Meets with European Parliament President Roberta Metsola
Brussels/Florence, March 20, 2026 – The visit to Brussels by the ten young members of the San Firenze Committee, which forms part of the Andrea Bocelli Foundation’s ABF Globalab programme, has now drawn to a close. Over two days, they participated in a series of meetings at the European Parliament focused on transversal skills, education, and global citizenship.
The initiative marks a further step in the journey launched by the Foundation at the San Firenze Complex, where, in collaboration with the Municipality of Florence, a model of social innovation based on public-private co-design and the active engagement of young people has been developed. It is an educational experience that brings together learning, culture, and participation, and is now entering into dialogue with the European dimension.
On 18 March, the ABF delegation met with the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, for a discussion centred on the role of younger generations in democratic processes and in shaping a conscious and engaged European citizenship.
On 19 March, at the European Parliament, members of the San Firenze Committee took part in the session “Transversal Skills and Global Citizenship: Young People Living in a Changing Europe”, where they shared their experience on themes including education, participation, and the challenges of the 2030 Agenda.
ABF’s presence in Brussels confirms the value of the Foundation’s educational model, which connects skills, guidance, and active citizenship within a European framework.
The Foundation would also like to express its heartfelt thanks to Member of the European Parliament Dario Nardella, former Mayor of Florence from 2014 to 2024 and, alongside ABF, a key supporter of the urban regeneration project at the San Firenze Complex, for helping make this important moment of institutional dialogue possible. His support recognised the educational and civic value of the path developed by ABF Globalab and helped bring it into a European setting of dialogue and participation.
“It is especially meaningful to welcome the Andrea Bocelli Foundation to Brussels for the first time for two days of meetings and exchanges on projects and ideas. I was especially pleased to host the Foundation’s young people, who are an integral part of the team that designs its educational and training activities,” said Dario Nardella, Member of the European Parliament for the S&D Group. “We are speaking about an Italian excellence whose heart is in Florence, thanks to the redevelopment project of the former San Firenze courthouse, and which is now coming to Europe with the strength of its ideas and with a truly impressive wealth of experience and relationships,” he added. “I am confident that this mission can help unlock new lines of European Union funding and support for the Foundation’s future projects. Culture, in fact, is one of the sectors of greatest interest for the European Commission’s direct funding for cultural institutions and their projects,” Nardella concluded.
“This experience in Brussels has given ABF Globalab’s young people a concrete opportunity to test their skills, vision, and ability to engage in dialogue,” said Laura Biancalani, CEO of the Andrea Bocelli Foundation. “For us, education also means this: accompanying young people as they develop critical thinking and a sense of global citizenship, so that they can understand the complexity of the present and take part in it consciously,” she concluded.
“This journey has helped me grow and made me realise that my tendency to be outgoing and to speak with people in any context could be one of my strengths. This growth naturally affected me as a person, my music, and my understanding of what I want to do. Over the years, the Globalab project has become very close to my heart because it created a space that, for me and others, has become a point of reference—a safe place in Florence at a time when the city lacks places where people can create, discuss, talk, and debate. It is a place I can go to when I have a question and find someone willing to try to answer it. My generation has a profound need for places like this.”
Riccardo
“For me, the journey to the Holy Land was the first opportunity to see with my own eyes a complex reality — one that people often talk about and on which everyone seems to have an opinion. The Globalab team did not teach us a lesson; rather, by listening to direct testimonies from people with different life paths, we were able to deconstruct our certainties and opinions, often inherited from the adults around us, and come to understand complexity for ourselves rather than absorb it. In this way, we were able to form our own conclusions.”
Ilaria Bianca
“When we talk about global citizenship, we risk using big, almost abstract words. For me, instead, it took shape in faces, places, and relationships. It took shape in daily work, in personal responsibility, and in the decision to step forward without always waiting for others to do so. Through the Andrea Bocelli Foundation, I have learned that autonomy does not mean doing everything alone, but rather taking responsibility for a task and seeing it through to the end. I have learned to manage time and priorities in complex contexts, where needs are many and resources must be used carefully. Every project requires organisation and vision, but also humility and the ability to listen.”
Roberto
“I came to understand that, as young people, we truly can have a voice and a place. We are not merely spectators of the world around us; we can play an active role, put forward ideas, and engage with important issues. The exchange with the other participants made me feel part of a community of young people who share doubts, questions, and aspirations. It helped me better understand my own interests and develop a deeper awareness of the path ahead. It was through this experience that I discovered how deeply interested I am in the world of education and training. I began to see education not only as something we receive at school, but as a powerful tool for building relationships, fostering community, and creating growth opportunities”.
Veronica
