“The city I dream, desire, imagine”: this is the topic on which a secondary and an elementary school in the Campanian city asked their students to express themselves. About a hundred pupils, in answer to the didactic activity, presented their visions through different languages, from written texts to depictions. But before finding out the peculiarities of the initiative, we have to take a step back. It all started on 9^th December last, when the Rebirth/Third Paradise ambassador Davide Carnevale met a few representatives of the schools to illustrate the meanings of Michelangelo Pistoletto’s sign-symbol (similarly to the way a Rebirth Forum works, two students from each class were present, who subsequently related the contents to their classmates).

We then get to the event of 21^st December – promoted by Cittadellarte and curated by the associations ‘Gioco Immagine e Parole’, ‘Leaf’ and ‘Connessioni Culture Contemporanee’ – held at the Comprehensive Institute Marino – Santa Rosa in Ponticelli, in Naples’ eastern suburbs. In the course of the event, organized in the context of the Rebirth Day, the students were the protagonists of an artistic performance which saw them draw a ‘human’ Third Paradise: with the help of the organizers organizzatori (Davide Carnevale, Mariarosaria Teatro and Giovanni Mangiacapra), boys and girls arranged themselves so as to outline the trinamic symbol each holding a schoolbook in their hands. In the middle circle, a few students staged a dance and theatre performance, a freedom of expression which let loose the creativity and artistic passions of the participants.

The performance was followed by a practical moment: the youths were invited to share with schoolmates and teachers how they imagine the ideal relationship between citizens and community, offering their thoughts on the suggested topic “The city I dream, desire, imagine”. Each pupil expressed their own personal vision through words, images or even music (see pictures). Here are a few examples. “I can’t do anything by myself, you can’t do anything by yourself, together we can do everything”, “The city I would like is one reflecting the peace in the world” and “I wish for a united city without race distinctions”, they are meaningful excerpts from some of the students’ compositions, clearly indicating the socio-artistic contamination of the Third Paradise. And it is on the basis of their reflections that the new phase of the initiative will start: in the next few weeks, the participating classes will think of possible virtuous ‘oper-actions’ to carry out in the territory.

“Throughout these Rebirth Day celebrations, – explains Davide Carnevale – I was surprised by how the students managed to express the importance of collaboration and mutual attention, towards the other and the things we have to take care of. The initial hesitation in holding each other’s hands towards the end of the event, given by a natural shyness typical of their age, was overcome by their joviality; a sign that this generation can be the author of a collective change for a more sustainable city and lifestyle.”