On May 9th, in connection with the International Festival of European Geopolitics in Venice-Mestre, the Embassy of Italy in Washington DC hosted the concluding event of the first year of the biennial twinning project between two Italian higher education institutions, Capellini-Sauro in La Spezia and Cambi-Serrani in Falconara Marittima (Province of Ancona), and two American ones, Jackson-Reed High School in Washington and Oxon Hill High School in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The project is promoted by the Managing Body (Ente Gestore) Casa Italiana Language School of Washington.
As highlighted by the Consular Coordinator of the Embassy, Counselor Michela Carboniero, the prestigious framework of the Geopolitics Festival – with the presence of the Director of the Regional Education Office of Veneto, former Minister of Education, Marco Bussetti – contributes “to promote a form of cultural collaboration – such as international exchange projects and partnerships between Italian and American schools – that the Embassy promotes with conviction, in line with the objectives of the Strategic Plan for the Promotion of the Italian Language in the United States”.
This “research journey”, as defined by the Education Director of the Embassy, Maria Fusco, allows students to acquire experiences and knowledge useful for the development of so-called “global citizenship”, offering them also a “geopolitical” key for understanding/interpreting the globalized world.
The exploration of different and seemingly distant disciplines, as suggested by the theme of the twinning project: “Can Art, Science, and Sports dialogue? A challenge or a bet?”, together with the mobility of students and teachers who have been able to visit the twinned schools overseas, are indeed valuable opportunities for intercultural exchange.
The answer – evidently affirmative – to the question/theme of the project has emerged from a path of study and dialogue among students, also thanks to the involvement in the project itself of famous artists such as sculptor Dionisio Cimarelli and sculptor and art professor Davide Prete, internationally renowned athletes, such as Italian soccer players Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini, and the nutritionist doctor of the Italian national soccer team, Dr. Marco Pincella.
