In view of the post-Covid economic recovery, which also focuses heavily on tourism, culture is an Italian heritage to be valued; it has always been said, it is almost a cliché, but what should be done in practice? Given that public resources are limited, a pact between culture, businesses and institutions to affirm the cultural heritage and the Italian brand in the world seems essential to achieve the goal. This is the proposal launched by the first of the talks hosted at Casina Valadier in Rome by the landlord Massimiliano Montefusco, as part of the panel “Incontri ad arte”, moderated by the art historian Giulia Silvia Ghia, President and founder of the non-Italian association. profit Verderame Progetto Cultura based in Rome, and organized in collaboration with RDS and with the Political School “Living in the Community”, founded by professors Pellegrino Capaldo, Sabino Cassese and Marcello Presicci, to train young people and make them a “prepared ruling class” and civil servants at the service of the community both in the public and in the private sector. A moment of confrontation open to citizens, which registered a great interest in the now urgent need to create a system between public and private to enhance the artistic and architectural riches of Rome and the Belpaese, in a moment of transition towards economic recovery, in where the world of cultural entrepreneurship is here, available and ready to do its part. The strength of the Italian brand, however, these realities must not remain invisible and unheard. Here, then, the panel wanted to deepen the existing legislation in the financing of the conservation and enhancement of Cultural Heritage for a specific purpose: the birth of a cultural desk that can create and foster dialogue and synergy between public and private collector of companies and projects in the cultural heritage chain. At the opening, Massimiliano Montefusco, promoter of the new green and sustainable course of Casina Valadier, underlined the imperative need to create a system among the main protagonists of the world of culture and business: “We need to write the words” End “to a fragmentation of rumors lasted too long. The unity of purpose, the result of an extended process that is representative of every single reality, must be the way to build the future that the capital of Italy deserves, a land of infinite beauty. Above all, we must be the individual voices but of a choral, participatory, constructive and authoritative dialogue. The enterprises that make culture, the institutions and the private sector, must always be at the forefront in promoting – through continuous dialogue – a process that goes in the only direction of giving back to Rome’s heritage what it deserves ”, said Montefusco. A need that can no longer be postponed, in light of the challenges that await us in this moment of transition, in which Rome is called to host major global events, such as the Jubilee and, hopefully, Expo 2030.
At Casina, experts from Culture, Environment and Fashion met on the subject, key sectors for the rebirth of the Italian system also from a global perspective, from professors to cultural operators, up to prominent figures in companies that are protagonists of the political-economic debate. With Giulia Silvia Ghia, who promoted and moderated the talk, we talked about the importance of “Giving a future to the past”, promoting ideas, exploiting resources, marrying what sometimes seem to be just ambitious projects to create value: ” In our country we have important regulatory references for the benefit of cultural investments; the latter, however, should be explored from an entrepreneurial point of view with the aim of creating the necessary virtuous synergies with the institutions responsible for the protection and safeguarding of assets “, underlined Ghia, who has always been an advocate of building bridges between private entities and Assets public cultural sites.
The panel was opened by Professor Michele Trimarchi, Professor of Economics of Culture and Science of Finance, a staunch supporter of the need to network, because “Culture and Economy are the sides of the same coin. I hope that the particularisms that set one against the other end and that individuals who, working in synergy, reach an objective of common interest are celebrated ”, he said. Patrizia Asproni, President of ConfCultura, who has always been involved in the creation of meeting places to help companies use culture as a lever for economic and social development, spoke in connection with the value of the Italian Brand and the professions from training to ICCs still to be regulated: “Today the most important thing is the data and the management of them, because they are used to guide investments and to apply predictive models, which are increasingly important to anticipate and manage the changes due to the post-pandemic crisis and the pervasiveness of digital”, Asproni said. The Secretary General of the CRT Foundation and CEO of OGR, Officine Grandi Riparazioni, Massimo Lapucci, on the other hand, emphasized the role of private foundations in support of art and culture, illustrating the example of the CRT Foundation and the restructuring and reopening of OGR Turin. “The investment in human capital and skills is at the center of the CRT Foundation’s action, in particular through the OGRs we want to confirm the central role of culture and art as disciplines for the restart and dialogue with other fields such as tech and innovation, also with projects such as STARTS (Science Technology + Arts), promoted by the European Commission ”, explained Lapucci. Augusto Raggi, CEO of EnelX Italia, Enel’s global business line that deals with benefiting on customers by transforming energy into services. The same explained the strategies that the company puts in place to promote an increasingly inclusive use of cultural heritage without impact on the environment in the name of a strong contribution to urban development. “Investing in art and culture can, through public-private collaboration, in a relationship of synergy and mutual interest for the benefit of the community, with a view to fully enhancing our artistic heritage”, stated Raggi.
The speech by Francesca di Carrobio, CEO of Hermès Italy, instead focused on art and fashion, presenting the Hermès case to illustrate how the cultural heritage of a nation is relaunched: “We are in a country that everyone envies us for our beauty, for the lifestyle, for art and culture, but also for our craftsmanship. To relaunch Italy, the difference is made by each of us, with their own skills. We are all responsible for this rebirth, ”Di Carrobio said.
To close the discussion, Massimo Osanna, the Director of the General Direction of Italian Museums of the MiC and promoter of innovative management systems, including participatory management, of museums and places of culture, underlined the necessary simplification of bureaucracy and a change of mentality. After changing the face of Pompeii making it an international reference management model, assuming the new position in 2020, Osanna said: “It is important to network, starting from the territory so that it is a truly rooted network, increasingly usable and sustainable”.
The talk by Casina Valadier, which gives an appointment to the following panels open to the public (by reservation) scheduled for November 19 and December 17 2021, ended with a toast with tastings by chef Massimo D’Innocenti in the enchanted setting of Hortus , the romantic garden of the famous neoclassical palace overlooking the iconic rooftops of the heart of Rome. A location that fully embraces the spirit of the appointment: in recent months, the Restart project by Casina Valadier has been launched which focuses on an innovative idea of culture, taste and entertainment, according to a contemporary vision that unfolds on guidelines of environmental sustainability, ethics of processes and the enhancement of made in Italy. “The aim was to make the structure a real incubator of large projects for the reduction of the environmental impact and for sustainability, and for culture. Today’s panel gives value to this path ”, recalled Montefusco, greeting those present. The first talk that has just ended, as well as the next two, give the right to training credits for those who participate. Just Marcello Presicci, founding member of the Political School “Living in the Community”, in embracing the initiative, had emphasized: “We live in an era characterized by the absence of the traditional forums necessary for the construction of the future ruling classes and by the scarcity of useful places to produce dialogues and reflections free from political prejudices. This is why we are really pleased to be able to collaborate with RDS, making available the vast human capital present in the Political School through the members of governance and our prestigious teachers ”.