Italy hosted the first Festival of Sustainable Development
A kermesse of progress and sustainability
The Festival of Sustainable Development - held throughout the Italian national territory from May 22nd until today - has now come to an end. This event stands out as a brilliant initiative promoted by the Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development (ASviS) through which it was possible to raise the awareness of Italian population on the most important topics related to sustainable development.
ASviS is a body that gathers together 160 organizations from the social and economic world. AsviS decided to organize the first Sustainable Development Festival in Italy as a majestic experience implying more than 200 events, including seminars, workshops, conferences and performances throughout the country.
Among the most relevant ones the inaugural event of the Festival held in Naples (May 22nd) entitled "Italy 2030: nobody should be left behind" devoted to the fight against social inequalities. It event took the whole day and was divided into 4 sessions, each of them devoted to a specific theme, i.e. education and culture; development and entrepreneurship; diet and health; job and welfare. Interesting to notice is that all 4 sessions presented the main structure aimed at stressing the best practice embedded. In fact, an introductory discussion always preceded the presentation of some successful innovative experiences, followed by a panel to deepen the theme and suggest possible solutions.
Italians have proved to be a very sensitive population with regard to themes linked to sustainability. A recent study conducted by Unipolis Foundation showed that 85% of Italians (93% young ones) are in favour of policies oriented to sustainable development and 65% of the interviewees have also declared their support towards a major political attention towards environmental protection rather than economic growth.
The Festival has certainly worked as a hub for fruitful discussions on virtuous practices, which can change our development model so as the current policies, corporate strategies and individual behaviours.
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