Lecco (Italy). From 28 September to 1 October 2023, a group of students of 4th Administration, Finance Marketing, of Mary Help of Christians Institute of Lecco, Holy Family Lombard Province (ILO), accompanied by Sister Maridele Sandionigi, FMA, Prof. Laura Arrigoni and Prof. Angela Grasso, participated in the Festival of Civil Economy (FNEC) at Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.
“Over the limits. The commitment that transforms (us)” was the theme of the 2023 Festival, now in its 5th edition. The aim is to lay the foundations for thinking together with the public and private, profit and non-profit sectors, on the great challenges of current time, such as: the ecological transition as a response to global warming, lifelong learning and the educating community, local care, possible solutions to the issues of inequalities, poverty, and collaboration between States and central banks.
“We will start again from today’s points of view of the young generations and from the good practices that are already creating shared social value in our territories and responding to the great macroeconomic challenges of our times.” This is what is read in the introduction to the FNEC, which had the aim of promoting a new way of conceiving relationships and the ability to intervene as a community to increase the “Benvivere”, the generativity and sustainability of the territories to provide sustainable, civil responses, and participate in the global “shocks” and challenges in the era of artificial intelligence and great social transformations.
Over the four days, artistic moments, lectio civilis, presentations, and over 50 workshops alternated in which mainly young people were involved, with the presence of academics, scholars, politicians, and prominent professionals, as well as internationally renowned personalities. These included the Nobel Prize winners Joseph Stiglitz for economics and Shirin Ebadi for peace; Kaushik Basu, former chief economic advisor to the Government of India and economic head of the World Bank; and Sister Alessandra Smerilli, Daughter of Mary Help of Christians, Secretary of the Dicastery for Service of Integral Human Development of the Vatican.
A word from the young participants:
“Not everyone can meet and interact with two Nobel Prize winners, with the Secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development of the Vatican, and various personalities from the academic and civil world in just four days. This is what happened to us, 4th AFM students from the Maria Ausiliatrice Institute of Lecco, who had the opportunity to actively participate in the Civil Economy Festival of Florence from 28 September to 1 October.
The proposal came to us because our school was named “Ambassador School of Civil Economy” for the courses and proposals it offers to its students.
During the Festival, we participated in work sessions with students from other Italian high schools and university students on the themes of responsibility and generativity, but we were also able to take on the role of television reporters by interviewing, in collaboration with the young people of YoungCaritas Pescara, the speakers who followed one another on stage. Thus, we had the opportunity to interact with Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize for Economics and with Sharin Ebadi, Nobel Prize for Peace, who continues to fight to give a voice to Iranian women and men oppressed by the regime.
Having participated in the Festival has allowed us to understand that what we study at school is shared with many others who, in different fields and contexts, act to change the way of doing economics, a way that puts human beings and issues such as gratuitousness and reciprocity back at the center.
After four intense days, we really take home a lot but, in particular, we were struck by the words that Sister Alessandra Smerilli wanted to address to us during the interview with her. ‘You have to prepare well because you have to explain why it is necessary to change the current economic paradigm’. This makes us responsible to do our utmost to begin, with our daily actions, to change our way of being citizens and consumers, just as the title of the festival suggests, ‘Beyond the limits: the commitment that transforms (us)’”.
The participation of young people in formative and educational moments like these encourages the Educating Communities to continue the journey with proposals regarding the priority choice of the CGXXIV regarding integral ecology. “We dare prophetic and concrete gestures in promoting a solidarity and sustainable economy, to share resources and skills with more courage, with a view to the missionary dimension”.
