I would like to extend warm greetings to those who have considered the Institute as part of their life, either because they have enjoyed and participated in its initiatives, or because they are part of the working team that contributes to it, to its vitality.

This is for sure a difficult time. For health reasons, the building is not open to the public as always. But this does not mean that the Institute is closed. Instead, thanks to technologies that make it possible to organize events on virtual platforms, it is still open in new ways, that foster imagination and sharing. Culture never closes. Indeed, moments of crisis represent its fertile territory: plants, flowers and fruits are born from the wound that the plow opens on the earth. And no culture like the Italian knows better how to support life, when it seems weaker, more silent, more uncertain.

From the “Ri-nascimento” to the “Ri-sorgimento”, the inspiring model of Italian history has been that of the “re-birth”. The first great book of our literature - capable of blending poetry and prose, death and resurrection - is Dante's "Vita Nova": a title that alludes to a renewed and rediscovered life, beyond the despair and misery that seem to overwhelm it.

With this awareness I will set to work, in the wake of the excellent job of those who preceded me, with the aim of making the Institute a home not only for Italians but also for those who recognize themselves in the Italian culture and wish to acquire a deeper insight of its different languages: from art to science, from music to cooking, from technology, and industry, to literature -- languages that are always connected to each other.

Dante's anniversary - which will inspire many initiatives in the coming months - focuses on an author who, like no other, has been able to combine multiple languages in his works, making the Italian language the home of humanity, in the variety of its interests, discoveries, activities.

"I am here, and I will work for you and with you", I therefore say to the friends of the Institute, waiting for their suggestions, solicitations, proposals, so that ours can become more and more a community, a widespread network, in which every node is precious.