The prizes and some commendations for the Schools Competition, held for the second time, have been awarded. This year over 3,000 students from 144 classes took part. On Thursday, 19^th May, the award ceremony for the Italian National Competition “One city is not enough, Chiara Lubich Citizen of the world” was held for the second time. The Competition was organized by the Chiara Lubich Centre in collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Education, the Historical Museum Foundation of Trent and the Focolare’s New Humanity Movement.

Some classes from various parts of Italy were present in the auditorium of the international headquarters of the Focolare Movement for the occasion. They were also able to visit the Chiara Lubich Centre and the house where Chiara lived. Other schools were connected by videoconference, for example, Class 3A of the “Aldeno Mattarello” school in Trent, which followed the ceremony from the City Hall together with the Mayor, Dr. Franco Ianeselli, who said, “I remember what Chiara Lubich asked of the city of Trent: to be and to become ever more, an ardent city. It means being a city that is passionate about thinking of others. Thanks to the many social actions that our young people do, I can say that they are ardent. As a City, we have included in our statute the desire to be a city that is open, that welcomes cultures and is dedicated to collaboration. We know how important this is, especially at this time of war. We are all aware that this aspiration, this mission, must exist in the institutions but it must become part of the life of each one of our citizens. So thank you very much again for this fantastic project.” This year, the Competition attracted numerous views on social media and reached about three thousand students! There were 314 entries from individuals, small groups and whole classes, from almost all the regions of Italy. The Competition involved 14 Primary Schools with a total of 33 classes (68 entries), 28 Junior Schools with a total of 49 classes (102 entries), 39 Senior Schools with a total of 62 classes (144 entries). Alba Sgariglia, co-responsible for the Chiara Lubich Centre commented, “In all of these entries, the objective of the Competition seems to have been achieved: to make known the person of Chiara Lubich, her commitment and her witness for the construction of peace, fraternity and unity among peoples. We greatly appreciated the variety of expressions used by the students: games, drawings, comics, short texts written with reflections and personal experiences, interviews, diaries, newspaper articles, songs, poems, PowerPoints, videos. Each one expressed commitment, imagination, and enthusiasm. It was really hard to choose. So we would also like to give tribute to all the entries that have not received an award but that deserve to be mentioned! To those who could not be present here today, we invite you to come to Rocca di Papa to visit the places where Chiara Lubich lived and the Centre dedicated to her”. The Ministry of Education approved the project this year too, making it possible to invite entries from all primary and secondary schools. Dr. Roberto Frisone and Dr. Francesca Di Giugno, who attended the awards ceremony on behalf of the Ministry, explained, “The Ministry supports and promotes a range of competitions for Italian students and schools. Why did we decide to support this competition? We honestly did not know Chiara Lubich and we were intrigued, we were struck by the fact that she spoke in a secular way of values that are common to all and that we could talk about it to schools and students with the clarity with which Chiara spoke to the world. Hers is a positive message to give to schools, and that is why we shared it.” The first prize for the Primary School Section went to Class 5A of the SS. Sacramento Parity School in Vermicino. They devised a board game with the name “Lightness Darkness”. Lara from Class 5A explained, “Our teacher told us a lot about this project because it helps us develop. She allows us to participate in various competitions and this attracted us because it’s about love for others. We started with the film, ‘Chiara Lubich, love conquers everything’.  It made a big impression on us. So, thinking about the well-known game of the “Goose”, we invented a game that we called, “Lightness Darkness”: the light part represents the light that overcomes the darkness in such a way that we are always happy. There are several boxes with phrases that help us to stimulate love and friendship: ‘try to give a hug to a person who is sick’ or ‘love your enemy’”. The first prize for the Junior School Section went to the “Giosuè Carducci” school in San Cataldo (Caltanissetta) for the multimedia project entitled “A world without poverty”. The first prize for the Senior School Section went to the classical state high school “A.D’Oria” in Genoa, for the multimedia work “Koinonia, which portrays a company inspired by the values of the Economy of Communion. All the entries will shortly be available on the website www.centrochiaralubich.org

Lorenzo Russo