Ca' Foscari Alumni in Brussels, for the Italian Alumni Associations Coordination

Twelve Italian university graduate associations, including the one from Ca’ Foscari, founded a coordination and signed a general Manifesto in Brussels. From the joint commitment of the associations of former Italian university students, comes the Italian Alumni Associations Coordination, that, with the event "Alumni for the Italian system: Evidence of cohesion for the country", launched their manifesto at the headquarters of  the Italian Institute of Culture in Brussels. With strong symbolic value, this place has seen the participation of over 50 delegates from different Italian Universities, together with considerable participation from the Italian community living in the capital of the EU. Former president of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, was present to witness the signing the manifesto, along with Antonio Tajani, first Vice-President of the European Parliament, and Sandro Gozi, undersecretary to the Italian Prime Minister and responsible for European Affairs. Gozi, together with Maurizio Massaei, Permanent Italian representative in Brussels, explored the sense of this initiative, its geopolitical context and value of coordination for the Italian system in Brussels.

Those present from Ca' Foscari were: Monica Boccanegra (President of Ca' Foscari Alumni), Giorgio De Bin (Head of the Brussels Chapter and member of the Alumni Executive Board), Elisabetta Olivi (member of Ca' Foscari's Board of Governors), Dario Pellizzon (Director of Research Area), Marco Cosmo (Director of Ca' Foscari Alumni).

"Being a system, sharing common experiences and striving to improve current society: these are the principles that guide our chapter in Brussels – comments Giorgio De Bin - Thanks to a wonderful group, we have achieved great results: our chapter, despite being less than three years old, is a reference for the Ca’ Foscari students of Brussels, as well as for other Chapters present in the European Capital. We are convinced that the Alumni should assume an increasingly important role in reconnecting the world of research with civil society, out with the university dynamic and at the same time representative of what the real victories are in a society. The initiative to create a coordination of Italian alumni in Brussels demonstrates how useful, important and effective it is to work together as a country. The network of Alumni Associations was born from the bottom and is open to all those who find themselves in agreement with the values described in the Manifesto. The project, coordinated by our Chapter, aims to create opportunities in order to enhance the important role played by Italian academic institutions through their respective associations. This implies not only the role that higher education institutions play in the formation of a person, but especially in the construction of new career opportunities and ties with civil society.
We are very pleased with the outcome, a unique event of its kind in Europe, that brought together twelve of the largest, oldest and most famous Italian universities through their Alumni. A successful event in its innovative message confirmed by the presence of an important audience both in quantitative and qualitative terms. Therefore, we are excited about this project and excited to bring it forward in the near future by reaching the important objectives set out in the Manifesto."