ROTARY INTERNATIONAL RYE Rotary Youth Exchange Welcome to Italy! First National Inbound LTEP Students Orientation Meeting Andrea Cremoncini Chairman, RYE Italian multidistrict
Welcome to Italy!
Welcome toour ourrye LTEP InboundStudents One among the most exciting and motivating services of Rotary International Every year there approximately 8,000 students travel, and among them more than 5,500 are Long Term students If every 17-years old student could be an exchanger, we would have no more wars Carl W. Steinhammar, R.I. President 2005-20062006
Introduce Yourself: Canada Unites States of America Mexico South America Australia & New Zealand Taiwan Europe (including Italy) India Thailand South Africa... Others?
The MD Staff & Our Country: Our Districts:
District 2031 RYE Delegate: Maurizio Peletta
District 2032 RYE Delegate: Max Zaccaria
District 2041 RYE Delegate: Cinzia Donalisio
District 2042 RYE Delegate: Sabrina Cogo
District 2050 RYE Delegate: Giorgio Giambiasi
District 2060 RYE Delegate: Alberto Pasino
District 2080 RYE Delegate: Roberto Boiano
District 2090 RYE Delegate: Francesco Montalbano
District 2100 RYE Delegate: Raffaele Maria Ricciardi
2071 Greetings also from Districts: 2120 2110
We are hosted by District 2072 RYE Delegate: Eugenio Galvani
Giuseppe Castagnoli Governorofof District 2072
Dear Friends in Rotary, Welcome to Fognano, welcome to the region of Romagna, welcome to Italy. It is a great pleasure for me, as the Governor of District 2072 (Emilia Romagna and the Republic of San Marino), to welcome you here to this tiny but splendid locality.
First of all because having you all here, before you begin your stay in Italy, provides a setting of friendship and brotherliness. In the second place, because this is the first year our newborn District 2072 is joining the other Italian Districts which were already a part of the Youth Exchange initiative and has the honor of organizing this meeting.
I don t know whether any of you had already been to Italy. I m sure, however, that you all know that our history has its roots in classical antiquity, in the Roman Empire, in the two thousand year history of the Catholic Church, in culture and in the arts
Italy possesses extraordinary artifacts dating back thousands of years ago, as well as a matchless heritage in the world of the arts.
Here, we find ourselves in the center of Italy. Not far from here is the city of Ravenna, which was once the capital of the Roman Empire in its latter years, on the other side is Florence, which was the true beating pulse of the Renassiance, and on yet another side, further North, is Venice, with its legendary and unique beauty.
In Italy you can look in every direction North, South, East or West and find true rarities, magnificent monuments, libraries full of unique volumes. In other words, these towns and cities have witnessed history being made.
We Rotarians are glad to accompany you on this journey and also help you discover besides this classical postcard of our country another Italy which is often neglected.
What Italy is that? The Italy that has given a decisive contribution to scientific progress. You all doubtless have heard of the extraordinary inventions of Leonardo davinci. But don t forget Galilei, Torricelli (who invented the barometer), Galvani, whose name is the basis for so many verbs that indicate the transmission of energy (galvanizzare, to galvanise, galvaniser, galvanisieren.), Volta, who invented the battery (which explains why we measure electricity in volts), Pacinotti, who built the first dynamo.
It s a long list and, although the achievements of Italian scientists are not just a thing of the past, as you will read in the little booklet that we are going to give out, allow me to single out Meucci(whose claim to the invention of the telephone, attributed to Bell, was at last acknowledged just a few years ago by the U.S. House of Representatives), Fermi, Nobel Prize winner for his research on radioactivity, and Marconi, inventor of the wireless telegraph and true father of the modern age of telecommunications.
I have kept Marconi for last not only because he was born here but also because it is here that he carried out the experiments that led to his primary inventions, as shown in the wonderful Museum that bears his name and preserves the mementoes of his tremendous work. In fact, I chose this Museum to open our District s first year, in order to emphasize the fact that Rotary is traditionally open to progress and to scientific developments. Guglielmo Marconi was a Rotarian and fully symbolizes this commitment.
But Rotary as I said before is first and foremost friendship and brotherhood. We endeavourto create dialogue, build bridges, seek out the conditions to grow in full respect for each other.
The Youth Exchange is an example of all this, and I m sure that this experience will be unforgettable for you. By observing other people s history and traditions, and setting them side by side with your own, you will gain a greater understanding and get a chance to grow and enrich your own culture.
In this case the other people are we Italians, with all our defects but also with our generosity, with our distinctive culture as well as our achievements in the field of science and technology
Allow me then to wish you a happy encounter with Italy and a wonderful stay in our country, under the guidance and aegis of Rotary. Thank you.
Giordano Giubertoni Rotaract Representative District 2072
Davide Missiroli Major ofbrisighella Brisighella, ourhost Town
Ermanno Emiliani Presidentof Rotary Club Faenza