Two things immediately come to mind when thinking of Prato: the fabric and its chinese community, the largest in Italy after that of Milan.
It was natural that Prato was the perfect venue for the Silk Festival and the second edition took place at the Textile Museum, a symbolic place of the city of Prato.
The festival was held on the first weekend of October and touched on various themes related to China. It opened on Friday 1 October with the intervention of Consul General Michele Cecchi in connection from Shanghai who deepened the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (C.A.I). In the afternoon we discussed China in the post-covid and the possible scenarios that could occur when China reopens its borders.
Among the Italian stars we mention the intervention of Marcello Lippi, first coach of Guangzhou Evergrande (a name that today evokes many other delicate situations) and then of the Chinese national team. The coach talked about the football phenomenon in China where the government is investing in a football development project that plans to create 16 "football cities" by 2025.
Although clubs have recently been subject to Party restrictions, football has boomed in China over the past 10 years. It is a fundamental step in the realization of the "Chinese Dream", not on a global level, but also within its own borders.
It continued with a panel on Big Data and artificial intelligence which in China have undergone an extraordinary evolution. A great development thanks to smart-cities, to make optimal control both on energy consumption levels and on the behavior of the inhabitants.
But there are also cons to keep in mind, such as massive privacy data collection. Many apps require users to register with their name, national identification number, phone number, and often with facial recognition. And there is currently no great transparency on how the Beijing government is cross-checking.
The afternoon was entirely dedicated to the 'synophobia' that crossed the planet in parallel with the spread of Covid-19 and the Sino-Italian cultural production.
Stories and testimonies told by Sino-Italians in dealing with the emergency. We see it in Professor Lala Hu's book “Tea seeds” or in the “Cinarriamo” series by Orientalia Editrice who were guests in this panel.
This distrust of China, however, also hides a lack of knowledge of this great country and its traditions that sink into at least 5 millennia. This is why we at Discoverplaces have been committed to talking about China since the first day of the pandemic.
We opened the Discover China column, we were guests of Xinhua during the first Chinese lock down and thanks to this activity for two years we have been publishing stories written by Chinese authors together with the Italian OBOR Institute and the CPAFFC - Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.
And we come to Sunday and our panel dedicated to cultural marketing.
Thanks to Ilaria Mundula who coordinated the panel, an extraordinary friend known through social media, we presented Discoverplaces and our Horse Museum Foundation.
With a chat to make me break the ice and be at ease, I presented our projects. The first was on the marketing of the so-called “minor territories” and the strength of our Discoverplaces Network.
Through this network of connections we give strength to the identity of small local producers through the story of the territory.
As our claim Discover People, Discover Places says.
And as Ilaria pointed out during her speech, culture is an added value and we at the Horse Museum Foundation know this and have been moving in this direction for years.
With a collection of over a thousand pieces, the foundation has become a cultural bridge between China and Italy. We have already welcomed Chinese bloggers and vloggers and guided them to discover the richness of our territory.
And there are tons of experiences to do. We have thought of a tailor-made daily program for them with activities of all kinds.
With me there were other girls who presented their activities such as Lucia Gentili of China Communication with her insights into marketing, social media and business in China.
And then Alessia Paolillo and Ilaria Tassari who are co-founders of European Guanxi, an organization of students and young workers that deepens Europe-China relations. Alessia is the head of the Strategic-Communication Team and Ilaria the vice president.
Prato and the China Nerd
But let's go back to the real Prato, the city and its charming Chinese quarter.
As soon as I arrived, I immediately saw the first signs in Chinese, and I felt at home.
It came back to me in Beijing and when I was there for my study stay. My heart started pounding.
We also went for a walk in the large Chinese supermarket and here I have a thousand memories.
When I went to class and went to the canteen for breakfast, when I went for a walk and I lost myself fascinated by the hutongs of Beijing or the stalls with any edible food in Wanfujing.
And when we went into the Chinese restaurant to have dinner all together, I had another stroke to my heart. I was not in Prato, but I was in China. In a restaurant of the authentic ones and I was enjoying handmade ravioli. All Chinese dishes were excellently executed!
But the company was no exception.
I was immersed in talks with my fellow "China Nerd", a community that has been created for less than a year with a great passion, love for China. Each with their own story to tell, their own experience with Middle-earth to share.
I came home with a heart full of emotions because it was the first time I spoke in public about my work with Discoverplaces and Horse Museum and because I had finally met all my China Nerd friends in person.
The Silk Festival was very interesting and exciting and we 'pierced the screen' with the association Orientiamoci in Cina, the organizer of the event, so much so that next year they invited us back for a panel entirely dedicated to us!
I was honored to have participated in this festival and I can't wait to carry out all the projects with Discoverplaces and Horse Museum that we have with China.
Follow us