Biot and Vernante: Reinforcing Intercultural Dialogue, Gender Equality, and Engagement

2026-07-22

"The project aims at strengthening the town twinning and EU cooperation among the cities of Biot (France) and Vernante (Italy), based on strong historical, artistic and cultural ties, reinforcing the value of the exchanges between citizens, especially young people aged 13-14, exploring different declinations of cooperation and using the power of artistic expressions to foster intercultural dialogue and reciprocal knowledge. Through the organisation of two exchange events involving 200 people, during main cultural moments (""Imaginé Festival of Storytelling with Figures"" in Vernante and the ""Biot and the Templars"" festival), the project will contribute to raise awareness among the younger generations of citizens in Vernante and Biot about cultural diversity but also EU identity and common values, giving practical experiences about building together a common future, with innovative approach and methods: workshop for the co-design of sustainable and long-term cooperation activities to be developed by schools, production of common artworks, like a mural and a glass work, using typical craft and artistic techniques, as a tangible output of cooperation. Art, illustration and performative exhibitions will be powerful ways of expressing identities and identifying common ground for developing a lasting partnership rooted in solidarity, equality and democracy. A laboratory about civic participation “European citizens of tomorrow” will be developed by an expert to make young people aware about EU and the sense of cooperation, also stimulating active citizenship and civic participation of young people. The two cities will also experiment a structured approach to gender equality, in the use of inclusive language and equal representation of professionals and artists involved, to overcome gender stereotypes. This will have the important objective of sensitizing about the diffusion of the gender equality issue and stimulate the adoption of dedicated policies and regulations."

Italy

2026-01-01