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Fourth edition for the initiative of the Municipality of Milan which promotes the importance of STEM disciplines. Cocco and Galimberti: “The guiding theme for 2020 is environmental sustainability. We want young people to have the right skills to respond to the planet's urgencies"

Milan, 27 November 2019 – The fourth edition of #STEMintheCity was presented today, the initiative of the Municipality of Milan to promote the diffusion of technical-scientific disciplines and new digital technologies as opportunities for the professional future of the new generations, with a particular attention paid to the female population. 

The objective is to involve the entire educational ecosystem - teachers, parents, institutions and companies - to create a greater level of awareness that contributes to removing the cultural stereotypes that distance girls and young women from STEM (Science) study paths and careers. , Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).

The results obtained in the last edition of STEMintheCity confirm a growing interest in these issues on the part of the citizens of Milan and beyond: more than 14.000 people participated in over 150 events created thanks to the contribution of 146 partners and organized in all the municipalities of Milan, in which more than 100 schools of different types and levels took part.

Gender inequality, however, is still an open question: 2019 data from the ITU, the United Nations Agency for Communication Technologies, reveal that in most countries in the world, women are still behind men in taking advantage of by the power of transformation that digital technologies offer, with a growing gender gap. It is estimated, for example, that over half of the world's female population (52%) is not using the internet compared to 42% of men.

After having explored in 2019, on the occasion of the five hundredth anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci's death, the link between art and science and the factors that lead people to recognize and develop their own "genius", the 2020 edition focuses on environmental sustainability, a crucial topic today for the whole of society, on which the interest and attention of the public world, the private world and public opinion converge.

#STEMintheCity wants to contribute to generating greater awareness on the scenarios that concern sustainability and be an opportunity for analysis, study and debate on this topic, inserting the STEM disciplines among the directions that the new generations can pursue to participate in the process of positive change towards a sustainable economy and society.

“It is our duty to guarantee young people the knowledge and tools to have the skills capable of responding to the urgencies of our planet - states Roberta Cocco, councilor for Digital Transformation and Civic Services -. The value of STEM culture lies precisely in its being transversal to every area of ​​our professional and private life and an indispensable tool for achieving the objectives that the need for innovation and progress requires. The program of the 2020 event will outline the value of the connection between STEM and the environment starting from the training level and moving up to the work level, with initiatives for young people who are preparing to embark on their professional path. Together with all those who want to support us and become an active part of this edition, we will develop a program capable of making young students discover the countless and real possibilities offered by the world of technology and science which is hungry for new talents and new abilities. The STEM fields are, in fact, those where the most numerous job opportunities are concentrated today, and for a long time to come, as they represent the fastest growing sectors, capable of accommodating career spaces for women".

“The new and overwhelming environmental sensitivity of the youngest is an important spur for the activity of public administrators – comments Education Councilor Laura Galimberti – and it is our duty to support it, facilitate it, amplify it and thus ensure that it is not lost and that it is an important investment for the future of all of us. Already starting from nursery schools, the environmental theme is expressed in many projects, from the recovery of materials to how to avoid wasting water and energy, and we believe that science and technology must increasingly be allies to achieve sustainability objectives ”.

STEMintheCity 2020 will start in April, recognized internationally as the month of STEM, with a structured and content-rich training programme, involving students of all levels from the Municipality of Milan and the Metropolitan City up to university students who have just entered the world of work.  

The event will culminate in the STEM Marathon from 27 to 29 April, three days dedicated to the promotion of STEM organized and managed directly by the Municipality of Milan, with a large opening event and training courses, role modeling meetings, exhibitions and shows in collaboration with partners.

To give continuity to the program, from today until February 28th, all the projects which, due to affinity of themes and objectives, will anticipate and accompany the public towards the new edition will be welcomed and made recognizable by the "waiting for STEMinthecity 2020" logo. 

Also for this edition, public and private bodies, companies, foundations, associations, schools and universities are invited to propose and organize debates, seminars, training courses, installations and shows that can continue to fuel debate and discussion. On the dedicated website www.steminthecity.eu it will be possible to nominate your project and finally the complete list of events that will involve the educational system of the entire city of Milan and the Metropolitan City will be published.

Among the first events announced by Councilor Cocco "The Talents of Women", the initiative organized by the Department of Culture: a multidisciplinary, inclusive project, spread across the territory, open all year round and dedicated to women protagonists in the arts and in the creative thinking of today and yesterday.

This morning the first registrations for the new edition of STEMintheCity were announced: Assolombarda, Cefriel, Bocconi University, Fondazione Politecnico di Milano, Politecnico di Milano, Fondazione Veronesi, Valore D, have already declared their full support for the initiative and their involvement in the event for 2020.

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