The story of a North that is more than just geography, one that is woven from memory, emotion and human ties; the madness and poetry in the life of a nineteenth-century doctor and his companion; eight winter tales, suspended between longing and dread; a dark narrative of bloodshed in the Maremma at the dawn of the Fascist era; a journey through the sites and recollections of book burnings across history, meditating on the enduring power of reading. Who will claim the 63rd Premio Campiello?

While waiting to know the name of the winner, the Pirelli Foundation spoke with the five finalist authors, who talked about their books. In the week before the announcement, we will hear their voices, discovering one book each day through the video interviews available on this page.

Here is the complete programme:

Monday 8 September 2025: Marco Belpoliti – Nord nord (Einaudi)

Tuesday 9 September 2025: Wanda Marasco – Di spalle a questo mondo (Neri Pozza)

Wednesday 10 September 2025: Monica Pareschi – Inverness (Polidoro)

Thursday 11 September 2025: Alberto Prunetti – Troncamacchioni (Feltrinelli)

Friday 12 September 2025: Fabio Stassi – Bebelplatz (Sellerio)

The Awards Ceremony, broadcast live on RAI5, will take place on Saturday, 13 September, at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, where the winner of the Premio Campiello 2025 will be proclaimed. Pirelli, long a champion of reading and corporate culture, is once again proud to support the event.

Enjoy the show – and the read!

Necesse est enim ut veniant scandala (For it is necessary that scandals come), says the Gospel according to Matthew. This dense phrase, full of intelligence and historical significance, comes to mind when considering the lessons to be learned from the current judicial and political events affecting Milan, its administration and its development projects, even in the context of our own modest history. Rather than considering our modern understanding of a scandal as an event that causes public outrage, let’s go back to the etymology of the word. The ancient Greek skándalon, meaning ‘stumbling block’ or ‘obstacle’.

Beyond the outcomes of the investigations by the Public Prosecutor’s Office, justice should take its course. Without being distracted by media uproar and the judicial fervour of ‘summary trials’ via social media, it is precisely the ‘stumbling block’ in Milan’s rhetoric of success as an attractive, ever-changing metropolis that forces everyone to reflect deeply on the city’s new characteristics, on whether it is or is not ‘a model’, and on development paradigms that must once again be capable of reconciling productivity and social inclusion, competitiveness and solidarity. Milan can achieve anything, except reduce itself to being, as Alberto Mattioli wrote in La Stampa on 17 July, ‘beautiful without a soul, increasingly sparkling and less and less authentic’.

After all, Milan is not just Milan, but Italy, and our city is more international and economically a heavyweight engine in Europe. Culturally and socially, it is a cornerstone for innovation (including the negative aspects, which must be governed and limited). ‘Milan is an asset; it needs to be defended, and a vision needs to be offered,’ write Emanuele Orsini, president of Confindustria, and Alvise Biffi, president of Assolombarda, in an editorial in Il Sole 24 Ore (25 July). It is a significant political and communicative choice of national scope.  Business is not standing by; once again, it is ready to play its part in the recovery and relaunch of the metropolis and the country by ‘working together with institutions, companies, universities and civil society’. Furthermore, Assolombarda’s culture is well established in the harmonies between productivity and solidarity, and between local roots and a global outlook. ‘Insieme’ (Together) is the title of the book, which was edited by the Assolombarda Foundation and published by Marsilio to celebrate its eighty years of history. ‘Far volare Milano per far volare l’Italia’ (‘Making Milan fly to make Italy fly’) was the strategic vision of Gianfelice Rocca, one of Assolombarda’s most ambitious and forward-thinking presidents (2013–2017). An idea that is still relevant.

Therefore, let us try to think more positively about the idea of a skándalon and start with the memory of a date:  1942. On 17 August that year, in a time of war, military tensions and social concerns, the Mussolini government issued Law No. 1150 immediately after the approval of the Civil Code. This law defined a general and uniform urban planning discipline across the national territory, introducing ‘building regulatory plans’ and ‘general regulatory plans’, as well as ‘territorial coordination plans’. More than eighty years later, this law is still in force and continues to serve as the cornerstone of national urban planning legislation, albeit with numerous modifications, integrations and variations that have complicated its application. This is also because, in the meantime, cities have changed; lifestyles and living habits have evolved; and production, economic and social processes have undergone radical transformation. The business models of financial investors and builders have also changed. In short, it’s a completely different world. The rules increasingly struggle to effectively frame and regulate the tensions and trends concerning the development of cities and a primary good for Italians: a home.

Those familiar with Italian political history will remember the ‘Housing Plan’, which from 1949 to 1963 led to significant public housing construction, facilitating profound urban and rural transformation (the ‘Fanfani Plan’, named after its creator, the Minister of Labour). Another measure was introduced in 1962 with Law 167, which was proposed by the then Minister of Public Works, the Christian Democrat Fiorentino Sullo. This stimulated the construction of new public residential settlements for over five million inhabitants.

These were the times of the economic boom. The impetuous force of reconstruction and recovery moved millions of people from southern peasant villages to northern industrial areas in search of better working and living conditions, primarily in Milan and Turin. Politics and public intervention sought to respond to these new social needs.

However, in such a disruptive context, Sullo failed to implement the key urban planning reform in 1963. This was fiercely opposed by large landowners and the right wing, and ultimately renounced by the Christian Democrats themselves. This had a negative effect on the first centre-left government, which was presided over by Aldo Moro. The Italian Socialist Party finally entered the ‘seat of power’’, but its reformist momentum slowed significantly. There was no reform to modernise and simplify the process of providing homes for Italians, nor to curb the demands of those who were then putting their ‘hands over the city’ (as depicted in the film of the same name by Francesco Rosi about real estate speculation, especially in Rome and the cities of the south). It was a daunting task to make incisive reforms in this country.

In summary,  as far as construction is concerned, Italy changes, but the laws do not — except for cautious yet confused modernisations and adjustments. Four very different individuals have commented on this Milan skándalon. Firstly, there is Piero Bassetti, a scholar of great acumen and former president of the Lombardy Region, who says that the regulatory package in the fields of construction, building and urban development is ‘old and inadequate’, and that we are faced with ‘a not simple dialectic between new interests and outdated regulations’ (La Repubblica, 17 July; Il Foglio, 22 July). Then there is Gabriele Albertini, a former centre-right mayor of Milan, who initiated urban regeneration on 11 million square metres of land freed up by industrial closures during his two terms in office from 1997 to 2006. He argues, ‘A rule never repealed, although written in 1942:  from this political knot all the problems derive’ (Il Sole24Ore, 26 July). Next is Federica Brancaccio, president of Ance (the Association of Builders):  ‘In Milan, there is a problem with the interpretation of the Lombardy regional law and the municipal resolutions that refer to it, as well as with harmonising this interpretation with the national regulations dating back to 1942.  It is a paradox’ (Il Foglio, 24 July). Finally, Carlo Ratti, an architect, urban planner and professor at MIT in Boston, said:  ‘Anyone who has dealt with building permits is well aware of the complexities of Italian bureaucracy.  The regulations are an opaque labyrinth that hinders both efficiency and transparency’ (Il Sole24Ore, 27 July).

Setting aside the Milanese judicial affair, the skándalon tells us that there is a legal and administrative problem to address:  rules to be rewritten (a responsibility of the national government and Parliament, not the mayors), procedures to be clarified and simplified, and good governance to be encouraged through legislation that meets the needs of the present day (taking into account legitimate interests and new financial techniques and construction technologies). There must also be governance of the territory based on the fact that ‘at the administrative and decision-making level, Milan cannot stop at the municipal perimeter. We must give powers to the metropolitan city’, as Francesco Billari, the demographer and rector of Bocconi University, argues in Corriere della Sera (23 July). Milan must also be governed in terms of the interconnections between services and the movement of people, ideas and capital. In the ideal map of a ‘Greater Milan’, it should be considered in relation to other nearby cities.

It is a matter of efficiency, of the effectiveness of economic, urban and social choices, and of legality in the broadest sense of the term.

There is also a social demand to consider:  to provide opportunities for changing social classes and, of course, for the increasing number of students who choose Milan for university and to build a quality professional future. As Carlo Cottarelli, an economist with extensive international expertise, argues, ‘The problem with Milan is not that skyscrapers are being built, but that not enough houses are being built for the middle class’ (Corriere della Sera, 23 July).

So, what can be done? The answer lies in striking a balance between construction projects for wealthy individuals, including international ones attracted to Milan, and those for the middle and lower-middle classes. This approach would offer a return on investment over a longer period than the more demanding profit dynamics, providing tax advantages and careful use of urbanisation charges, which would be borne by large real estate funds. In short, it is a set of political choices.

The point is, the Prosecutor’s Office is doing its job, operating according to the laws in force. But those who govern a city in continuous transformation are also doing their part, trying to provide answers for investors and young people who choose Milan in the hope of a better future, as well as for those who are still drawn to the idea of working, creating, designing and producing. Entrepreneurs want to do their job, and citizens still uphold the values of Milan civil life: competitive, yet inclusive.

These are all issues that apply to Milan, but they also apply to other cities. ‘Urban planning laws are written by politicians; magistrates must limit themselves to fighting crime,’ summarises Claudio Martelli, a former socialist politician and minister (including of Justice), who has a particular focus on Milan, his home city (La Stampa, 22 July). However, the trouble is that, as we have seen, politics has not yet taken responsibility for urban planning laws.

‘Milan, it is time to think about the second act,’ concludes architect Ratti, who is well aware of the economic and ethical values that must inspire a smart city.

How? The discussion about the Housing Plan has returned, recalling (with all due differences) Minister Fanfani’s approach of providing public resources for private residential construction.

The Municipality of Milan has launched its own ‘Housing Plan’ to build 10,000 affordable housing units over ten years (with a rental price of around 600 euros per month for a 100-square-metre apartment). ‘In September, we will put out the first tender call,’ announces Emmanuel Conte, Councillor for Budget, State Property, and indeed the Housing Plan (Corriere della Sera, 26 July).

Looking beyond Milan, Federica Brancaccio of Ance considers more general needs, arguing that a Housing Plan of 15 billion euros is needed (Il Sole24Ore, 23 July) to be financed with state and EU resources to leverage robust private investment. She is also evaluating which projects deserve regulatory and tax benefits.  ‘Let’s imagine a social impact rating, a grid of requirements to ensure the possibility of bringing affordable housing to market and restoring the city to what it should be for its citizens:  a forge of stimulation and growth, where young people, the elderly and families can live and social mobility can flourish’ (this will be discussed in October at the “Cities in the Future 2030-2050” conference, under the guidance of Francesco Rutelli).

Even during this skándalon, Milan is demonstrating the strength of its character, built over a long history (as discussed in last week’s blog):  an attitude of openness to discussion and criticism, and a willingness to propose solutions to problems, even the most difficult ones. In these controversial times, this is how we move forward.

The consequences on the local economy of the failure of a large factory

When an enterprise closes, a piece of human history is lost and the wings of development are clipped . Experience tells us this, although there are many cases of rebirth and revival.  But the path is always tortuous and tiring, full of unknowns. So, it is important to analyse some of the most notable cases. Francesco David, an economist from the Analysis and Territorial Economic Research Division of the Bank of Italy’s Palermo office, has done just that in his Occasional Paper, ‘Gli effetti della chiusura di un grande stabilimento industriale sull’economia locale’ (The effects of the closure of a large industrial plant on the local economy), which refers to the closure of the FIAT plant in Termini Imerese, Sicily.

David starts with the assumption that the presence of large industrial plants can benefit local economies but may also result in territories becoming overly dependent on the decisions of individual operators, particularly when a significant proportion of employment is concentrated within them. The case of Termini Imerese is precisely the demonstration of this. The paper then analyses the socio-economic consequences of the 2011 closure of the FIAT plant, which employed 43% of the local industrial workforce.

After framing the topic and summarising the history of the plant since its creation, the research uses statistical methods to investigate the impact of the closure on employment and the local area. David shows that, following the closure, employment in Termini Imerese fell substantially compared to a scenario of continued activity (1,500 employees), with an estimated decrease in the employment rate of 3.9 percentage points by the end of 2021. The impact was mainly on direct employment, with limited effects on induced employment.  However, there were also other consequences: a decrease in population, local income and property values.

Francesco David thus highlights, in quantitative terms, the significant impact of effective business management and its repercussions on the local area, which extend far beyond mere economics. This demonstrates the consequences of industrial policies that are not always attentive, as well as the need for a production culture that considers a multitude of factors.

Gli effetti della chiusura di un grande stabilimento industriale sull’economia locale

Francesco David

Bank of Italy, Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers), No. 952, July 2025

When literature does the talking for the culture of production

Human beings and work, offices and factories. Communities made of common labours and dreams, conflicts and hopes. A culture of production that becomes industrious reality, and a desire for well-being, and a rich subject matter. This has often, very often, been the case in the history of literature, as well as in literature today. It is important to occasionally visit (or revisit) some of the countless examples of stories of work and enterprise that literature is full of, perhaps to read them again or for the first time.

Thus, it is possible to read The Government Clerks (written by Honoré de Balzac in 1844, but still relevant and worth reading in some respects), which describes the office world of the time with merciless wit (a world that, in many respects, resembles that of today). Xavier Rabourdin, the protagonist, works in a ‘big room’, which could be referred to as an open-plan office today. Like the protagonists in Charles Dickens’ Hard Times, he fights every day to build a career, albeit in a very different environment. Hard Times describes factories and labour relations in the early days of the English Industrial Revolution in no uncertain terms. Dickens had experienced factory life, albeit briefly, and later became a parliamentary journalist.  He combined the ability to tell with the ability to see, in no uncertain terms.  Starting with the places and characters. ‘In Coketown,’ writes Dickens, ‘the piston of the steam-engine worked monotonously up and down (…). It contained several large streets all very like one another, and many small streets still more like one another, inhabited by people equally like one another, who all went in and out at the same hours, with the same sound upon the same pavements, to do the same work, and to whom every day was the same as yesterday and to-morrow, and every year the counterpart of the last and the next’.

The factory is depicted as a place of conflict (and possibly redemption), confrontation, as well as alienation. This is what happens to the protagonist of the 1925 novella The Train Has Whistled by Luigi Pirandello. The protagonist, Belluca, is an office worker who is mistreated by his colleagues and has a family that he feels he cannot connect with. Belluca eventually goes mad.

But are work and enterprise exclusively areas of drudgery and alienation? Clearly not, although these aspects have often been the focus of literature. One example is enough to refute the rule: Primo Levi, who, in his The Monkey Wrench, speaks of the toil of work and the factory, but also of its beauty. Levi — writer, chemist, man of letters and science, and witness to both the Holocaust and corporate work — tells of a particular aspect of human happiness in one of his most well-known passages. He writes, ‘If we can except those isolated and miraculous moments fate can bestow on a man, loving your work (unfortunately, the privilege of a few) represents the best, most concrete approximation of happiness on earth. But this is a truth that not many know’.

The Government Clerks

Honoré de Balzac

Garzanti, 1996

Hard Times

Charles Dickens

Feltrinelli, 2015

The train has whistled…

in, ‘Novella for a year. The lonely man’

Luigi Pirandello

Mondadori (various editions)

The Monkey Wrench

Primo Levi

Einaudi (various editions)

The analysis of policies dedicated to Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence needs to be governed on several levels. This issue is just as important as striking the right balance between the potential of AI and its risks. AI is a theme that lies between the culture of production, awareness, and the rules that organisations must impose on themselves. It is also a rapidly evolving technological phenomenon with radical and disruptive social impacts that require different tools to address. In their book, Politiche dell’intelligenza artificiale. Arene, strategie, poteri’ (Artificial intelligence policies. Arenas, strategies, powers), Ernesto d’Albergo and Giorgio Giovanelli seek to answer the question of the convergences and differentiations that arise when examining AI from the perspective of the instruments used to govern it. The book reconstructs the mutual influences of economic, cultural, and institutional factors, as well as the role played by various social forces, actors, and political systems in the complex field of ‘artificial intelligence policies’.
In answering the underlying question, ‘Who, among governments, businesses, experts, civil society and citizens, exercises power in AI policies, to what extent, and how?’, — d’Albergo and Giovanelli present the results of an analysis of policy strategies focused on various priorities,  such as encouraging the development of technological innovation, regulating the trade-off between the potential and risks of AI models and systems, and adopting them for public purposes. The authors then examine the various actors involved, their objectives, and the issues, decisions, and primary policy instruments guiding the development and adoption of AI, whether by prioritising the protection of human and social rights, deregulating its use, or attempting to reconcile the two.

In one of the introductory passages, which provides a synthesis of the authors’ thinking, we read that ‘the politics of AI policies share modes of action, alternative strategic orientations, conflict and conflict management styles with other arenas, such as sustainable development and climate change policies’.

Politiche dell’intelligenza artificiale. Arene, strategie, poteri

Ernesto d’Albergo, Giorgio Giovanelli

Franco Angeli Open Access, 2025

Research carried out on the labour market in Lombardy’s capital city provides a snapshot of the current situation and the remaining steps to be taken

Milan is an example of a labour market that should be studied and understood. It is an emblematic case of progress and innovation, and can be compared with the problems common to other geographical and economic areas of the country. In view of this, Milan is at the centre of extensive research, ‘Dinamiche del mercato del lavoro a Milano’ (Dynamics of the Labour Market in Milan), edited by Silvia Salini and inspired by the ‘Milano Occupazione 2024 (MiO2024)’ study day held in May 2024.

The study is the result of a collaboration between the Milan Economic Impact Evaluation Centre (MEIEC) and the University of Milan. It is one of the activities promoted by the Lombardy Territorial Table, which was set up by ISTAT, the regions and autonomous provinces, ANCI and UPI. This large working group was bought together to examine the situation and evolution of the labour market in the Lombardy capital, identifying its peculiarities and lines of evolution.

The survey examines local cyclical demand for work, the specific situations faced by young people and women, and the importance of effective links between the labour market and administrations, as well as accurate information. It also considers the crucial shift from the concept of ‘a job for life’ to ‘a lifetime of jobs’.

In their conclusions, the authors of the research write about the important evolution that the labour market in Milan still has to undergo. Although permanent contracts appear to be increasing, many questions remain, ‘Although the data show a strengthening of this component, it remains to be seen whether this growth represents a structural change in the labour market or is to be interpreted as a transitory phenomenon. In particular, the short average duration of contracts and high turnover suggest that the market has not yet reached full maturity in terms of employment stability.’ And, further, ‘Overall, the Milan labour market is a system in transition. It is seeking to consolidate recent progress, but it continues to face significant structural challenges’ .

Dinamiche del mercato del lavoro a Milano

Silvia Salini (ed.)

Milan University Press, 2025

‘There’s no such thing as having too many books; only not having enough shelves,’ reads the caption of a beautiful photo of a stack of books, which has been circulating on Facebook (it must be thanks to an algorithm aimed at lovers of literature and readers). In these uncertain times, with so many questions about the future of Milan, amid a new storm of judicial, media, political and administrative issues, it is worth taking a break from the news for a moment and turning to books. Among their wise and witty pages, we can find useful ideas for critical reflection, following the suggestions of Alberto Manguel in Vivere con i libri (Einaudi) as he takes us on a journey through his library.

Firstly, take Italo Calvino‘s ‘Invisible Cities’. Let us turn to the final page of the dialogue between the mighty Kublai Khan and the wise Marco Polo. They discuss how to deal with ‘the hell of the living’, or ‘the hell we inhabit every day and create through our interactions’. Calvino’s Marco Polo says, ‘There are two ways to escape suffering it. The first is easy for many:  accept the inferno and become such a part of it that you can no longer see it.  The second is risky and demands constant vigilance and apprehension:  seek and learn to recognise who and what, in the midst of inferno, are not inferno, then make them endure, give them space.’

An indication of method, then. With a solid ethical foundation:  no resignation to degradation in the grey area of indifference, but rather a commitment to understanding and choosing how to act. Face the crisis by evaluating its implications, dangers and opportunities, and remember that the word ‘crisis’ comes from the Greek verb krino, meaning to distinguish, to separate, to judge. Taking a ‘risk’ (the word Calvin uses) in giving space and time to what ‘is not hell’. In Milan today, the challenge of designing the city as a community moving along the controversial and conflicting paths of modernity is political and cultural.  The aim is to build a better, less unbalanced and more socially acceptable future.

Milan is a reformist city, as evidenced by the politically diverse experiences of its mayors, from the socialist Antonio Greppi during the reconstruction of the immediate post-war period, to Carlo Tognoli during the dynamic 1980s, and from centre-right mayors such as Luigi Albertini and Letizia Moratti, to centre-left mayors such as Giuliano Pisapia and the current mayor, Beppe Sala. It is dynamic,  productive, sensitive to social dimensions and inclusive, and animated by the anxiety of ‘doing’. And at the same time by the sense of responsibility of ‘doing well’. And driven by the desire to ‘do good’. Its citizens have a civic spirit, and are certainly not hasty users of the city who are heedless of the community’s well-being. This civic spirit also affects its enterprises, both historically and in the present day.

In home libraries, it’s easy to find the medieval pages of Bonvesin della Riva (Le Meraviglie di Milano, which is not limited to architecture) and those of Bishop Ariberto d’Intimiano (‘Those who know what work is come to Milan. And those who come to Milan are free men’), work as identity and citizenship, the open city, the sense of change and progress, which occurred in the times of feudal power and corporations). Reproductions of Leonardo da Vinci‘s technical drawings of the ‘machines’ and gears of an ingenious and industrious city (the originals are in the ‘Atlantic Codex’ at the Ambrosiana). The civil lucidity of ‘Il Caffè’ by Verri and the other Milanese Enlightenment thinkers, who were attentive to ‘good government’ and the relationship between rights and duties, laws and justice, as indicated by Cesare Beccaria.  And again, the economic intelligence of Carlo Cattaneo, and the literature marked by a strong moral sense of Alessandro Manzoni. And the widespread idea of progress and civilisation, social coexistence and development, the pain of living and the hope to be cultivated, community spirit and the passion for competitiveness (the two words have a common origin that connects them in an original way). All of these dimensions are found in the works of Testori, Gadda, Vittorini, Buzzati, Bianciardi and Scerbanenco over time. Light and shadow, civil society and social marginality, and even the spaces occupied by crime — to get an idea, just read Elementi di urbanistica noir by Gianni Biondillo, architect and writer, published by EuroMilano.

In short, the bookshelves are laden with intelligence and wisdom, not to mention novels and essays of more topical interest. Because ‘Milan is like the tip of an iceberg.  Beneath lies its vast history. You can say “Milan, Milan” over and over, you can try writing it again and again’, to use Aldo Nove‘s description in ‘Milan is not Milan’ (Laterza) of the difficult and controversial representation of the city.

What emerges from this intellectual — and, ultimately, sentimental — journey (cities have a soul; they exert a fascination over those who live in, visit or observe them; they can make one fall in love) on the walls of a house full of books? The strong idea of a Milan that is multiple, plural and even contradictory — it ‘contains multitudes’, to borrow Walt Whitman’s wise words, loved by Vittorini — and, in any case, attentive to the concept of a ‘city that rises’ (Boccioni’s painting is a useful reference here). It is an awareness of history as a path that is bumpy rather than linear, a ‘sinuous course of things’, as Merleau-Ponty would say, and a strong will to emerge from recurrent historical crises. Thus, it recognises the characteristics of hell and is at peace with them, knowing full well that there is no heaven on leaving. However, there is the possibility of a better Milan until a new era of change requires us to define and establish new values and balances.

There are other writings to consider:  those of Stendhal, who was so passionately attached to Milan that he requested that his epitaph in the Montmartre cemetery read ‘Milanese’. He was fascinated by the city’s blend of theatre and fashion, commerce and beautiful architecture, elegant wealth and popular vivacity (‘this people born for beauty…’), enterprise and the desire to ‘build a house or at least renovate the façade of the one inherited from his father’.

Examples of this trend, linking economic success to urban decorum and wealth to architecture, can be found in Nicolò Biddau‘s photographs in I cortili di Milano, Photo Publisher, (‘The courtyards of Milan are silent settings of an ancient theatre, where every stone and every detail tells a hidden story’) and in ‘Case milanesi’ by Orsina Simona Pierini and Alessandro Isastia, published by Hoepli. The beauty and dynamism of building.

In short, Stendhal recognised the characteristics of his time and cultivated a perspective that linked current events with future trends. His observations can now be found in the work of Carlo Ratti, an architect and academic who splits his time between Turin and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston. Ratti is the curator of the 19th International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Biennale, and is deeply involved in Smart City issues through his studio CRA – Carlo Ratti Associati, which is working on the master plan for the Porta Romana area of Milan. In an article in La Stampa on 18 July, he claims that ‘Milan has never had a contemplative soul, but has always been mercantile and pragmatic, combining business and culture, as Stendhal also recounted.  It is a successful city, Italy’s gateway to the global economy. What my colleague Saskia Sassen calls a “global city”, and this is certainly not something to apologise for. The point now is not to eliminate the spectacle of modernity, but to ensure that the backstage still exists for students, migrants and innovators — for those who try and fail.’

In short, Milan, with its skyscrapers, finance, fashion and glamorous events, is keeping up with international trends.  It is a place to live and yet also to be governed. Ratti argues that ‘the theme is success. When a city thrives and attracts people and capital, prices rise and the risk of exclusion increases. I believe we will see changes in the coming years, such as more affordable housing and tools to curb gentrification.’

These have been ‘boom years’. The city has been ‘a laboratory’. Now, Ratti says in Il Giorno on 20 July, ‘speculative bubbles must be avoided using effective tools to ensure the balance of the civitas — the city community — with incentives to build more affordable housing and a way to balance growth and inclusiveness’.

In fact, Milan is among the top ten cities in the world where the wealthy want to live, alongside Singapore, London, Hong Kong, Munich, Zurich and Paris, and ahead of Frankfurt and Barcelona (according to the Julius Baer Global Report, Il Sole24ore, 15 July).  It is a record with many facets. However, if Milan were to become an exclusive city for the world’s rich, it would lose its soul and marginalise the middle classes, young people, new entrepreneurs who have not yet achieved economic success, intellectuals, creative people and ordinary, hard-working individuals. It would have restaurants and luxury shops, but not books, nor critical culture, nor therefore civil conscience.

To understand more, we can find other books on the shelves:  ‘Milanesi si diventa’ by Carlo Castellaneta (Mondadori, 1991) is a novel about the welcoming capacity of a strict yet inclusive city that is generous with opportunities. Another is ‘Sulla formazione della classe dirigente – L’ultimo progetto di Raffaele Mattioli’, edited by Francesca Pino (Aragno, 2023), a collection of essays on the life and work of Raffaele Mattioli, a great banker, patron of the arts and leader of the Banca Commerciale Italiana from the early 1930s to the 1960s. Mattioli was one of the leaders of the reconstruction and then the Italian economic boom, as recounted by Elena Grazioli in ‘Raffaele Mattioli oltre la banca. published by Luni Editrice.  Mattioli was originally from Abruzzo, but he was deeply Milanese in his economic style, as well as in his humanistic and financial culture.  In summary, he was in favour of finance for enterprise, especially industry, rather than for speculators and those who want to ‘make money out of money’.

What do these books (and the many others we could read and quote) tell us? They tell us that Milan, with all its dynamism and eagerness to keep pace with, and sometimes even anticipate, change and innovation, suffers from the constraints of formal rules and bureaucracies. It is an enterprising city, that instead of obsessing about procedures, aims for results.

Today, without of course going into the merits of the ongoing judicial investigations, it is worth tackling the crisis without limiting ourselves to the chronicles and skirmishes of political propaganda  (noting, however, that we do not seem to be facing a ‘new Tangentopoli’, as argued by Michele Serra in La Repubblica and Goffredo Buccini in Corriere della Sera on 20 July). In the necessary public debate, we must address the crux of the problems.

Milan’s pride is productive and can be used to its advantage.  The social wounds of the metropolis must be healed and growth must be governed. But the laws must also be rewritten to overcome the stalemate imposed by ‘a labyrinth of rules, often opaque and contradictory’ (Carlo Ratti’s definition) that were written in the mid-twentieth century when the needs of urban planning, interests, finance and companies were different. Public administration must be made efficient and effective, working by results and not by procedures.  Imbalances must be understood and addressed in an attempt to resolve them. Public services and common goods must be guaranteed.  This is what citizenship means.  

These are indeed the tasks of the ‘ruling class’, and they must be capable of seriously discussing the future as an alert civil conscience.

Milan, in fact, deserves it. Without being dazzled by the ‘thousand lights’, the greed of rents, or the ephemerality of events; nor by populist justicialism or the temptations of ‘degrowth’, however unfortunate they may be.

This is what the tour of the library shelves shows us:  the robust and sensitive soul of a great city which asks to continue growing in a productive, inclusive, innovative and supportive way, as it has always done.

The description, analysis and management of a widespread and particular way of doing business

Family businesses are considered the ‘backbone’ of many economies, yet they are little known and burdened by a series of myths that often bear no relation to reality. Understanding their true nature and how they operate and evolve is key to understanding an important part of a country’s (and Italy’s in particular) production culture. This is what ‘Imprese familiari. Teoria e pratica per gestire con intenzione’ (Family businesses. Theory and practice for managing with intention) tries – and succeeds – to do.Co-authored by Cristina Bettinelli and Olivia Mathijsen, it offers an analysis of this category of entrepreneurial activities, guiding the reader through an understanding of their complexities and evolutionary trajectories.
Using theoretical models, case studies and practical tools, the book reflects on issues such as governance, conflicts, values and culture. The book addresses the issue of generational transition by illustrating how to cultivate management skills (stewardship) in future generations. The common thread is the intentionality in consciously addressing these topics.

The book begins with an important passage that addresses and debunks six myths related to the image of family businesses. It then moves on to the criteria for defining family businesses, before addressing the ‘three evolutionary dimensions’ of these production organisations:  property, family, and the business itself. The authors then turn to the complex and varied topic of managing the various dimensions that come together in a family business, before moving on to other fundamental themes,  such as the intertwining of values and culture in family businesses, and the conflicts, communications, and emotions that can characterise these activities. Bettinelli and Mathijsen’s work concludes with two further key arguments:  the crux of generational transition, and the importance of passing on the necessary managerial skills to new generations. Two case studies—Pastificio Rana SpA and Distillatori Nonino SRL- complete the theory illustrated in the book.

Cristina Bettinelli and Olivia Mathijsen have written an excellent introduction to understanding a unique way of doing business.

Imprese familiari. Teoria e pratica per gestire con intenzione

Cristina Bettinelli, Olivia Mathijsen

Guerini Next, 2024

Two published studies have recently addressed the topic in different fields

Knowing and understanding each other. Breaking down barriers. Cross-pollinating cultures to make them greater. Finding shared paths.  And goals to achieve together. It is all a question of approach and attitude. This is an issue that affects everyone, often taking on decisive importance in business relationships and in organisations in general. Two recently published studies address this issue from different perspectives.

Firstly, Faruk Ahmed, Anupam Saha, Abdullah At Tasrif and Joyshree Das – with their research “Cultural Intelligence and Strategic Adaptation: ‘Unpacking the Dynamics of Successful International Business Negotiations Between US and Chinese Technology Firms’ – address the topic of relationships between different cultures by looking at globalisation and successful international business negotiations: areas where success depends heavily on the negotiators.  In other words, a strong ability to “navigate complex cultural and strategic landscapes” is required. The research investigates the critical role of culture and strategic adaptability in shaping the outcomes of negotiations between US and Chinese firms in the modern technology sector. Faruk Ahmed and his colleagues then explore how different cultural norms, communication styles and business practices influence negotiation dynamics,  even starting from case studies such as joint ventures and strategic partnerships between major technology companies in both countries. Their findings suggest that negotiators who demonstrate a high level of strategic and behavioural culture, coupled with a high degree of strategic flexibility, are better able to reach sustainable and mutually beneficial agreements. The key is to learn about each other in order to understand each other.

Secondly, Alina Omirzak explores another area of intercultural relations with her research project, ‘Exploring approaches to improving communication and engagement of job seekers from different cultural contexts’. This study focuses on the process of selecting and engaging candidates from various cultural backgrounds within companies. The research analyses the main barriers and challenges that arise during interaction between people of different cultural backgrounds, as well as modern approaches and effective methods for overcoming these barriers. She also examines some practical examples of international companies that have successfully adopted a multicultural approach.  Even in this area, the ability to overcome barriers and ‘cross-pollinate individual cultures’ appears to be crucial.

Cultural Intelligence and Strategic Adaptation: Unpacking the Dynamics

of Successful International Business Negotiations Between U.S. and

Chinese Technology Firms

Faruk Ahmed, Anupam Saha, Abdullah At Tasrif, Joyshree Das

Pacific Journal of Business Innovation and Strategy, Vol. 2, Issue 3, 2025

Exploring approaches to improving communication and engagement of job seekers from different cultural contexts

Alina Omirzak, University Admissions Expert Almaty, Kazakhstan

Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, Volume 3, Issue 6, June – 2025

It is a slim book of barely 86 pages, flowing skilfully. The title is I venti (The Winds). Mario Vargas Llosa wrote it shortly before his death in April this year, and Einaudi has just published it. It can be read in just an hour. And it is the viewpoint of a noble father of world literature, a memoir and a kind of testament. It deserves our intelligent and heartfelt attention.

It is said that in Madrid, implicitly a metaphor for other cities, cinemas are closing because no one frequents them any more, and before long, deserted libraries and bookshops will also close, due to lack of visitors, and the same will happen to museums. Saddened and melancholic, only a few elderly people go to the protest rallies against these signs of waning knowledge and the civilised spirit of a community, and they are ignored.

All about them, technology and images triumph: the dystopia of the ‘Society of the Spectacle’, critically prophesied by Guy Debord in the mid-1960s, is worsened.  Digital reproductions of works of art on mobile phone and computer displays replace live paintings. Foolish passions arise for a ‘paper-free’ society without books or newspapers. Novels are written by artificial intelligence instead of the works of Tolstoy, Cervantes and Virginia Woolf. Algorithms instead of creativity of artists.

What of this artist, then? The book’s protagonist gets lost near the Biblioteca Nacional on Paseo de Recoletos, in the heart of the city. He is fragile and confused; he can’t even remember how to get home. He wanders, overwhelmed by memories and regrets. An old man adrift. The sharp headline “Triste, solitario y final” in the Sunday cultural supplement Robinson of La Repubblica quotes Osvaldo Soriano in support of Paolo Di Paolo‘s review of the sparse, ironic and compelling pages of Vargas Llosa’s posthumous novel that we mentioned. It is a conservative elegy to high culture. And a warning of the extent to which its degradation affects even social, economic and political freedoms.

The old masters are dying. To this writer’s great sorrow, the latest to pass away were Marco Onado and Goffredo Fofi, who died just a few days ago. They leave behind legacies of thoughts and words, in the hope that those of us who remain will continue to bring them to life and bear fruit in the form of new knowledge and intense stories, animated by intelligence and passion.

We are anxiously going through difficult times. The reality of armed wars and trade conflicts has upset the world’s balance, despite an international order and a series of economic understandings that we believed to be established values and practices. The gaps are widening – geographical, social, racial, cultural, gender-based and generational – and the world is restless, sorrowful and resentful. Disoriented by the crisis of traditional principles of authority and authoritativeness, invaded by sophisticated technologies. Yet we are becoming increasingly uncertain of the critical thinking that we all so desperately need to navigate the high-tech universe with sense and awareness.

Perhaps this is also why the death of an elderly person, strong in experience and capable of memory, affects us so much, darkening our controversial and precarious days.

In an era of widespread youthfulness and narcissism, this is a counterintuitive idea that praises the importance of the elderly. It is an interpretation of The Picture of Dorian Gray that tries to cheat the passing of time and avoid the related responsibilities. Perhaps, it is even a bad habit that the elderly cultivate for themselves.

Nevertheless, there must be an underlying imbalance if newspapers, economic reports and sociological surveys tell us that Italy is neither ‘a country for young people’ nor ‘a country for old people’.

In terms of young people, one fact stands out:  in the last ten years, 97,000 young graduates have left the country in search of better working and living conditions, and this figure is set to worsen over time. In 2023 alone, 21,000 left, which is 21% more than the previous year (we blogged about this on 24 June).

But Italy is not a good country for the old either.  The elderly population is large, but they are often lonely, vulnerable and frightened, and estranged from the frenetic pace of modern life. ISTAT certifies that a quarter of the Italian population is over 65 years old (a population of almost 59 million as of 1 January 2025), and 4,591,000 people are over 80 (50,000 more than in 2024). Life expectancy at birth is now 81.4 years for men and 85.5 years for women (an increase of almost five months since 2023). On the other hand, births continue to decline:  370,000 in 2024, with the fertility rate falling to 1.18 children per woman — one of the lowest in Europe.

People are living longer and better, but we are a country with a socially stagnant population. While it is true that 75 per cent of wealth is in the hands of those over 50 (La Stampa, 10 July, according to data from the Proof Society Report), the growing malfunctioning of welfare structures, as evidenced by the tragedy of ever-lengthening waiting lists for healthcare, and new family and social structures, are exacerbating the marginalisation of impoverished and semi-independent elderly individuals.

Here’s the deal: there is an Italy that needs to be understood more deeply, with a more balanced perspective and a more solid foundation of hope. Slogans aside, it is necessary to take a closer look at the country as a whole, and to learn to see beyond the stereotypes to understand the conditions in metropolitan suburbs, mountain villages and neglected rural areas. We must also care much more about issues of ‘common goods’ and the general values of communities. In short, we must build the foundations for good politics and effective public administration.

‘The Old and the Young’, to borrow the title of a great Luigi Pirandello novel, cannot be a theme played out in contrasts and juxtapositions. Rather, it should be considered in new and original ways. Across different social and generational groups. It should be considered at the fertile intersection of memory and future, historical awareness and open space for innovation. The events of Italian society itself offer exemplary testimony to this understanding.

Italo Calvino‘s words in ‘Invisible Cities’ are poignant: ‘A city can go through catastrophes and dark ages, see different generations follow one another in its houses, see those houses change stone by stone, but at the right moment and in different forms it must find its gods once again.’

Remembrance, therefore, is the responsibility of the elderly. Without succumbing to youthful narcissism and a desire for power, they should be useful by suggesting paths, nurturing doubts and questions, and providing material for critical thinking.

Our lifetime is naturally moving towards its end. It is therefore worth treasuring Enzo Bianchi‘s lesson:  add ‘life to days’, as you cannot add ‘days to life’.

In short, know how to be a teacher with a lower-case ‘t’ and have a story to tell:  teach, show, get people to read and re-read.

Let’s return, then, to where we started:  to the ‘winds’ of Vargas Llosa.  To literature and to the words that we elders must write and repeat.

Reading again, for example, José Saramago, who introduces the poems of Fernando Pessoa: ‘He was a man who knew languages and wrote verse.  He earned his bread and wine by putting words in the place of words; he wrote verses as they should be written, as if for the first time. He began by calling himself Fernando Pessoa — a person like everyone else.’

(photo Getty Images)