Alfonso Molina at “100 Visions for the Future of Education”
Ashoka Italia, together with the Fondazione CR Firenze, has organised a two-day conference (Feb. 29 – March 1) dedicated to educational communities (schools, students, families, institutions, non-governmental bodies and companies) to stimulate, unite, and share innovation experiences and leverage individual visions, stories, skills, and motivations in order to activate a collective impact.
“100 Visions for the Future of Education” has four main objectives:
Celebrate the 100 leaders of educational innovation
Inspire a community of change
Create connections between key players in the educational landscape
Replicate good practices through informal exchanges
The event will be held at the Innovation Centre of the Fondazione CR Firenze (Lungarno Soderini 21). Over the two days, institutional meetings, keynote speeches, and focus groups will alternate to encourage the informal exchange of good practices.
Alfonso Molina, Ashoka Fellow since 2016, will speak in tomorrow’s parallel session on “How can social innovation support the education system?” scheduled from 3.00 to 4.15 pm. The parallel sessions will allow educaitonal leaders to discuss key topics in the Italian and international educational panorama, as indicated in the “Roads of Innovation. Tracing the Transformation of Education in Italy” [also see: Social Innovation at School].
Speakers
Alfonso Molina, Ashoka Fellow, Fondazione Mondo Digitale
There is a dynamic school that is changing silently far from the headlights. It is doing so by opening up to the outside, involving surrounding areas and local communities. This is what has been revealed by the mapping created by Ashoka Italia and presented yesterday to the Chamber of Deputies [see news: Rethinking Educational Systems]. And Scientific Director Alfonso Molina confirms this with an example of a concrete intervention in the suburbs: Programme Smart & Heart Rome, which is supported by the Rome Council and implements innovative practices, in connection with schools, universities, and companies.
For example, for the first time in a public school, and in the Tor Bella Monaca neighbourhood, one of the most complex in the capital due to a series of inequalities, students have access to an indoor drone flight field to explore the challenge of holistic sustainability in the transformation digital. They work with commitment and are supported by their teachers and researchers from the Departments of Civil Engineering and Computer Engineering at the Rome “Tor Vergata” University, with support from ESA and Sap. It is a virtuous example of educational and social innovation that arises from a hybrid alliance between various parties with a strong impact on the recovery of the area. The school can become a point of reference for the social development of the area, supporting the growth of young people and providing numerous opportunities for personal and professional orientation.
The Innovation Gyms are school environments that allow schools, local communities, and learning environments to become one.
Alfonso Molina also underlined how the Ashoka Strade d’Innovazione Report is “valuable and timely as it arrives at a time of change in Italian schools. It provides us with an overview of schools in which innovation is underway despite the many challenges that must be faced to reach full fruition. An awareness is emerging that schools must build educational ecosystems linked to social development. They must strengthen life skills together with academic knowledge. They must prioritize well-being to promote learning. And all of this requires a transformation of the role of educators.”
Non solo oggi, ogni giorno è “giusto” per lanciare in volo il vostro aquilone… Vi invitiamo a documentare e condividere le vostre iniziative usando l’hashtag #voloperilcambiamento.
Agenda Digitale: an educational journey through the land of technology
“We firmly believe that life education in the 21st century must create greater awareness (both personal and collective) on the impact that the ‘great acceleration’ driven by the evolution of Internet and the social media has had on our lives. These challenges must become central in school curricula and the cultural baggage of the new generations. And even school communities must actively participate in the debate.”
Agenda Digitale presents five contributions by Alfonso Molina and Mirta Michilli, addressing the exponential development of science and technology (artificial intelligence, robotics, neuroscience, genomics, etc.) from an original perspective: the impact of the “great acceleration” on our lives and the role of schools and education.
We are so used to technology rapidly evolving through each generation that we have underestimated is ethical and educational aspects. Therefore, life education in the 21st century must lead to both a personal and collective awareness of the impact of this “great acceleration” on our lives. (Agenda Digitale, April 4, 2023)
According to some scholars, we need a new category of human rights: neuro-rights. These are the principles that define and protect our cerebral and mental sphere. What changes for subjects related to education and personal development? (Agenda Digitale, May 25, 2023)
The modification of human genetics poses seriously risky developments and ethical challenges with unforeseen consequences for the future evolution of humanity. Are we about to abandon natural selection or only defeat serious genetic disorders? We still have no answers to our doubts. (Agenda Digitale, July 10, 2023)
Is it right to bring extinct life forms back to life or eliminate unwanted species? A non-anthropocentric vision of genomics requires us to reflect on our actions and take into consideration all life forms on Earth. (Agenda Digitale, September 27, 2023)
The challenge of editing the human genome involves all of humanity, overcoming any national and cultural barrier. Is any modification of DNA admissible to improve our resistance to disease? Two different stories reveal the difficulty of establishing shared rules, while the technological development of genomics is accelerating. (Agenda Digitale, October 13, 2023)
World Refugee Day: today, the “I’m with You” solidarity football match
Today, at 6 pm, there will be the “I’m with You” solidarity football match at the Modenelle Sports Centre in the Arghillà neighbourhood of Reggio Calabria for World Refugee Day (June 20). This year, the tournament returns to Reggio Calabria, 200 kilometres from Cutro, where there was a terrible migrant massacre in February. Volunteers from associations and the church, refugees hosted by reception facilities, minors under judgement, students, athletes from local clubs and third sector operators will compete in the mixed-team football triangular tourney. The football pitch is in Arghillà, a neighbourhood in the metropolitan city of Reggio Calabria with a high rate of educational poverty and extreme social fragility. [see news: The Reception Challenge].
Here is the welcome speech that Alfonso Molina, who will not be able to be at the event, has prepared.
I am very pleased to be able to send my warm greetings to all the young people of Arghillà who will participate in the “I’m with You” solidarity football match promoted by the Fondazione Mondo Digitale for World Refugee Day 2023.
The Foundation has been organizing this very important event for more than 10 years to draw attention to the difficult and sad condition of life in which millions and millions of people are forced to leave their homes, their countries, to survive truly traumatic circumstances.
I still have fresh memories of my days as a refugee fleeing the violence of a coup d’état, of fear, with the hope of finding an outstretched hand willing to help me rebuild my life in another part of the planet. I was lucky to find that hand, that help, which welcomed me and gave me security and the opportunity to grow and make many of my dreams come true.
I hope that the same fortune touches the life of everyone, of every displaced person and refugee in the world. But this can only happen if the Italian government, together with Europe, and better yet with all the developed countries, are capable and willing to design and apply a reception policy where every migrant or economic, war, or climatic refugee is seen and treated with the dignity that all people deserve, as a fundamental human right.
It is not easy, but it is not impossible because as we know: “where there is the will, there is the way.”
In its small way, the “I’m with You” solidarity football match demonstrates our strong will to be together with those who are looking for a new path to well-being. It is a strong reason to celebrate the human solidarity shown by all the young people participating in the Arghillà event, and to thank the Provincial Committee of the Italian Sports Centre (CSI) for its precious collaboration, and the Municipality of Reggio Calabria for its patronage.
Towards RomeCup 2024: Scientific Director Alfonso Molina’s Conclusions
A month has passed since the sixteenth edition of RomeCup (May 3-5, Rome Campus Bio-Medico University and Campidoglio). It was an exciting experience with lots of food for thought that is driving us to exploit synergies and reflections. The three-day event with international experts, student competitions, educational sessions and precious debates has provided us with interesting indications on how technology is driving society. It is important to grasp these stimuli and digest them in view of RomeCup 2024 to support the development of robotics and artificial intelligence not only for Italian industry, but for the entire country. This is transversal technology that if developed ethically and inclusively, can improve everybody’s life quality. Over the years, we have worked with start-ups, universities, and research centres. We want to continue creating connections with the world of school to give all students the tools necessary to orient themselves in the increasingly complex world in which we live and allow them to face both current and future challenges with awareness.
Awareness is a key word. The educational system is not sufficiently preparing students to manage challenges in a complex world. It does not help to define who we are as travellers into the 21st century. However, it is very important that humanity know how to face the future. Strategic and ethical issues have to be addressed. And they must be reached through a debate with civil society. The transition cannot only be governed by political and economic interests. What we need is a governance of the common good capable of interpreting change in an inclusive manner.
Youth who are now entering the working world must possess the adequate critical tools to comprehend the various social implications of technological applications. They must understand the meaning of limits and regulations and develop strong values to guide them. There currently is very little coordination and a lot of fragmentation in the management and regulation of technology. We must start placing the right tools to develop a sustainable future in our children’s backpacks, so that they will not have to passively suffer selfish and near-sighted choices.
Alfonso Molina, Scientific Director, Fondazione Mondo Digitale, Personal Chair in Technology Strategy, University of Edinburgh
Italian Robotics and Research Champions receive awards at the Rome Campidoglio
The awards ceremony of the sixteenth edition of RomeCup has just ended at the Campidoglio. The multi-event promoted by the Fondazione Mondo Digitale and the Rome Campus Bio-Medico Universityseeks to advance robotics as the convergence of innovative technology and orient youth towards upcoming professional challenges for sustainable development through robotics competitions (Soccer, Explorer, Rescue, On Stage, Cospace Rescue) and creative contests between schools and universities. Moreover, the Advancing Technology for Humanity. Most Promising Researcher in Robotics and AI Award, presented for the first time this year in collaboration with the Rome Campus Bio-medico University, provides young researchers from university, research centres, agencies and public or private Italian structures working on AI and robotics with a €5000 prize. The winner of the 16th edition is Marta Lagomarsino with European Project SOPHIA (Socio-physical Interaction Skills for Cooperative Human-Robot Systems in Agile Production), which explores the socio-physical interaction between humans and robots to improve productivity and the health and wellbeing of workers.
Marta Lagomarsino (27 years old from Genoa), a PhD student, has a degree in Biomedical Engineering and Robotic Engineering from the University of Genoa. She collaborates with the Milan Polytechnic University and the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT). The 2023 edition received proposals from 135 researchers from all over Italy, active in 21 universities and in 6 research institutions. All the projects addressed a wide range of topics, all very relevant to the issue of “Advancing Technology for Humanity” with the perspective of an E4-Sustainability: Ecological, Energetic, Economic and Ethical-social [see news: Marta Lagomarsino Wins RomeCup Award 2023].
At the end of the final competition phases, which involved 120 school teams from Italy and Malta, teams were also assigned to the winning teams in eight competition categories. The winners of 16th International City of Rome Robotics Trophy:
Rescue Line – Team Roboys – IIS Galileo Galilei – Catania
Explorer Junior – Team ES9K – IIS Cicerone – Sala Consilina (SA)
Explorer Senior – Team Robot Shock – IIS Cicerone – Sala Consilina (SA)
On Stage Preliminary – Team Octopus Story Robot – IC Nitti – Roma
On Stage Advanced – Team Astra – IS Majorana – Avezzano (AQ)
Top ranking for the RoboCup 2023 National Selections:
Soccer Open League – Team “Go for Broke” – Polo tecnologico Manetti Porciatti – Grosseto (1st Place); Team Carpa – IIS Piazza della Resistenza and IIS Pacinotti Archimede – Rome (2nd Place), Team Ikaro – IIS Pacinotti Archimede – Rome
Soccer Light Weight – Team SPQR 2 – ITIS Galileo Galilei – Rome (1st Place), Team SPQR 1 – ITIS Galileo Galilei – Rome (2nd Place)
Rescue Simulation – Team Fall Itis – IITS Vito Volterra – San Donà di Piave (Ve) in first place; Team “Bob’s Brains” – IITS Vito Volterra di San Donà di Piave (Ve) in second place.
The awards were presented by Monica Lucarelli, Rome City Councillor (Security Policy, Productive Activities, and Equal Opportunities). Also present at the awards ceremony were: Mirta Michilli and Alfonso Molina, respectively Director General and Scientific Director of the Fondazione Mondo Digitale; Eugenio Guglielmelli, Rector of the Rome Campus Bio-medico University; Renato Brunetti, President of the Fondazione Mondo Digitale and CEO, Unidata; Carlo Tosti, President, Rome Campus Bio-medico University; DanieleNardi, Professor of Artificial Intelligence, Sapienza University of Rome, and Riccardo Corbucci, President, Rome Commission, Statute and Technological Innovation.
The winning teams of the national RoboCup Junior selections, the world robotics championships that will be held in July in Bordeaux in France. The first and second classified in the Soccer Open League will travel to the championships in Bordeaux, while the third will participate in the European championships in Croatia. The first-placed in the Soccer Light Weight will travel to Bordeaux, while the second placed will participate in Croatia. The first and second placed in Rescue Simulation will go respectively to Bordeaux and Croatia.
RomeCup 2023 partners, including patronage by the Regione Lazio and Roma Capitale, include the Embassy of the United States in Italy, the European Commission,Lazio Innova, Google.org, Microsoft, SAP, UCIMU-Sistemi per produrre, and Make Shape.
Media partners: IlCorriere della Sera, Il Tempo, Fortune Italia.
On Stage Advanced: team Astra dell’IIS Majorana di Avezzano (AQ)Rescue Line: team Roboys dell’IIS Galileo Galilei di CataniaOn Stage Preliminary: team Octopus Story Robot dell’IC Nitti di RomaExplorer Junior: team ES9K dell’IIs Cicerone di Sala Consilina (SA)Explorer Senior: team Robot Shock dell’IIs Cicerone di Sala Consilina (SA)Rescue Simulation: Bob’s Brains dell’IITS Vito Volterra di San Donà di Piave (Ve)Soccer Light Weight: team SPQR 1 dell’ITIS Galileo Galilei di Roma Soccer Light Weight: team SPQR 2 dell’ITIS Galileo Galilei di Roma
Towards RomeCup 2023 with Scientific Director Alfonso Molina
“Advancing Technology for Humanity – Artificial Intelligence and Human Intelligence. The Crucial Challenges for a Better World” is the title we have chosen for RomeCup 2023. We conceived it for young people, for those who are studying today and wondering how to plan their future, but also for those who cannot see a serious career perspective after choosing a path. There will be an extensive showcase area at the Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome, with which we are collaborating, where participants can learn more about the innovative prototypes designed by schools, companies, start-ups, universities and research centres. One of the “allies” of RomeCup 2023 is academia to provide “live orientation” for upper secondary school students through a constant dialogue extending beyond the narrow limits of a few meetings throughout the school year. This is why we will create contests with universities for the prototyping of robots and the development of software interfaces, as well as university-oriented talks. University experts will address robotics linked to cybersecurity, marine sciences and medicine, engineering and related professions, and digital humanities.
We need “heroes” to stimulate a generation that often feels distant from the challenges of the present and the future. This year, our heroes, our role models, will be the young people engaged in research projects on robotics and artificial intelligence in research centres, agencies, and universities, who will receive reward at the end of the three-day event, in the Rome Campidoglio, following a scrupulous selection. And this to respond to a real need: according to Unioncamere-Anpal, between 2023 and 2027, 34.3% of personnel requests will concern university or professional levels and the numbers will be insufficient to cover the needs of the economic system for about 9,000 units a year, especially in the medical-health, economic-statistics, and STEM disciplines.
This is the model in which we believe and that we will promote this year, too. There still are available spaces for anyone who wishes to participate: www.romecup.org
Alfonso Molina, Scientific Director, Fondazione Mondo Digitale, Personal Chair in Technology Strategy at the University of Edinburgh.
FMD Scientific Director Alfonso Molina’s Perspective
We are in the final stages of the first cycle of Vagone FMD. From 01 to 100 in the Metaverse, a project that together with Meta has led us to meet policy makers, institutional stakeholders, local authorities, representatives of SMEs in a weekly meeting, on Wednesdays, at Binario F. In twelve appointments, small groups of 15 or more individuals with the guidance of an expert coach and a classroom tutor were able to explore the potential of the metaverse through real immersion in varying range of experiential proposals.
In preparing for another cycle, I feel like sharing some considerations on this experience. Forecast numbers for the metaverse are truly extraordinary and many consider it the Internet of the future. According to McKinsey, in 2022, it was already worth 120 billion dollars and it could reach 5 trillion dollars by 2030. What is certain is that our travel companion, Meta, believes firmly in its potential and has moved ahead of the maturation of this technology and its definitive form. Several times, during our meetings, the managers insisted that they wanted to work on an open system, a system with a single infrastructure interoperable by different players.
And this, in my opinion, is already an excellent starting point. By mission, by vocation, by personal and professional history, I always wonder what the impact of technology might be on man and the environment, with a particular focus on fragility and gaps of a social, cognitive and personal nature. And now, I wonder what the advantage of the metaverse could be for schools in their heterogeneity, different endowments, and planning. The answer is that the potential for use is strong and important, but as long as we start innovating with what we already have, it can evolve step by step.
It is undeniable that the metaverse poses a new and exciting vision of reality with the ability to influence cognitive abilities but also on the provision of services (from healthcare to research and training) as an environment in which converging technologies provide a sensory and impactful multi-faceted reality.
An interesting initiative in this sense is the construction by the Fondazione Mondo Digitale, with the technological and scientific contribution of Meta, of an “innovation corner” in secondary schools that will be able to conduct their own personal “metaverse experiments” with Meta Quest 2.
The new year in the observations of Scientific Director Alfonso Molina
What are the challenges that we will face this year? A preview of the reflections of Alfonso Molina, FMD Scientific Director and Personal Chair in Technology Strategy at the University of Edinburgh, in the first issue of our newsletter.
WHAT I KNOW ABOUT 2023 Everything that will happen, in some way already has. Like light from stars that are light years away, the processes that will mark 2023 are the products of years and years of history. And while the grip of Covid is loosening, current affairs, which remain complex, unforeseeable and uncertain, are related to issues concerning the environment, the rise in poverty, migratory flux, and the rapid development of science and technology.
Italy, however, has an extraordinary opportunity thanks to the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) that could free existing energies, drive sustainable development, and provide general optimism, breaking the impasse of production, the GDP, the weight of bureaucracy, the job market, etc.
PNRR The smokescreen generated by taxes and excess regulations in Italy could be swiped away by the PNRR, which aims to mobilise resources with maximum efficiency to strategically impact the country. We all know that it is a unique opportunity that requires professionalism, experience, vision, courage, and integrity to collect the fruits of an innovative systemic change that will provide the younger generations with the future they deserve. We know that it will not be easy due to the weight of bureaucracy, corporativism, the cost of corruption and tax evasion, and a leadership that never proves united when confronted with the challenge of efficiently implementing the PNRR. A fruitful implementation of this resource by 2026 will require monitoring and adequate answers.
YOUTH The condition of youth in Italy is not optimal due to a series of endemic problems, including unemployment, school dispersion, NEETs (youth who neither study nor work) and who will create an emergency for future pensions. If we add this issue to the average ageing of the population (In 2030, over-65s will be 25% of the Italian population; it currently stands at 23%) and the demographic drop (estimated population in Italy will be 48 million in 2100), it is clear that there is a desperate need to develop and apply policies to support youth: from education to employment and to help families and increase births. The progressive decrease of doctors, with thousands ready to retire over the next ten years who will not be replaced by others, will not help. How can we train the personnel that will be needed to manage increasingly sophisticated devices for medicine and diagnostics? These are strategic issues that need answers by the country’s leadership.
THE ROLE OF SCHOOL Improving the level of education of youth will require innovating the system of Italian schooling and university to meet 21st century challenges, bridge the mismatch between education/training and employment opportunities, and simultaneously increasing the possibility of finding quality employment can drive the competitive impulse of the country. This is the key to facing the evolution of the working world. As has often been repeated, 65% of the children in school today will have a profession that does not exist yet. And it must be emphasized that the health sector, with its high rate of technological innovation, employs many women, a gender that is not equally represented, in general, in STEM fields.
So, if we had to identify a starting point from which to begin solving a series of complicated issues, it would the reformation of the educational system as a whole, both as a resource and as a starting point.
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