Ambassador Paolo Crudele, together with Consul Ernesto Pianelli, presented the event dedicated to “Roots Tourism”, organised by the Consulate of Italy in Adelaide as part of the initiatives promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation to celebrate the Year of Italian Roots in the World.
It was a first-ever event in Australia, which saw the participation of numerous compatriots and second or third generation emigrants of Italian descent, eager to know the territories of their ancestors, rediscover family origins and stories, cultural traditions, handicraft products and food and wine, as well as reconnect with our country. The event was also attended by the South Australian Government Minister, Katrine Hildyard.
In his introductory remarks, Ambassador Crudele briefly outlined the steps that led to the launch of the Year of Roots. He said: “A meticulous work that started in 2018 and led to the launch of this project that aims to make descendants of Italian origin living abroad travel to the places of origin of old Italian families. A journey of emotions that will potentially concern around 80 million people worldwide, more than one million of whom live in Australia. As the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Antonio Tajani, himself stated on several occasions, with Roots Tourism we want to contribute to the creation of an authentically local tourism offer that enables descendants of Italian origin to appreciate all the beauty, culture and age-old traditions of the villages from which their ancestors left”.
Roots Tourism concerns a tourist segment that has grown considerably over the last decade, and can be an important source of sustainable development for small Italian villages, which are often little known and not included in traditional routes and itineraries, but have great economic potential linked to tourist accomodation. To date 822 small Italian municipalities have adhered to this initiative, organised together with ENIT, with the participation of the country manager for Australia and New Zealand, Emanuele Attanasio, the Fogolar Furlan of Adelaide, which hosted the event, and the Com.It.Es. of South Australia.
