International Women Day event at the Italian Embassy with our students
March 11, 2022
Students of Italian participated in a special event at the Italian Embassy with the Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of U.S. House of Representatives. The event was officiated by the Ambassador of Italy in the United States, Mariangela Zappia.
On Friday, March 8, 2022, our students participated in a special event at the Italian Embassy. They listened to the Speaker of U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi addressing the challenges facing women who choose to pursue a professional career, and also the merits of such women in opening up new paths and possibilities for the younger generations.
Equally inspiring was the movie screened during the event “One of Us - (Extra)ordinary Italian Women” by female director Chiara Tilesi. The movie narrates the stories, successes, and difficulties of several Italian women who, originally from Italy, went on to pursue an international career and now live in the United States: Isabella Rossellini, actress, author, philanthropist, and model; Natalia Bergamaschi, Strategic Partner Lead - Global Publishing Partners at Google; Cecilia Alemani, chief curator and artistic director of Venice Biennale; and Cristina Cassetti, scientist.
As our Dean, Bonnie Thornton Dill, also in attendance, told in a tweet, the event meant to inspire future leaders.
Inspiring future leaders at the #IWD2022 event @ItalyinUS Embassy. I attended w/ students in @umdsllc’s #Italian Language & Literature program and heard from Ambassador @MAZappia, first woman in this position, who dedicated the event to #UkrainianWomen and the fight for freedom. pic.twitter.com/tm3qvQcq2C
— Bonnie Thornton Dill (@BThorntonD) March 8, 2022
At the end, students had the opportunity to take a picture with the Ambassador of Italy in the United States, Mariangela Zappia, who is the first woman in the history of modern Italy to be appointed Ambassador to the United States. Both the movie and the event as a whole, were inspirational, in particular when Oksana Markarova, the Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States, took the podium and spoke about the role of her country in pursuing a political agenda in favor of closing the gender gap. Oksana Markarova received a standing ovation at the end of her speech.