“Italian, living language” is the central theme of the second edition of the Joint Action for the Italian language that will be hosted in the Salone dei Cinquecento in Palazzo Vecchio, Florence, on 17 and 18 October with the aim of reflecting on the role of Italian creative businesses and productions around the world. The initiative is organised concomitantly with the 16th Week of Italian Language in the World (17 – 23 October 2016), which is dedicated to the subject of creativity with the title ‘L’italiano e la creatività: marchi e costumi, moda e design’ (“Italian and Creativity: brands, lifestyles, fashion and design”).
The event will be opened by Deputy Foreign Minister, Mario Giro, followed by the opening remarks of Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Contributions will also be made by the Minister of Education, University and Research, Stefania Giannini, the Mayor of Florence, Dario Nardella, the President of the Dante Alighieri Society, Andrea Riccardi, and the President of RAI, Monica Maggioni. The Director General for Cultural and Economic Promotion and Innovation, Vincenzo De Luca, will present the new Portal of the Italian Language, which was launched at the first edition of the Joint Action in 2014. The morning session will continue with a reading from Pierfrancesco Favino dedicated to creativity and design, followed by a round table on the value added created through the use of Italian in the communication strategies of Brand Italy companies, moderated by Beppe Severgnini. The morning will close with the presentation of the video In Italiano è meglio by the students of Quasar – University of Design of Rome.
The second day of the Joint Action will be dedicated to presenting projects launched two years ago which, in addition to the Italian Language Portal, included a contest for teachers specialised in the teaching of Italian as a second language; the establishment of Directory of Italian speakers; an independent assessment of Italian language courses abroad. The day’s programme will follow with two round tables to explore the topic of the Italian Language Week (“Italian and Creativity”), of mother-tongue Italian-speakers and Italian-speaking communities.
The event, which will be broadcast in live streaming on the website www.esteri.it, will be closed by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella.
