section of the Italian presence in New York. This time their ranks include 4 new interns chosen from dozens of applications for the NIAF/i-Italy Joint internship program in “Journalism and Italian-American Affairs.” We warmly welcome them all. We’re looking forward to a splendid year together!

    Last but not least, in our nal pages we journey to an extraordinary land and one- of-a-kind city, Matera, recently nominated the European Capital of Culture. What are you waiting for? We know you’ll be planning a visit in no time!

    In conclusion, let me thank all our followers on the web, on TV, and in print. We now have almost 200,000 friends on Facebook alone! You’ll also nd i-ItalyNY on Instagram. We are building our audience! Americans love Italy. It stands to reason they’d love i-Italy, too. 

  • Francesca and Ferruccio
    Fatti e Storie

    A Clifton, un nuovo passaporto per Spaccanapoli

    Ho voluto scriverlo io il racconto di un pomeriggio che ritengo molto speciale per la comunità italiana del New Jersey.

    Ho infatti accompagnato il console generale Francesco Genuardi, il sottosegretario agli Affari Esteri, Enzo Amendola, il  vicesegretario generale per i paesi anglofoni extra europei del Cgie, Silvana Mangione, i consoli Roberto Frangione ed Isabella Periotto.

    Destinazione: Consolato Onorario di Clifton.

    Occasione: la consegna della postazione mobile per la rivelazione delle impronte biometriche per ottenere il passaporto italiano.

    La notizia è questa: gli italiani residenti in New Jersey non dovranno più recarsi a Manhattan per ottenere il loro documento di espatrio italiano. I dati verranno infatti trasmessi direttamenet al Consolato Generale che spedirà il passaporto agli utenti.

    Si tratta di una risposta importante da parte delle istituzioni italiane, dopo la chiusura del Consolato di Newark avvenuta due anni fa. Una chiusura che aveva visto le proteste della comunità. Sono infatti 19 mila gli iscritti all'AIRE nella circoscrizione del New Jersey, molti di questi, soprattuto anziani, hanno difficoltà a raggiungere Manhattan.

     

    E' dunque un compito oneroso quello di Dominic Caruso - in carica da soli 8 mesi come console onorario - che ci ha accolto nel suo ufficio adibito a Consolato Onorario.

    Con il suo compiuter ha messo in azione la postazione per raccogliere le impronte del primo connazionale.  il sottosegreario Amendola, ha accompagnato l'evento con i suoi commenti e soprattutto una promessa: “Questo è solo l’inizio, dobbiamo costruire servizi ai cittadini italiani che sono qui.  Si tratta del primo passo. Torneremo presto.”

    E un  augurio viene anche dal  Senatore Turano, rappresentante in parlamento dei cittadini italiani della Circoscrizione America del Nord, in un comunicato diramato subito dopo l'evento “ la postazione mobile attivata a Clifton è una prima e bella risposta da parte del Ministero degli Affari Esteri. Spero che la stessa soluzione sia adottata al più presto anche per altri importanti consolati onorari”

     

    Dominic Caruso, visibilmente emozionato ha escalmato: "Con questa valigetta, la comunità italiana del New Jersey comincia ad avere i servizi consolari che ben merita. Io sono molto contento. Ringrazio il Console Generale Francesco Genuardi, i consili  Isabella Periotto e Roberto Frangione. Spero di meritare la fiducia che mi hanno dato”

     

    E le prime impronte, con grande emozione, le ha messe una persona di cui ho subito voluto sapere di più: il signor Ferruccio Milani. Come tanti italiani in giro per il mondo ha una lunga e affascinante storia di emigrazione.  Cosi' mi sono fermata piacevolmente te a parlare con lui e la moglie Francesca. Naturalmente davanti ad un vassoio di dolcetti, questa volta siciliani della pasticceria del signor Di Piazza.

    Dimentichiamo troppo spesso che nei passaporti, rilasciati in tutti i consolati del mondo,  contengono certo fotografie, dati, timbri - oggi occorrono impronte biometriche per rilasciarli - ma  soprattutto persone con storie che attraversano oceani e vite.

    Una coppia dolcissima. Lei di un paese che si chiama Fossano in provincia di Cuneo, lui di Milano. Cominciamo a parlare.  Entro nel loro mondo, fatto di difficoltà ma anche tante sfide, successi.

     

    Lei conosce il marito quando aveva 28 anni. Lui fino ad allora aveva lavorato alla Necchi Corporation, era executive vice-president. Le Necchi, macchine per cucire. Aveva cominciato con il venderle porta a porta quelle macchine, per poi diventare un dirigente in giro per il mondo. Francia, Belgio, Messico: New York. Ma un certo punto, nel 73, decide di tornare in Italia. Cambia azienda e diventa executive vice-president della Omega Orologi a Torino. Qui va per lavorare con Francesca. “Abbiamo lavorato assieme due anni, tre, all’Omega Orologi a Torino.” Ma il loro destino è all'estero: “ Poi siamo partiti per il Canada. Era il 31 Dicembre del ‘76, a Montreal, per lavorare in una fabbrica italiana, La Bontempi”.

     

    Era in Canada, ma rappresentava anche gli Stati Uniti: “dividevamo il nostro tempo fra la fabbrica, l’ufficio di Montreal, l’ufficio di Toronto, l'ufficio di New York. La nostra vita e’ sempre stata con la valigia in mano. Poi dopo un po’ di anni, siccome siamo delle anime sempre alla ricerca di nuovi challenge, abbiamo detto all’azienda: cosa fate in centro e sud America? Niente? Allora noi andiamo a svilupparlo, e siamo partiti. Abbiamo fatto un viaggio per 45 giorni in tutta l’America latina, centro e sud. Deciso di mettere la nostra base a Panama, gli uffici e … poi sempre in viaggio. Da Panama, dopo 4 anni ci siamo trasferiti negli Stati Uniti...” Una vita difficile da sintetizzare, ma di cui vorrei solo riuscire a trasmettere a chi legge l'energia.

    “ Siamo arrivati negli Stati Uniti nei primi mesi del ‘83. Qui abbiamo deciso di restare. Nel New Jersey perche c’era l’ufficio della Bontempi a Edison”

    La vita sembra aver preso il suo corso per questa coppia, ma riserva un imprevisto. 

    “Mio marito ha avuto 'lo stroke', la fabbrica ci ha licenziati. Lui voleva tornare in italia e io invece ho detto 'no'. Io qui voglio restare. Ho così creato la nuova societa’, Interbusiness USA Food, broker per 12 grandi societa’ italiane. Abbiamo creato questo mercato per loro. Sono 30 anni che facciamo questo lavoro.”

    “Abbiamo costruito la nostra casa a Warren, e’ 31 anni che viviamo li’, con un intermezzo di un anno che siamo andati a vivere in citta’”.

    Le manca  la sua terra d'origine ma ...

    “Si, mi viene nostalgia dell’Italia che ho lasciato nel 1976. Ma ho conosciuto altre realta’, altre culture, altre cose. Ho capito che l’Italia mi andava molto stretta. Io ho bisogno di grandi spazi. Come mio marito, che nonostante avesse raggiunto delle vette incredibili alla Necchi, alla Bontempi, all’Omega, cercava cose nuove.. conoscere il mondo conoscere altre culture...”

     

    Francesca ha un'energia speciale. Continua a parlare e lui l'ascolta affascinato. Ha il suo nuovo passporto, la domanda viene spontanea. Quale è il primo posto dove andrete in Italia?

    “Napoli! “ E dove a Napoli?

    Ferruccio risponde: “:Spaccanapoli.”

    “Perche’ Spaccanapoli?”

    “ Perchè una mattina alle 7:30 mi trovavo a passeggiare dentro la Spaccanapoli quando vedo una bella ragazza!”

    Francesca, per la prima volta sembra perdere la sua sicurezza, arrossisce e mi regala un grande momento di amore.
     

  • Stefania Giannini, the Italian Minister of Education, at the Italian Consulate in NYC
    Life & People

    “Openness, Inclusion, Equality. For a Better Society”

    I asked her for a simple conversation, an interview to reveal the work that she is doing, without entering into specific details. Stefania Giannini – the Minister of Education, Universities, and Research since February 2014 – accepted with enthusiasm.

    She was born in Lucca, studied at the University of Pisa and University of Pavia, taught as a professor of glottology and linguistics, and became chancellor of the University for Foreigners of Perugia. Those who live abroad may be particularly interested to know that she was a member of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ national commission for the promotion of the Italian culture abroad.

    I met with the Minister, in the guest room of the Italian General Consulate, during a break in the course of her recent trip to New York.

    First, I asked her to “introduce herself” to our readers. This is how she did it:

    “Professionally, I am a linguist. Since I was young, I have been interested in classic culture, the relationship between languages and places, and their development in the history of western culture. I was chancellor of an important and prestigious university with a strong international duty, and in that position, up until a few years ago, I was very involved in relationship between the United States and Italy.”

    What are the fundamental principles of your reform efforts as Minister?

    “I believe that now more than ever the key words of the education and school systems–as well as society as a whole–are openness, inclusion, and equality. Through my political action, inspired by what I would call a liberal vision of the world, I’m trying to affirm these principles. I fought for school reform, which was highly debated; maybe some of that echoed here, at least in Italian-American communities that are interested in our country. I am proud that, after its approval, we are enacting those principles. Those are the key words for a better society, more than egalitarianism or merit.”

    Your visit in America is brief but extensive. Can you describe it for us?

    “It’s my first trip as Minister, but it’s not my first institutional trip. In the previous positions that I was speaking about with you, I had many opportunities to visit this country and to be involved directly in bettering the Americans’ knowledge of the Italian language and culture. Now I’m here with two specific goals.

    The first is in Washington, and it’s participating in an important international conference on Arctic research. It’s a topic that Italy knows extremely well, from the CNR (Consiglio Nazionale di Ricerca) to the other sectors of the Italian academy that are physically involved in those areas. Next year Italy will host the G7 Summit; this is an important step.

    Then, in order to associate this trip with other institutions, I thought about accepting Boston’s invite to MIT and New York’s invite. It was my desire to be in contact directly with an environment made of innovations, young people, research, digital ventures, and to measure the potential for greater collaboration with both with us and with our system.

    You also met many young Italians with successful startups and measured what the government is doing for them in these sectors. This opened a truthful discussion about the critical situation that we have in Italy.

    I had a very packed day in New York. First, I went to the Italian Academy for Advanced Studies at Columbia University, an institution that I have known well from prior years. Next I went to Fordham University to assist – as the minister – with an agreement between Fordham and a group of Italian universities that are performing well in America. Finally, I visited NYU’s Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò to discuss reforms with the director, Stefano Albertini. December 4th [the date of the referendum on the constitutional reform, n.d.r.] represents an important day both for Italy and for Europe. Those of us involved in the government believe that the reaction will be positive, and it will allow us to proceed with changes that we deem necessary.

    Let’s talk about the Italian presence abroad, mainly regarding the world of research. A term is sometimes used in Italy, a term that I find absurd, in part because of how it sounds: “cervelli in fuga” ‘the brain drain.’

    “It’s definitely an outdated term at this point.”

    How about intellectual mobility? A circular mobility that brings Italians to America and Americans to Italy. It’s a constantly changing world. What are the new borders? How can we attract both Italian and foreign students and experts to Italy? What is the government doing, and what would it like to do?

    “We have a very clear idea that we can be summed up very simply, as you’re asking me to do. Up until a few years ago many countries were playing games and competing over the possession of raw materials and the presence of big businesses able to stimulate industry. Today, they’re also playing the game regarding the attractiveness of each country to talented individuals. Human capital is a fundamental factor.

    Today we need educational systems that teach us to learn, and to learn more. We need an environment of innovation that attracts young people and attracts, not those who are running away, but those who are moving around.

    The government is very aware of this, and we already began to implement some very specific measures. I’ll give you two examples.

    An international call is opening to scholars and researchers, both young and old alike. These individuals do not need to be Italian; they can be current residents in Italy, or they could be residents of another country.They will all be people that set the bar high in regards to their merits and their scientific excellence. In the coming months we will be introducing 500 positions for both full professors and associate professors.

    But this will not be enough if there are no top-down operations that target specific areas of the country, concentrate on specific subjects, have a strategic financial plan from the government, and that give life to – what we in Europe call – research infrastructure. That is, systems with high concentrations of businesses, research centers, and universities that work on the same projects.

    We’re doing it in Milan. It’s an important project, and it’s called “Human Technopole” because it will combine computer science, genomics, and biomedical work on diseases that affect the aging population. An aging society is one of the biggest global challenges, affecting more than just the western world. One billion Euros were publically invested in ten years, and there’s a great outlook for also attracting private resources. We’re expecting to create 1600 research and scholar jobs here for academics who view Milan as others already see Boston: a beautiful, attractive, and sustainable place for research, a city one would choose to live in.

    All in all these are two simple actions, but they also break an Italian inclination of trying to distribute a little to everyone, to finance as much as possible no matter how small, as to not displease anyone.”

    Those who live in New York know that many young researchers leave the south especially, where we have a big infrastructure problem. Funds for research are scarce, and working outside academia is difficult. However, many people say that staying in it is even harder.

    “I was talking about Milan because it’s an area post-Expo. Milan objectively has a fertile and fertilizable area. On October 6th together with the University of Napoli Federico II, we will launch an important center for Apple in Naples in the ex area of Bagnoli. I will personally be there. It’s an investment that Apple spontaneously made without special request. They chose Naples because it’s a vibrant, intellectual city and because there are important universities that form the ecosystem of the higher education. It’s an example of how this is happening in places other than the north.

    I’ll tell you sincerely, talking about a “southern question” in the university, in a global society such as ours, where we need to push for a higher quality all over the country, seems like an old topic to me. There must be other solutions.

    We need to make sure that in both northern and southern Italy there are opportunities for all those young people who see their future in scientific research. It will definitely be great when and if a student from Milan decides to move to Palermo to study a subject that perhaps isn’t as developed in Milan or in Turin. Or maybe instead of Paris, or Berlin, or New York, he chooses an Italian city.

    But from my point of view, it’s the national system that needs to be made effective. Often in the south – I don’t think I’m saying anything too controversial – it’s not the university system that’s weak; it’s the social, political, and cultural infrastructure that create the most difficulty for establishment, for life, and for quality of life. And these are other things the government is working on.

    In short, I don’t feel I can say the south has a disadvantage in the field of academics. It suffers here from the same problems it has in other fields; therefore, a wide-scale treatment needs to be done, not just one focused on universities.

    Let’s enter into the heart of your work. Can you tell us how schools are changing alongside the university system right now?

    “Schools need to change in general, not only in Italy, because there are no longer educational certainties that existed in the last century. A school that doesn’t teach a continuous way of learning and doesn’t change its teaching and learning model is a school that’s destined to be the caboose of the train and not the locomotive of society. School, by definition, is the locomotive of society.

    Thanks to large investments in the construction of schools and laboratories, Italy is innovating both its teaching methods and the places where teaching is done. The “Buona Scuola” law introduces standards that, until now, were absent in the world of Italian schools. Frankly, some reforms were not very well accepted, like the evaluation system. I’m the seventh minister that’s tried to introduce them, and the first the succeeded in doing so, despite the reaction of one part of the scholastic world – not of everyone, but of a loud, cohesive, and strongly union-supported group – which was very prohibiting. But I continue to believe that this new method of evaluation is right because if a system is not able to self-evaluate and to be evaluated, it’s hard to see what’s working well and what’s not working. It’s imperitive to introduce modifications that not only transform the weak points into strong points but also further reinforce the strong points.

    All this is important, especially in a country that, as the Arabs said, is too long and therefore has enormous differences between the cities and the outskirts, or longitudinally, between the extreme south and the extreme north.

    Therefore, we have evaluation, merit, and scholastic autonomy, which is another magic word that we recovered from Italian tradition and that used to be part of Italy’s genetic code. Let’s not forget that Italy is Maria Montessori’s country; it’s not the country of fat bureaucrats behind a desk. Nevertheless, an education system that never opened itself to innovation has frozen this great scholastic tradition.”

    Bringing the schools up to speed, not only with the times, but also with real life, is one of the most difficult challenges. However, this is in fact, what Maria Montessori did.

    “Absolutely. And with a lot of work, we have surpassed yet another taboo here, the combination of school and work. This integration consists of students gaining experience in business or cultural institutions during the three-year period of high school. Last year it became mandatory for all students in technical schools, professional schools, and high schools. A million and a half students will be involved in the courses over the next three years. This means we are breaking the notion of “First you study, then you put into practice what you studied.”

    This is a very “American” approach…

    “I’ll tell you of something that happened in the United States in the first professional development course that I held for Italian teachers here at Queens College. It was for Italian teachers and American teachers that teach Italian. I taught an applied linguistics lesson, and it seemed that the teachers really appreciated it. However, one of these very nice teachers sent me a card and wrote something like “Oh, Stefania, wonderful lecture, everything was great, but if you want to catch the heart of Americans you must be more pragmatic.”

    I had done a great lesson on theory, but the approach was the same one that we use in Italy: I will give you the principles, and I will also give you the rules. Certainly this is the product of an extraordinary European culture, and I don’t believe we should dismantle it, but that’s a whole other argument. There are other approaches out there, and this is what makes intellectuals that are in Boston, New York, or at Michigan University so strong.”

    Taking school outside of school and universities outside of universities is definitely a great challenge…

    “And so is bringing the outside world into the schools. It’s significant, and I believe it’s of upmost importance.”

    Let’s discuss the Italian language. As a professor of Glottology and Linguistics, you’re not a bureaucrat-minister that faces problems from behind your desk. Why do you think the Italian language in the world, starting with the United States, is important? What can the Italian language mean for a foreigner?

    “For now a promise: to know and to learn a language that’s not your native language is not only a way to communicate for work, but it’s also a unique and incredible way to lead people to another vision of the world. With Italian this vision of the world matches with a country that is a giant in terms of humanistic culture of the western world. This is an objective statistic; we didn’t discover it, and it remains largely unknown. Clearly, it has a unique and incredible richness for a person that comes from other cultural and linguistic experiences.

    I wish that we could reinforce the results that we had in the United States over the past 10-15 years of work: the insertion of Italian as a language for the Advanced Placement Program in colleges and the possibility of Italian as a major or specialization. This is possible thanks to two factors: one of them is in our hands, and the other is in their hands.

    The responsibility in our hands is to continue to support the promotion of the Italian language and to continue to finance it as much as possible. We also have to modify the old teaching methods; now we will teach the language as part of a project of cultural promotion. From my knowledge of this country, the language & culture pairing should be inverted in order of importance, that is culture & language.

    Americans’ cultural interests inspire them, and that then becomes linguistic competence. In America this is more common than the opposite, which is what happens in other countries.”

    This is the guiding principle behind our work at i-Italy! First presenting our culture in English, then inviting our readers to study Italian. It’s impossible to reach an American simply by saying, “study Italian.”

    “No doubt! This is our duty, and it needs to continue this way, with clarity of mind.

    There’s also another thing that Americans need to do. I feel they’re making several cuts, not only Italian, but also other foreign languages in the Humanities departments of important universities. This is a cultural-political choice that I feel is very dangerous. If a country that is rigidly monolingual closes its doors at a time when being as open as possible is necessary, it needs to be aware of the consequences that will result for the next generations.”

    History teaches this subject in America. Many generations of Italian Americans lost their original language, “obligated” by society to integrate and speak only English.

    “This doesn’t only apply to Italian; it was a policy regarding all languages. Therefore, we will do what we need to do, but we are also calling for a bit of courage and responsibility on their part because it’s as if they are stealing from the cultural endowment left for their children and grandchildren."

    Is there anything that you think is important, that you want to say, and that I didn’t already ask you?

    “In general, to the United States, to the Italians who are here, but also to those interested in our country… I think that today the connection between Europe and America, specifically between Italy and America, is very strong. There is a high-conductivity steel thread of scientific and cultural diplomacy that links us. Therefore, it’s of extreme importance to continuously invest in these partnerships, in these contacts, and to focus ourselves on more than just our output for the next day and for the next year, even if it’s scientific output. It’s a great idea to invest in innovation — provided it is understood as it should, as technology transfer, as the creation of start-ups  — and it should always be accompanied by a growing sensibility for the broader cultural dimension of innovation."

    At the beginning I asked you to present yourself to the readers. Behind a minister, a person that has an institutional duty, there’s always a person with her own story. We often forget about this because speaking about institutions makes the individual person seem distant. You’re also a woman and a mother. What crosses your mind first thing in the morning when you wake up and begin your duty as Minister?

    “That’s one heck of a question! I don’t deny that my first thoughts are always related to what I’m expecting that day (which is fitting for a person with such a gigantic responsibility) so I can manage it as well as possible. But personally I have a particularly strong attention to the “sentimental” side of life: kids and love. And I always reflect on the fact that for a career woman – in Italy mainly, but perhaps also here from what I see – the price to pay is still extremely high. I wish that for the next generations (she said with a smile directed at Consuls Isabella Periotto and Chiara Saulle, who were present at the time of the conversation) there coud be some lighter thoughts for a change.”

     

  • Fatti e Storie

    “Apertura, inclusione, uguaglianza. Per una società migliore”

    Le chiedo una conversazione semplice, un'intervista realizzata per divulgare il lavoro che sta svolgendo, senza entrare in dettagli troppo specifici. E Stefania Giannini, Ministro dell'Università, Istruzione e Ricerca da febbraio 2014, accetta con entusiasmo.

    È nata a Lucca,  ha studiato presso le Università di Pisa e di Pavia, è una professoressa ordinaria di Glottologia e Linguistica, ed è stata Rettore dell'Università per Stranieri di Perugia. E, cosa di particolare interesse per chi vive all'estero, è stata membro della Commissione nazionale per la Promozione della Cultura Italiana all'Estero del Ministero degli Affari Esteri.

    Incontro la Ministra nella sala degli ospiti del Consolato Generale d’Italia, durante una pausa della sua recente visita a New York.

    Le chiedo subito di “presentarsi” ai nostri lettori. Lei lo fa così:

    “Di professione sono linguista, quindi mi sono occupata fin da giovane di cultura classica, di rapporti tra le lingue e i luoghi, del loro sviluppo nella storia  della cultura occidentale. Ho fatto il Rettore di una importante e prestigiosa università con una forte vocazione internazionale e in quel ruolo, fino a pochi anni fa, mi sono molto occupata anche del rapporto bilaterale con gli Stati Uniti.”

    Quali sono i punti cardine della sua attività riformatrice, da Ministra?
     

    “Credo che oggi più che mai le parole chiave fondamentali dei sistemi educativi, dei sistemi scolastici e dell’intera società siano apertura, inclusione, uguaglianza. Nella mia azione politica, ispirata ad una visione direi liberale del mondo, sto cercando di affermare questi principi. Ho combattuto per una riforma della scuola molto discussa, forse qualche eco è arrivato anche qui, almeno in quella comunità italiana che guarda con interesse al nostro Paese.  Sono orgogliosa che dopo l’approvazione stiamo attuando quei principi. Sono quelle le parole chiave per una società migliore, più che egualitarismo o merito.”
     

    La sua visita  in America è breve ma intensa. Ce la riassume?

    “È la mia prima missione da Ministro, ma non è certo la mia prima missione istituzionale. Nei ruoli che le dicevo ho avuto molte occasioni di visitare questo paese e di occuparmi anche direttamente di una migliore conoscenza della lingua, della cultura italiana. Adesso sono qui con due obiettivi molto precisi.

    Il primo a Washington, ed è la partecipazione a un’importante conferenza internazionale sulla ricerca artica. È un tema su cui l’Italia ha eccellenze riconosciute, dal CNR (Consiglio Nazionale per le ricerche)  ad altri settori dell’accademia italiana che sono fisicamente impegnati in quelle aree. Il prossimo anno l'Italia ospiterà il G7, quindi questa è una tappa importante.

    Poi ho pensato di accettare l’invito di Boston, in particolare del MIT, e di New York per associare a questa occasione istituzionale altre tappe. Era mio desiderio di entrare in contatto diretto con quell’ambiente fatto di innovazione, giovani, ricerca, imprese digitali e per misurare le potenzialità di maggiore collaborazione con noi, col nostro sistema.

    Lo ha fatto anche incontrando molti ragazzi italiani con startup di successo, misurando con loro quello che il Governo sta facendo in questi settori. Aprendo anche una discussione franca sulle criticità che ancora abbiamo in Italia.

    A New York ho avuto una giornata di incontri abbastanza fitti. Dall’Italian Academy for Advanced Studies della Columbia University, istituzione che conoscevo già molto bene dagli anni scorsi, alla Fordham University—per assistere come ministro ad un accordo tra la Fordham e un consorzio di università italiane che sta operando molto bene in America). Poi alla Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò della NYU, per parlare di riforme insieme al direttore Stefano Albertini. E anche del perchè il 4 di dicembre [data del referendum sulla riforma costituzionale, n.d.r.] si giocherà una partita importante per l’Italia e per l’Europa. Noi del Governo crediamo che la risposta sarà positiva, e ci consentirà di procedere ad una svolta di cambiamento che riteniamo necessaria.”

    Parliamo della presenza italiana all’estero. Soprattutto di quel mondo della ricerca che ha incontrato. A volte in Italia lo si indica con un termine che io trovo balordo, anche nel suono:  “cervelli in fuga”…

    “Certo, è un termine ormai superato.”

    Allora di mobilità intellettuale?  Una mobilità circolare, che porta italiani in America, americani in Italia.  In un mondo in continua evoluzione.  Quali sono le nuove frontiere. Come si fa ad attrarre in Italia giovani studiosi ed esperti italiani e stranieri Cosa sta facendo il Governo e cosa vorreste fare?

    “Noi abbiamo un’idea molto chiara che riassumo con semplicità, come giustamente lei mi chiede di fare. Se fino a pochi anni fa i paesi giocavano la carta della la competitività sul possesso delle materie prime, sulla presenza di grandi aziende in grado di stimolare la produttività industriale, oggi la partita si gioca anche sulla presenza e sula capacità di attrazione di talenti. Il capitale umano è un fattore fondamentale.

    Oggi abbiamo bisogno di sistemi educativi che insegnino ad imparare, ad imparare più, e abbiamo bisogno di un ecosistema dell’innovazione che attiri i giovani e attragga appunto non quelli che scappano, ma quelli che circolano.

    Il Governo è molto consapevole di questo e abbiamo già cominciato ad attuare alcune misure molto precise.  Gliene cito almeno due.

    Una call internazionale aperta a studiosi, ricercatori, giovani o meno giovani, che siano italiani o meno, che vivano in Italia o in altri paesi, o stranieri che vivono in Italia … persone che si vogliono far valutare con un’asticella più alta per i loro meriti e la loro eccellenza scientifica. Si tratta di 500 cattedre da full professor e associate professor che lanceremo nei prossimi mesi.
     

    Ma questo non basterebbe se non ci fossero anche operazioni top-down che si concentrano su aree precise del Paese, su discipline precise, con un piano di finanziamento strategico del governo e che diano appunto vita a quelle che noi in Europa chiamiamo le infrastrutture della ricerca, cioè sistemi ad alta concentrazione di aziende, centri di ricerca, università che lavorano sullo stesso tema.

    Lo facciamo a Milano. È un progetto importante e il titolo è 'Human Technopole' perchè metterà insieme informatica, genomica e lavoro biomedico sulle malattie della società che invecchia. L’aging society è una delle grandi sfide che abbiamo in tutto il mondo occidentale, ma non solo. Un miliardo di euro di investimenti pubblici in 10 anni, con una forte prospettiva di attrarre anche risorse private. Qui ci aspettiamo 1600 posti per ricercatori e studiosi che guardino a Milano come si guarda oggi a Boston: un luogo bello, attrattivo, ecosostenibile per il sistema della ricerca, una città in cui scegliere di vivere.

    Sono due azioni semplici tutto sommato, semplici nel senso che hanno una loro concretezza ma che spezzano una abitudine, questo sì, tutta italiana, di dare un po’ a tutti per non scontentare nessuno e finanziare, magari poco, ma il più possibile.”

    Chi vive a New York sa che molti giovani ricercatori lasciano soprattutto il Sud, dove abbiamo un grande problema con le infrastrutture. I fondi di ricerca spesso sono scarsi, lavorare fuori dall'accademia è difficile.  Ma molti dicono che restare all'interno è ancora più difficile.

    “Parlavo di Milano perchè è un’area post Expo, perchè Milano oggettivamente ha un territorio fertilizzato e fertilizzabile. Ma il 6 ottobre inauguriamo un importante centro di Apple a Napoli, nell’ex area di Bagnoli, insieme all’Università di Napoli Federico II. Ci sarò io personalmente. È un investimento che Apple ha fatto di sua sponte senza particolari sollecitazioni. Ha scelto Napoli perchè è una città vivace intellettualmente, perchè ci sono importanti università che costituiscono l’ecosistema dell’educazione superiore. È un esempio di come questo non avvenga solo al Nord.

    Le dico sinceramente, parlare di una “questione meridionale” nell’università in un mondo globale, in cui si deve spingere per una qualià più alta e il più possibile diffusa nel paese, mi sembra un tema antico. Le soluzioni devono essere altre.

    Bisogna far si che anche in Italia, al sud come al nord, ci siano delle opportunità per tutti quei giovani che vedono nella ricerca scientifica il loro orizzonte di vita. Sarebbe sicuramente un grande risultato - quando e se - un ragazzo da Milano scegliesse di trasferirsi a Palermo per studiare una disciplina che magari a Milano o a Torino non è così sviluppata. Oppure da Parigi, o Berlino, o New York scegliesse una città italiana.

    Ma dal mio punto di vista è il sistema nazionale che deve essere reso efficiente. Spesso nel Sud—non credo di dire nulla di scandaloso—non è il sistema universitario ad essere debole, è l’infrastruttura sociale, politica, culturale che crea maggiori difficoltà di insediamento, di vita, anche di qualità della vita. E queste sono altre cose su cui il governo sta lavorando.
     

    Insomma, io non mi sentirei di dire che il sud à svantaggiato in campo accademico. Soffre dei mali di cui soffre quella parte del paese e quindi è una terapia che deve essere fatta con antibiotico a largo spettro, non mirato all’università.”

    Entriamo nel cuore del suo lavoro. Ci racconta come sta cambiando la scuola in questo momento, insieme a tutto il sistema universitario?

    “In generale la scuola deve cambiare, non solo in Italia, perchè non ci sono più le certezze educative che potevano esserci nel secolo scorso. Una scuola che non insegna una forma di apprendimento continuo e non cambia il modello di insegnamento e di apprendimento, è una scuola destinata a rimanere vagone di coda e non locomotiva della società.  Ma la scuola per definizione è la locomotiva della società.

    In Italia si sta cambiando in direzione dell’innovazione didattica, anche dei luoghi dell’apprendimento, grazie a grandi investimenti sull’edilizia scolastica e sui laboratori. La legge sulla “Buona Scuola” introduce criteri che finora erano assenti nel mondo della scuola italiana.  Alcuni non sono stati molto graditi, lo dico schiettamente, come il sistema di valutazione. Io sono il settimo ministro che prova ad introdurlo, e il primo che ci riesce. Anche se la reazione di una parte del mondo della scuola—non di tutto, ma di una parte anche rumorosa, coalizzata, e direi anche molto sostenuta dalle forze sindacali della scuola—è stata molto ostativa. Ma io continuo a credere che questo nuovo metodo di valutazione sia giusto,  perchè se un sistema non è in grado di autovalutarsi, di essere valutato, è difficile che possa capire dove funziona e dove non funziona. Serve per introdurre quelle modifiche che sono necessarie per trasformare i punti di debolezza in punti di forza e potenziare quelli che sono già punti di forza.

    Tutto questo è importante soprattutto in un Paese che, come dicevano gli arabi, è troppo lungo, e quindi ha differenze molto vistose tra i centri e le periferie oppure, longitudinalmente, tra l’estremo sud e l’estremo nord.

    Quindi valutazione, merito e autonomia scolastica, che è un’altra parola magica che abbiamo recuperato da una tradizione italiana che l’aveva nel suo codice genetico. Non ci dimentichiamo che l’Italia è il paese di Maria Montessori, non è il paese di burocrati ingessati dietro una scrivania. Tuttavia, un sistema educativo che non si è mai aperto all’innovazione ha finito per congelare questa grande tradizione educativa.
     

    È questa una delle sfide più difficili. Quella di riportare la scuola al passo con non solo con i tempi ma nella vita reale.  Ecco appunto lo ha fatto Maria Montessori

     

    “Assolutamente. E qui abbiamo superato con fatica anche un altro tabù, quello dell’alternanza scuola/lavoro, cioè l’esperienza in azienda o in istituzioni culturali durante il triennio della scuola superiore. Dall’anno scorso è obbligatoria per tutti gli studenti, sia negli istituti tecnici e professionali che nei licei. Coinvolgerà un milione e mezzo di ragazzi nel corso dei prossimi 3 anni. Significa spezzare il tabà del “prima si studia e poi si applica, in pratica, quello che si è studiato.”.

    È un approccio molto “americano”…

    “Le racconto un episodio avvenuto negli Stati Uniti, nel primo corso di aggiornamento che ho tenuto per gli insegnanti di italiano come seconda lingua qui al Queens College.  Era per italiani, ma era anche per docenti americani che insegnavano italiano. Feci una lezione di linguistica applicata, apprezzata devo dire. Però una di queste professoresse, simpaticissima, mi mandò un bigliettino dove scrisse questo più o meno ‘Oh, Stefania, wonderful lecture, everything was great, but if you want to catch the heart of Americans you must be more pragmatic.’
     

    Avevo fatto una bellissima lezione di teoria, ma l’approccio era quello che abbiamo noi: ti do i principi, ti do le regole.  Certo questo è frutto di una straordinaria tradizione culturale europea che io non credo si debba smantellare, tutt’altro. Perchè c'è dell’altro ed è nella forza di questi intellettuali che troviamo a Boston, a New York o alla Michigan University.”

    Portare la scuola fuori dalla scuola, l’università fuori dall’università... Una grande sfida...

    “E il mondo esterno dentro la scuola. Non è banale! Credo sia importantissimo.”

    Parliamo della lingua italiana. Come professoressa di Glottologia e Linguistica, lei non è un ministro-burocrate che affronta un problema da dietro la sua scrivania. La lingua italiana nel mondo, partendo dagli Stati Uniti, secondo lei perchè è importante? Cosa può rappresentare per uno straniero la lingua italiana?

    “Intanto una premessa:  conoscere e imparare una lingua che non sia la tua lingua madre, non è solo avere un mezzo di comunicazione in più per lavorare, ma è un viaggio straordinario e insostituibile in un’altra visione del mondo. Con l'italiano questa visione del mondo si abbina a un Paese che è un gigante della cultura umanistica nel mondo occidentale. È un dato oggettivo, non lo scopriamo noi e ci viene largamente riconosciuto. Chiaramente è un arricchimento incredibile, direi insostituibile, per una persona che viene da altre esperienze culturali e linguistiche.

    Negli Stati Uniti mi auguro che si possano consolidare i risultati che abbiamo ottenuto—uso il plurale volutamente—nel corso di oltre 10-15 anni di impegno per l’inserimento e l’affermazione dell’italiano come lingua dell’Advanced Program nei college, quindi poi come lingua di major o di specializzazione,. Questo è possibile grazie a due fattori: uno è nelle nostre mani, l’altro è nelle loro mani.

    Quello nelle nostre mani, è continuare a sostenere la promozione della lingua, continuare a finanziarla al meglio possibile, anche modificando un po’ i vecchi schemi, insegnando la lingua in un più ampio progetto di promozione culturale. Per la mia conoscenza di questo Paese, il binomio language & culture qui lo invertirei in ordine di gerarchia di importanza, cioè culture & language.

    Un americano lo avvicini attraverso l’interesse culturale che poi passa anche dal veicolo della competenza linguistica, più che il contrario, come avviene altrove”.

    Questo è l’assunto centrale del nostro lavoro, con i-Italy! Presentare la nostra cultura in inglese, prima, e poi invitare a studiare l'italiano... È impossibile raggiungere un americano dicendo solo “studia l’italiano”…

    “Non c’è dubbio! Quindi questo è il nostro dovere, e bisogna continuare così, con lucidità.

    Un’altra cosa però la devono fare loro. Sento che stanno facendo doversi tagli non solo per l’italiano, ma per le lingue straniere nei dipartimenti di humanities delle più importanti accademie. Questa è una scelta politico-culturale che vedo molto pericolosa. Un paese già cosi rigidamente monolingue, se chiude le porte e le finestre nel momento in cui quello che serve è massima apertura, è massima, deve avere la consapevolezza di quali possano essere le conseguenze sulle prossime generazioni.”

    È la storia che insegna su questo tema in America.  Più generazioni di italo-americani hanno perso la loro lingua originaria 'obbligati' dalla necessità di integrarsi e parlare solo inglese.

    “Questo forse non riguarda solo l’italiano, era una policy che riguardava tutte le lingue. Quindi, come dire, noi facciamo il nostro però richiamiamo anche con un po’ di coraggio le responsabilità loro, perchè è come se sottraessero dal conto corrente culturale dei loro figli e dei loro nipoti un vero e proprio patrimonio.”

    C'è un messaggio.  Qualcosa che lei pensa sia importante in questo momento, che vuole dire e che io non le ho chiesto?

    “In generale, rivolto agli Stati Uniti,  agli italiani che sono qua ma anche forse  ad qualche appassionato del nostro Paese… Penso che mai come oggi quel collegamento stretto tra Europa e America, e particolarmente tra Italia e America, sia  solido.   C'è il filo d’acciaio ad alta conduttività della diplomazia scientifica, della diplomazia culturale che ci lega.  È quindi di straordinaria importanza investire sempre di più in queste collaborazioni, in questi contatti, non focalizzarsi solo sul rendimento, anche scientifico, del giorno dopo, dell’anno dopo. Va benissimo quindi investire sull’innovazione, intesa come deve essere intesa, cioè trasferimento tecnologico, start-up, e questo deve sempre essere accompagnato ad una sensibilità crescente per la dimensione culturale”.
     

    All'inizio le ho chiesto di presentarsi.  Dietro un ministro, chi occupa una carica istituzionale,  c'è sempre una persona con la propria storia. Spesso si dimentica quest'aspetto. Si parla con l’istituzione... Si rimane distanti. Ma lei è anche una donna e una mamma...  Quali sono i primi pensieri che l’attraversano la mattina quando si sveglia e intraprende il suo lavoro di Ministrro?

    “Questa è una domandona! Non nego che i primi pensieri sono quasi sempre legati a quello che mi aspetta nella giornata, come credo sia doveroso per una responsabilità gigantesca, per gestirla al meglio. Però personalmente io ho una fortissima attenzione anche all’aspetto diciamo affettivo della vita: i figli, l’amore. E rifletto di continuo sul fatto che per una donna in carriera—in Italia sicuramente, ma forse anche qui da quel che vedo—i prezzi da pagare sono ancora veramente sempre molto molto alti. Mi auguro che per le nuove generazioni (dice rivolgendosi con uno sguardo dolce ai consoli Isabella Periotto e Chiara Saulle, presenti alla conversazione) i pensieri siano un po’ più leggeri, ecco.”


  • Francesca and Ferruccio
    Facts & Stories

    A New Passport for Spaccanapoli

    I decided to personally write this story about that afternoon, which was very special for the Italian community in New Jersey.

    In fact, I accompanied the Consul General Francesco Genuardi, the undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Enzo Amendola, the CGIE vice-secretary of non-European English Speaking Countries Silvana Mangione, the consulars Roberto Frangione and Isabella Periotto.

    Destination: Honorary Consulate of Clifton.

    Occasion: The delivery of the mobile biometric scanning station to obtain an Italian passport.

    The news: Italians will no longer need to go to Manhattan to obtain their documents to travel abroad. The data will be transmitted directly to the General Consulate that will send the passport to the user.

     

    This is an important institutional response after the closing of the Newark Consulate two years ago, a closing that was protested by the community. There are, in fact, 19,000 people registered with AIRE in New Jersey, many of these people (primarily the elderly) have difficulty traveling to Manhattan.

     

    As the honorary consular who has only been in charge for only 8 months, Dominic Caruso certainly has a challenging task. He greeted us in his office in the Honorary Consulate.

    In front of a computer, the undersecretary Amendola put the scanning station into action and collected the fingerprints of the first compatriot. Amendola came to the event with a promise: “This is only the beginning. We need to build services for Italian Citizens that are here. This is only the first step. We’ll be back soon.”

    The parliamentary representative of Italian Citizens in North America, Senator Turano, expressed the same sentiments in a broadcast immediately after the event. The mobile station in Clifton is a great first response from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I hope the same solution is adopted as soon as possible for the other honorary consulates.

     

    Dominic Caruso, visibly excited, exclaimed, “With this small suitcase, the Italian community in New Jersey is on its way to have the consular services that it deserves. I’m very happy that we have the Consular General here, and he’s very on top of things. I would also like to thank the Consular Generals Isabella and Roberto. I hope that I warrant the trust they have given to me.”

     

    The first fingerprints were made by Mr. Ferruccio Milani. As many Italians who relocated elsewhere in the world, he has a long and fascinating story of emigration. I happily paused to talk with him and his wife, Francesca, in front of Mr. Di Piazza’s a tray of extremely Sicilian pastries.

     

    We too often forget that in the passports granted in all of the consulates in the world, there are certain photographs, dates, and stamps - today biometric prints are necessary to release the documents – but, above all, there are people with stories that cross oceans and lives.

     

    They’re a very sweet couple. She’s from a town called Fossano in the province of Cuneo, and he’s from Milan. We began to talk, and I entered in their world, a world comprised of struggles and challenges, but also of success.

     

    She met her husband when she was 28 years old. Until then he worked at the Necchi Sewing Machine Corporation as the executive vice-president. He began by selling them door-to-door with the hopes of becoming a director that would travel the world. France, Belgium, Mexico and New York. But at a certain point in 1973 he decided to return to Italy. He changed jobs and became the executive vice-president of the Omega Orologi in Turin. This is where he worked with Francesca. “We worked together for two years, three, at Omega Orologi in Turin.” But destiny was bringing him abroad once again. “Then we left for Canada. It was December 31st 1976. He was going to work for an Italian factory in Montreal called Bontempi.”

     

    He was in Canada, but he was also representing the United States: “We were dividing our time between the factory, the office in Montreal, the office in Turin, and the office in New York. We were living our lives with a suitcase constantly in hand. Then after a couple of years, given that we are the type of people always looking for a new challenge, we asked the company “What are you doing in Central and South America? Nothing? Then we’ll go and develop it! And we left. We took a 45-day trip in Latin America, Central and South America. We decided to put our base in Panama, the offices and…we were always traveling. After four years in Panama we moved to the United States…” It’s a difficult life to summarize, but I want to convey the energy in these lines to whoever reads this.

    “We arrived in the United States in January or February of 1983. We decided to stay here in New Jersey because Bontempi’s office was in Edison.

    Life seems to have taken its own course for this couple, but it did hold a surprise for them as well.

    “My husband had a stroke. The factory fired us. He wanted to go back to Italy, and I said ‘No. I want to stay here.’ So I then created a new business, Interbusiness USA Food, a broker for twelve big Italian companies. We created a market for them. We’ve been doing this work for thirty years.”

    “We built our house in Warren, and we’ve been living there for 31 years, with the exception of one year when we went to live in the city.”

    There was some nostalgia for Italy but…  “Yes, I left Italy in 1976, and I do have some nostalgia for it. But I experienced other realities, other cultures, other things. I realized that Italy was not enough for me. I needed big spaces. My husband reached the incredible heights of Necchi, of Bontempi, and of Omega; he was looking for other things… to experience the world, to experience other cultures…”

    Francesca has a new special energy. She continues to speak, and he listens, fascinated. Her husband has her new passport. The question came naturally to me. What’s the first place you’ll go in Italy?

    “Naples!” “Where in Naples?”

    Ferruccio answers: “Spaccanapoli.”

    “Why Spaccanapoli (Street)?”

    “Because one morning at 7:30 I found myself walking behind the Spaccanapoli when I saw a beautiful girl!”

    Francesca, for the first time seems to lose her sense of self-assurance. She blushes and gifts me a great moment of love.

  • Facts & Stories

    “Italians of a New Italy”

    Could I ask you to briefly introduce yourself for those among our readers who may not know who you are? Who is Ambassador Armando Varricchio?
    I was born and grew up in Veneto. I studied and then worked at a private business before deciding to begin my diplomatic career. After thirty years I can honestly say that I made the right choice because I am doing a profession that I greatly enjoy!

    Up until recently I was working in Rome as Diplomatic Advisor to the Prime Minister and prior to that I worked a lot in Brussels. I have dedicated myself considerably to European issues, so I feel like Europe is my ideal – as well as professional – reference point. But I know the US rather well too.

    I moved here as Ambassador only a few months ago, but I worked in this embassy about ten years ago as head of the Economic Bureau. That job led me to travel throughout the United States and get to know certain local dynamics of this incredibly diverse country.

    When it came to nominating an ambassador of the United States I was considered the right person. Our profession is rather unique; every two, three, four years you pack your bags and leave.
     

    So you must have many memories linked to Washington and to the United States. Now having returned after a number of years, what have you found to be different?
    Many things. We live in a rapid age. Everything changes at a frantic pace. Washington is indeed growing a lot; there are entire urban areas that have changed, that are being developed.

    There is a terrific new baseball stadium that wasn’t there ten years ago, and around the stadium they are building houses, offices, shopping centers, parks... so everything is moving along, and I believe that’s typical of this country.

    You were recently on your first official visit to New York. Italy has a very, very strong cultural presence in New York. The question that springs to mind is: how can we use that presence to benefit our country?
    New York certainly wouldn’t be the extraordinary city that we all love without the contribution of Italians.

    Mayor De Blasio reminded us of this during our meeting. New York speaks Italian – whenever, wherever. There is no context in which the Italian culture is not present, whether it be music, cinema, literature, philosophy, or fashion. All of these aspects form part of our identity and constitute a great opportunity for Italy.

    Our country lacks raw materials, so we have to rely instead on our intelligence and creativity. Italy’s fate depends on its ability to be a beacon of contemporary culture. Therefore I believe that for us culture is not secondary but rather essential to our way of being.
     

    How can we ensure that the Italian- American presence will be an asset to the community?
    I think it already is an asset! There are many different kinds of relationships with Italy. Maybe you’re a citizen of the country. Maybe Italy is a sentimental-cultural reference for you. Or maybe it’s simply a personal passion of yours.

    The Mayor of New York, for instance, is “orgoglioso” (proud) of his Italian surname and his Italian roots. Yet so many people who don’t have a surname that sounds Italian still identify with the idea of Italy, and they are all people that we consider our friends.


    Among many of these friends of Italy, these American “Italophiles,” there seems to be a growing interest in the study of the Italian language. How can you help?
    You have touched on an issue that is very important to me. I’m speaking about the language. I believe it is a great challenge for me, for the Consul General here in New York, as well as for all our diplomatic network in the US, to promote the Italian language. Speaking a language means identifying more intimately with a culture, with another world. So many people want to speak Italian, and we want to give them the opportunity to learn how. I believe that is an essential tool of our diplomatic endeavor.

    Americans who love Italy, who are somehow connected to it, might also represent an essential resource for the country. How do you cultivate that resource?
    Well they are certainly witnesses of Italy and Italian-ness. In Washington I happen to be invited to the homes of important figures in the worlds of politics, economics, culture, the media, and I’ve found many references to Italy in these homes: works of art, books, photographs... In the United States the love of Italy is such that anyone can interpret it in his or her own way. But all these people love our country.

    I might even go so far as to say that they love it more than many Italians who actually live there do. Immersed as they are in their everyday life – they no longer remember – and sometimes even forget – that they live in a country that so many people consider to be the most beautiful country in the world. But those of us who have lived abroad for fairly long periods of time have had the fortune of seeing our country from the outside, like astronauts observing the Earth in orbit. From that vantage point, we have the good fortune to see the big picture, not just the grain of sand.
     

    Beautiful landscape and gorgeous beaches, Renaissance and Baroque art, Dante and Toscanini, neo-realist cinema... Americans know all about those aspects of Italian culture. But sometimes you notice that they know much less about contemporary Italy. What can we do so that Americans get to know more about the country today?
    We shoulder the weight of an extraordinary culture and it is our duty to pass that down. The challenge we face on a daily basis is to demonstrate that Italy doesn’t simply have an extraordinary past but that it is a modern country in step with the times. That’s why it is important not only to promote classic but contemporary culture as well... That’s the challenge embassies and cultural institutions take up every day. We do it thanks to the great American cultural institutions, which constantly hold events linked to Italy.

    A few weeks ago at the Library of Congress in Washington, I presented a volume that contained memoirs and photographs of many works of art found in American museums. Our challenge is to remind people that Italy is as great now as it always has been. In other words, don’t ever take it for granted.
     

    Are there any particular initiatives that you feel as an Ambassador may be worth speaking about? Perhaps regarding young people.
    We are working hard to promote young Italian artists. For example, the embassy wants to promote all of the young Italian artists living in the United States, especially in the two big cities, New York and Los Angeles. I believe that these people provide important examples of what Italians are producing today, of the energy to be found in contemporary Italian art.
     

    We wanted to pay our own tribute to an event that took place in Italy on April 30, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the first Internet connection to our country back in 1986. The world has changed in thirty years; the Internet has become a common staple of our daily lives. We decided to invite one of the founders of the Internet, Vint Cerf, to our embassy, to speak in a series of initiatives we call “digital diplomacy.” Cerf told us about the beginnings of this extraordinary change that has really defined the age in which we live. He talked about his close collaboration with Italian scientists and researchers. You might say the Internet speaks Italian too.
     

    If I’m not mistaken, for a couple of years now the institutions and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been actively using social media... 
    Certainly. Today social media is our travel companion. We don’t do anything without using some form of digital communication. It’s an important tool for getting closer to society, to the community, for letting people know what we are and what we do. It has changed the way we work. I’d even say it has changed the essence of our work. It broke down our barriers so that now we work as a team and feel connected to a much wider community.
     

    The Consulate General in New York has been organizing a series of events called “Meet the New Italians” in which young people get the chance to meet Italian professionals from different fields who work in the city. How can you relate to this new emigration – or “mobility” as we call it today – of young people?
    I’m totally for it. The Italian presence in the United States is various; it spans the oldest communities of Genoese in San Francisco to the Italians who arrived at the end of the 19th century in Chicago and New York to those who joined them later, gradually in different waves. But that first group, which carried a one-way ticket, was followed by new Italians, or as I refer to them, Italians of a new Italy – students, researchers, professionals and entrepreneurs who have a round-trip ticket and later acquire another round-trip ticket so they can embark on another journey. There’s no such thing as a definitive choice anymore.

    These people are no longer leaving Italy behind. They’re leaving in search of new experiences, new people, new opportunities. But their bond with Italy remains strong. They create opportunities that they can then bring back to Italy, and then from Italy they take them abroad again. This is a more dynamic presence, one that reflects a world of integration, a world encompassed by a single network. We need to reach out to these Italians while also recognizing that we mustn’t forget those who came over here in the past.
     

    What about the presence of young Italians involved with start-ups in America?
    I came across those kinds of Italians on the West Coast and recently rediscovered them in Boston. There are also many such Italians here in New York. They are Italians that bring new ideas, who find an opportunity here to develop new ideas and continuously show the United States the quality education the Italian system provides.

    They’ve studied at Italian universities where they’ve been able to acquire very important skills. Yet these are Italians who, understandably, consider themselves citizens of the world. They feel as at ease in the United States as they would in France, Australia, Israel – anywhere that there are opportunities to develop new initiatives.
     

    There is a lot of talk these days about something called the “Sistema Italia.” What does that mean?
    Italians have long been considered extraordinary talented individuals who bridle at being part of a team. In my opinion that isn’t exactly true. Take sports, for example. We have been soccer champions numerous times, and soccer is a team sport, traditionally speaking. Of course a great striker is essential, but you can’t win a game without a fullback or a goalkeeper or a defensive midfielder. We know how to play as a team. Each of us performs a role that we feel best suits our skills, but we can also unite around the same objective.
     

    Is there anything that you would like to say to our readers, something that I might not have asked?
    I would like to convey a message of trust, of closeness, and especially tell them all that the public institutions – the embassy and the network of consulates – are open to everyone. Don’t hesitate to contact us, to tell us what we could be doing better. We know that we have a big challenge ahead of us and that we must assume a lot of responsibility. But with everyone’s help I believe that we can do it better. So I want to thank everyone who is watching and listening to us and impress upon them that we need their help.

    To see the interview with Ambassador Varricchio >>>

  • Op-Eds

    A Past That’s Not Even Past

    Why Grandparents and Grandchildren?
    Why focus on grandparents and their special rapport with grandchildren? Because in our sped up, digitally warped, all too often superficial world with its illusion of occupying an “eternal present,” what constitutes a real transmission of identity is our relationship with our grandparents, with the past that’s not even past, as William Faulkner famously put it. If our identity is not founded on the past, we can neither face the present nor plan for the future responsibly. Especially if we happen to possess a history of immigration. As Italian Americans do. Or, for that matter, most Americans. The master narrative that our grandparents convey can broaden horizons and break down cultural divides, something we all need today. 

    Those are the reasons behind the project we kicked off on Italian National Day at the Consulate General of Italy in New York—a series of videotaped conversations between grandparents and grandchildren produced by i-Italy in collaboration with ABFE (the National Italian Association of Emigrant Families) and with the support of Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The first video – previewed in this issue and available to watch on TV (Sundays at 1 PM on NYC Life Channel 25) and online – features New York’s first Italian grandmother, Matilda Cuomo, mother of current Governor Andrew Cuomo and wife of former governor Mario. Matilda chats with Amanda Cole, one of her 13 grandchildren. 

    Given our plan to grow this project into a major collective journey through the Italian soul of America, we’d like you to come along for the ride. Here you’ll find instructions on how you can get involved. We’re counting on ALL of you!  

    A New Breed of Italians
    We also have our eye on how the present is shaping the future, thanks to an exclusive conversation with the new Italian Ambassador to the United States, Armando Varricchio, who talks about his current projects, including his ambition to bring together the traditional immigrant community, American Italophiles, and the growing number of people who split their time between the US and Italy—Amb. Varricchio calls them “Italians of a New Italy.” Read the article and watch the original video on your smartphone by scanning the QR code.
    Ambassador Varricchio’s ideas serendipitously overlap with the thrust of another new series launched in this issue,  “Italian Citizens of the World,” which showcases young Italians living in America, young Americans living in Italy and young Italian-Americans caught between both countries, no longer just culturally but also physically. Technically speaking, these new Italians are neither emigrants nor expats. Instead they’re “frequent flyers” who shuttle between the two countries, always carrying a return ticket in their back pocket.  Our first story features New York graphic designer Claudia Palmira Acunto and her husband, the photographer Mauro Benedetti.

    Eating Italian 
    And there’s so much more in our summer issue. For many, summer spells vacations, picnics, and lighter fare. That’s why we’re bringing you the best Italian panini in New York. We’ll also tell you what Italians are dishing out at New York’s Summer Fancy Food Show in our interview with ICE Director Maurizio Forte. The show is geared toward traders and producers rather than the general public, but it’s the perfect place to catch a glimpse of what’s on its way to American dinner tables. So stay tuned for more as the i-ItayTV crew gets there to reportat the end of June.
    Other foodie events this summer include a pasta cook-off organized by the association of Italian chefs in New York. Try not to salivate over Luciano Pignataro’s description of the event nor over our interview with Nicola Farinetti, who gives us the scoop on the imminent opening of Eataly NYC’s second location.   
    Italian Reads
    Summer also means more time to read. Aside from our usual roundup of offerings in English, we’re featuring a review of two fantastic reads still only available in Italian: Giorgio Van Straten’s curious study of lost books and Antonio Monda’s novel about a tortured priest, set during Muhammad Ali and George Foreman’s famous showdown. Let’s hope both books are translated soon! 
    Gargano Quartet 
    My editor’s note usually begins with a poem. Not this time, alas. But you can flip to page 73. At the end of our Tourism Special about Gargano you’ll find four short poems by the famous “Poet of Two Lands” Joseph Tusiani, a New Yorker of Pugliese descent, who describes his homeland in rare, never before published verses in English, Italian, Pugliese dialect and Latin. 

    * * *

    In conclusion I’d like to thank everyone following us on the web (www.i-italy.org), on TV (NYC Life) and in print (hint: you’re holding it in your hands!). Our readership is growing by the day. We now have almost 200,000 followers on Facebook alone! Americans love Italy. It stands to reason they’d love i-Italy, too.
    ([email protected])

     

  • Arte e Cultura

    Disegnare una Ferrari. Conversazione con Flavio Manzoni

    Ginevra. Motor Show. Siamo al 'salone dei saloni' del settore automobilistico in Europa. L'atmosfera e' elettrizzante.  Si rinnova un'occasione imperdibile per addetti al lavoro, ma anche per tutti coloro che amano questo mondo e che spesso, sono felici anche solo di poter sognare. E il sogno dei sogni, per quanto riguarda l'Italia, anche quest'anno e' lagato al mito della Ferrari. Un vero trionfo di design che affianca l'innovazione e la tecnica.

    Accompagna anche questa volta la sua nuova creatura—la Ferrari GTC4 Lusso—Flavio Manzoni, il designer di origine sarda oggi Senior Vice President of Design della Ferrari.

    Un “vecchio amico” che abbiamo incontrato e intervistato altre volte a New York. Non ce lo lasciamo scappare, curiosi come siamo di sapere come nasce e dove porta il nuovo design italiano nel settore automobilistico.

     

    Disegnare una Ferrari rappresenta il traguardo più ambito che un progettista di automobili possa desiderare. Ci spiega perchè? E’ l’onore di confrontarsi con un marchio che è divenuto un vero e proprio mito, apprezzato in tutto il mondo? E’ la sfida di dare forma ad un ‘corpo tecnologico’ così sofisticato ed efficiente?

    "Credo che il prestigio legato a disegnare una Ferrari dipenda da entrambe le cose. Innanzitutto c’è il fortissimo e radicato valore simbolico che il marchio Ferrari rappresenta nell’immaginario collettivo, rafforzato dal ruolo di leadership tradizionalmente occupato dalle vetture Ferrari nel mondo dell’automobile.

    Secondo, e altrettanto importanti, ci sono i requisiti tecnici e prestazionali richiesti da queste automobili. Questi si traducono in una serie di vincoli particolarmente restrittivi che sono la vera sfida di progettisti e designer.

    Ogni nuova macchina nasce dalla consapevolezza degli elementi tecnici che confluiscono nel progetto. Siamo costantemente al lavoro su temi di grande complessità—ma è proprio qui il punto chiave del progetto di una Ferrari: esso scaturisce dalla configurazione di tutte le componenti e di tutti gli aspetti tecnologici che entrano in gioco"

    Di cosa si occupa il Centro Stile Ferrari, creato nel 2010 come struttura operativa all’interno della fabbrica di Maranello e diretto da Flavio Manzoni?

    Ci occupiamo dello sviluppo, dello stile e della costruzione di modelli e prototipi, lavorando ‘in house’ e in stretta sinergia con i vari reparti di engineering, e abbiamo un reparto “modelleria” e un’area dedicata alla visualizzazione di modelli virtuali digitali".

    E’ stato un passaggio rilevante nella storia recente di Ferrari, che vede ora riunite le competenze ascrivibili all’ambito creativo-progettuale con una funzione operativa di importanza sempre crescente.

    Tra le finalità del nuovo dipartimento ci sono quelle di rispondere alla diversificazione della produzione in modelli in serie e in serie limitata; di promuovere la realizzazione di vetture tailor made, altamente personalizzate e in esemplare unico; e di contribuire allo sviluppo di un linguaggio innovativo e di una identità di marca sempre più forte, in accordo con l'importanza assegnata alla bellezza estetica come uno dei fattori determinanti del DNA di una Ferrari.

    Un design sinergico, insomma. I designers del Centro Stile Ferrari non si occupano solo di ‘stile’…

    "Infatti. La prossimità di Ferrari Design con gli altri reparti dell’azienda, e in particolare con il Centro Sviluppo Prodotto, facilita la condivisione di attività e uno scambio continuo di informazioni. Questa interazione permette al mio team di designers di non chiudersi in un ambito puramente stilistico che potrebbe risultare riduttivo, e di incidere sulle scelte di progetto con il comune obiettivo di giungere ad un risultato di eccellenza".

    Una peculiarità delle metodiche di progetto adottate da Ferrari Design è proprio la sinergia che si stabilisce tra designer, ingegneri e tecnici. Un dialogo che molto spesso confluisce nelle proposte condivise da specialisti di diverse aree. Così il compito del designer è di mediare le necessità tecniche con quelle formali e sviluppare in parallelo le attività di modellazione tridimensionale digitale e “al vero”, con una fruttuosa commistione tra le tecnologie più avanzate e il lavoro manuale. E’ un modello di lavoro affascinante, basato su un concetto che lei ha più volte espresso: che tra arti visuali e design—termine inteso nella più ampia accezione di cultura progettuale—esistano strette corrispondenze e delle radici comuni. 

    Come si combinano invenzione creativa e progetto tecnico nella sua esperienza professionale?

    “Essere in grado di governare complesse questioni tecniche e interagire con gli ingegneri e gli specialisti dell’aerodinamica fa parte dell’impegno quotidiano del team Ferrari Design. Il nostro Centro Stile è strutturato per operare con flessibilità e per promuovere un interscambio di ruoli a tutto vantaggio dell’esperienza che ad ogni progetto arricchisce, sotto il profilo professionale e umano, tutti coloro che ne sono coinvolti.

    Il design di una nuova Ferrari insomma scaturisce dalla consapevolezza e dalla comprensione dei vincoli tecnici che il progettista si trova a dover affrontare. Si tratta di un percorso mutevole e non è infrequente che vi siano aspetti tecnologici e normativi o necessità di produzione in grado di generare soluzioni creative rilevanti non soltanto sotto il profilo estetico ma anche sul piano funzionale"

    Tecnologia, sportività, innovazione, ricerca, estetica, bellezza, memoria, passione—sono termini ricorrenti, categorie distinte eppure complementari. Cosa lega tutto questo, qual è il ‘mood Ferrari’, per mutuare un’espressione oggi particolarmente diffusa? Quel mood che è dietro ogni automobile, che sottende ogni nuova realizzazione?

    "Quelli che lei cita sono elementi che non possono essere isolati, fanno parte di un percorso che l’azienda ha intrapreso e continua ad alimentare di nuovi stimoli e traguardi. Ogni Ferrari può essere guardata attraverso tre possibili chiavi di lettura. La prima è legata al contesto, a Maranello e al suo territorio, agli spazi di vita e di lavoro, all’incontro tra le persone. Qualcosa in grado di evocare ancora la personalità e la presenza carismatica del suo fondatore, Enzo Ferrari. Poi la dimensione creativa, quella che assimila il lavoro progettuale sull’automobile ad una vera e propria esperienza artistica e tecnica insieme, fattuale e industriale. Last but not least, il design, che comprende nella sua ampiezza la densità di pensiero ma anche la sensibilità e l’attitudine ad agire tipica del progettista"

    Tradizione e innovazione, quindi. Questo tipico binomio italiano, tratto caratteristico di una terra che esprime una storia millenaria e una capacità creativa riconosciuta in tutto il mondo, è al cuore del mito Ferrari. E’ per questo che Ferrari è sempre di più al vertice, anche nel design, nel ruolo di protagonista dell’evoluzione dell’automobile nel XXI secolo.

    Coerenza con il proprio passato e proiezione costante verso i futuro, nel segno di una ricerca rigorosa e di una grande passione per innovazione tecnico-formale.

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    L'ultima nata  

    Ferrari GTC4 Lusso

    È l’ultima realizzazione in ordine di tempo nell’ambito delle vetture di serie. La Ferrari GTC4 Lusso, disegnata dal Centro Stile Ferrari sotto la direzione di Flavio Manzoni, campeggia nel salone del Motor show di Ginevra e attrae come una calamita.

    La nuova proposta Ferrari nell’ambito delle granturismo a quattro posti affronta il tema della vettura coupé shooting brake ridefinendo il profilo del padiglione per assimilarlo ad una silhouette propria di una shooting brake. Ne deriva una volumetria bilanciata nelle proporzioni e in linea con l’impronta complessiva di un’auto performante, equipaggiata con un propulsore V12 anteriore longitudinale e trazione sulle quattro ruote, con uno spazio interno adeguato.

    “Ci siamo a lungo domandati – sottolinea Flavio Manzoni – se dare continuità a quell’idea di architettura dei volumi. Alla fine l’abbiamo confermata, per la fruibilità e la versatilità che tale soluzione consentiva. L’inserimento dello spoiler e l’abbassamento del profilo del padiglione ci hanno permesso di perfezionare le proporzioni”.

    Alcuni riferimenti ‘storici’ sono rintracciabili nel nome, che rimanda alla 250 GT Lusso (1962), una delle vetture più apprezzate da Enzo Ferrari e nella 330 GTC (1966), richiamata nel dettaglio dello sfogo d’aria del parafango anteriore. Citazioni sottili, ‘metabolizzate’ per generare forme nuove e accattivanti, mai confinate ad una riesumazione storica pretestuosa o fine a se stessa.

    Ciò che colpisce, se si osserva con attenzione il disegno della GTC4 Lusso, è il tema a 'diapason' che crea un gioco di superfici e  che alleggerisce visualmente l’intera fiancata, con un’inedita e coinvolgente sensazione di maggiore tridimensionalità.

    Frutto di una totale riprogettazione sono anche gli interni della GTC4 Lusso, che presentano un’inedita architettura della plancia ‘dual cockpit’, appositamente studiata per l’integrazione di nuovi devices tecnologici come il display centrale di controllo da 10,25 pollici widescreen e un secondo display multifunzionale dedicato al passeggero per la condivisione delle emozioni di guida con il pilota.

    Pur appartenendo a tipologie differenti, la F12 TDF e la GTC4 Lusso, esplicitano quello che Manzoni definisce “un codice linguistico comune e distintivo dell’opera di Ferrari Design.”

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