The opening ceremony of Eye – European Youth Event took place in Piazza Saffi, with the participation of various local associations and hundreds of people in the centre. “We are three weeks away from the elections – explained Maurizio Molinari, head of the European Parliament office in Milan –, for this reason this campaign entitled ‘Use your vote’ was launched, aimed at all young people to talk about the importance of go to the polls. Very often the tendency is to organize these events in large cities, but going to cities like Forlì, which we remember suffered the serious tragedy of the flood last year, is very symbolically strong to focus on the fact that the vote of every European citizen has the same relevance regardless of where he lives.”
For the first time since its foundation, the Eye arrives in Italy and the Forlì headquarters has been chosen from Strasbourg, thanks to the commitment of Punto Europa, a research center of the University of Bologna, coordinated by Professor Giuliana Laschi. “This is an event of historic importance for the Forlì Campus, which has existed for thirty years now. Thanks to the commitment of our Punto Europa – underlines Emanuele Menegatti, president of the Forlì University Campus – we managed to obtain the organization of this event. European and European integration studies are a fundamental part of our teaching and research. Thanks to this type of activity, young people can learn about Europe more effectively”. These days we also remember the first anniversary of the flood that hit Romagna last May, which is why the opening ceremony of Eye had a strong local character. “From all over Romagna we have supported the challenge of Forlì’s candidacy. We have felt – explains Paolo Calvano, regional councilor for relations with the EU – the closeness of the European Union during this post-flood year and we still feel it”.
The flag-wavers of the Niballo Palio of Faenza opened the dance, followed by a re-enactment of the tragic events of 2023 entrusted to the young artists of the B-PED group, who proposed a dance show on the rearrangement of ‘Sulfur Dioxide’ by Lucio Dalla. In conclusion, the Santa Balera Orchestra performed ‘Romagna Mia’.
“Forlì is a welcoming city where people live well, which has believed in Europe since its historical foundation – concluded Gian Luca Zattini, mayor of Forlì –. One year after the tragedy that overwhelmed us, young people were the first moment in which we saw a light at the end of the tunnel, starting from material help up to an optimistic perspective for the future. They were the engine that allowed us to start again”.
