Municipality of Milan – STEMinthecity

4/1/2019

Europe, Italy, Milan, Metropolitan City of Milan, Italy

The third edition of STEMintheCity, an initiative organized to promote an open, inclusive culture for young people, featured a rich calendar of events throughout the month of April, which has been declared International STEM Month, and culminated in The STEM Marathon on May 6-8. For over a month, Milan was one big training workshop able to take on both the need for innovation and the need for policies of inclusion and of equal opportunities, featuring seminars, courses, shows, role modeling and other events to promote STEM disciplines and new digital technologies as career opportunities for the younger generations while eliminating stereotypes and other barriers.

The great Leonardo da Vinci was the inspiration for the theme for this year’s STEMintheCity. On the 500th anniversary of his death, Art and Science was the theme chosen as a testament to the connection between research and technology and the human factor of artistic expression that characterized Leonardo’s genius and has made Milan a symbol of innovation. This synergy of human and technology was the guiding principle throughout all of STEMintheCity 2019. The union of the scientific, digital approach and the human component of creativity (STEM+A) was the common thread of numerous events held throughout the city of Milan in order to increase awareness among young people and engage school of all kinds in this great initiative of innovation training.

STEMintheCity offered something for everyone, from pre-schools and elementary schools to secondary schools and universities and even lifelong learning for adults. Having fun learning math, understanding the value of digital as a tool for creativity and growth—these were the guiding principles underlying many of the training courses in which students of all levels participated with great interest and enthusiasm. Creating alliances with adults, leading figures in the education and training of our youth, is essential to achieving the goals of the initiative, which is why STEMintheCity also organized initiatives that targeted both parents and teachers.