International relations, in New York President Bonaccini and councilor Mammi meet the Emilia-Romagna community: “Precious connection between our territory and a metropolis at the forefront in many sectors”. Five Emilia-Romagna associations are active in the Big Apple committed to maintaining active exchanges with their land of origin, especially in the cultural and food and wine fields. Emigration is historic, especially from the Parma and Piacenza Apennines, but there is no shortage of stories of young people.
A bridge between Emilia-Romagna and abroad. The institutional mission of the Region continues with the appointment dedicated to the representatives of the Emilia-Romagna community in New York, led by President Stefano Bonaccini, with the participation of the Councilor for Agriculture and Agri-Food, Alessio Mammi.
New stage on Saturday 22 June with the protagonists of the fellow regional residents in the Big Apple before entering the heart of the Summer Fancy Food, the largest event dedicated to food specialties and innovations in the sector scheduled from 23 to 25 June. “An important meeting to reiterate the strong bond we have with the Emilia-Romagna communities inside and outside the national borders – commented Bonaccini and Mammi -. Community of people who, in addition to enhancing our region through their work, ingenuity and skills, play a valuable role in connecting our territory and abroad. And this is even more relevant in an area, such as New York, at the forefront in many economic fields. Our commitment alongside the regional production system cannot therefore ignore the support of these fellow countrymen to strengthen relations and common projects”.
The Emilia Romagna associations in New York – Currently in New York there are five associations registered in the list of the Consulta degli Emiliano-Romagnoli nel mondo, the regional consultative body that takes care of relations with fellow citizens abroad: Berceto Foundation Association, The Valtarese Foundation Association, Family Community Club of Mutuo Soccorso inc., the Parma League “Vittorio Bottego” inc. and the Società Val Trebbia and Val Nure Inc., with roots in the province of Piacenza.
Currently, one of the members of the Consulta resides in New York: she is Claudia Sbuttoni, a researcher at Columbia University. Historically, the communities of Emilia-Romagna people in New York are mainly made up of people who come from the Parma and Piacenza Apennines, but there is no shortage, especially in the more recent emigration, of stories of young people.
The associations are busy organizing events and activities related to the region of origin, especially in the cultural and food and wine fields. The relationship with the motherland is mutual: even Municipalities and social promotion associations in Italy, in fact, often carry out projects with associations abroad.
An example is the project “Friendship Journey: from Bobbio to New York”, coordinated by the Municipality of Bobbio (Pc), which held a series of meetings with the Italian-American communities of Piacenza residents in the New York area. Thanks to the participation of 20 choristers who performed a series of Italian and dialect songs and hymns, it was possible to rediscover the traditional musical repertoire of Emilia-Romagna.
The Family Community Club of Mutuo Soccorso, on the other hand, organizes meetings at its headquarters dedicated to Emilia-Romagna cuisine and the music of the territories of origin. (Carmine Caputo)
The Council of Emilia-Romagna people in the world
It is a consultative body of the region, established with regional law 5 of 2015 and has two fundamental objectives: guaranteeing relations between the Region and communities abroad; express opinions on regional regulations regarding emigration and protection of communities abroad.
President and vice-president are regional councilors (currently Marco Fabbri and Valentina Stragliati), while the other members are nominated by regional associations abroad or by social promotion associations based in the region, which deal with issues related to emigration. There are also representatives of the municipalities and universities based in Emilia-Romagna.
The Council manages a series of calls for contributions to finance projects that enhance regional emigration and the region (most of the projects concern food and wine, culture, people who have played a role in the history of emigration, scholarships for master’s degrees, university research on the migration phenomenon).
In 2019, the Virtual Museum of Emilia-Romagna emigration, MIGRER, was created based on input from the consultants: https://www.migrer.org/
The consultancy collaborates with numerous institutions at regional and national level and its communities abroad are an important point of reference for the entrepreneurial fabric of the region.
There are currently 90 associations registered in the regional list, the majority in South America and Europe. In the USA there are 5 associations in New York and one in Chicago.
