A project for the Olympics: two girls from Lower Dubai

Matilde Visintin and Zoe Follo del Malignani took part in Expo 2020. They presented a plan on the environmental sustainability of sporting events

CERVIGNANO. The pupils of Malignani of Cervignano, Matilde Visintin and Zoe Follo, have just returned from a trip to the United Arab Emirates, accompanied by the professor of Technology, Lorella Rigonat.

The two students attending the fourth year were selected through a hackathon (i.e. a digital marathon), which saw the involvement of students from forty schools throughout Italy.

“It was quite a coup. But it was also a very long journey, it is the first time that as an extra-curricular experience we have crossed the borders of the European Union, ”said Professor Rigonat.

The trip was scheduled for January but had been postponed due to problems related to the epidemic. The theme of the project concerned an activity carried out naturally in English, promoted by the Italian Pavilion of Expo 2020 and by the Ministry of Education, linked to the organization of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina, in which the children participated in team to build a vision for the sustainable future of major sporting events.

In connection with Cervignano, the students Giulia Lanari and Marco Criscuolo, always from the fourth grades, also participated in the event. The activity as a whole involved thirty students from five Italian schools within the Academy, the space dedicated to the “Educational” sector of the international exhibition.

The youngsters, supported by expert mentors, sought and proposed innovative solutions for the sports sector, with particular regard to social and environmental change.

During the works, the Minister of Education Patrizio Bianchi intervened in liaison, presenting sport as an instrument of active citizenship, and as a stimulus to the value of equality and personal growth. “I would like to point out that many more girls than boys have taken part in this type of challenge, which may have various reasons but which is certainly a good sign”, added the teacher.

It is certainly not the first time that Malignani stands out for its ability to meet challenges in terms of scientific and technological innovation.

In the past school year, the students of the institute completed an environmental recovery project of the “Pradulin” park, used during the peak months of infections to teach lessons. Within the park, a monitoring and collection of chemical-physical data was carried out, with the support of the Department of Agri-food and Environmental Sciences of the University of Udine, of which Professor Rigonat belongs to the research group.

The ultimate goal is to present the results of the field research to citizens, during the opening of the park to the public.