The project 'Developing Inclusive Education in the Mediterranean - DIEM', coordinated by Sapienza's Department of History, Representation and Restoration of Architecture, has been selected as part of the Interreg NEXT MED programme and will receive funding of around 2.7 million euros.  The list of 60 projects that will benefit from the 134 million euros available under the first call of the European programme aimed at addressing common challenges between the two shores of the Mediterranean has indeed just been published.

"This is a particularly significant result", highlights Rector Antonella Polimeni, "considering the 630 proposals initially submitted and the nature of the Interreg NEXT MED programme, currently the most important European Union measure to support Euro-Mediterranean cooperation. I am particularly proud that Sapienza has been selected for a project in the field of cultural heritage, which is not only considered a key sector for the Mediterranean, but also an area capable of activating sustainable and lasting development processes".

This first call saw candidate projects engage in four strategic priority areas, proposing innovative and genuinely transnational solutions. The programme's fields of interest are: competitiveness in production and economic growth; countering the effects of climate change; training, labour inclusion and improving healthcare; and common policies between the governments of Mediterranean countries.

In this context, the DIEM project, coordinated by Carlo Bianchini, Deputy Rector for Architectural Heritage at Sapienza, is part of the strengthening of education policies and, during its three-year implementation period, will address the crucial challenge of inclusive access to educational opportunities, lifelong learning and skills development, issues that are common to many regions and communities on both shores of the Mediterranean, albeit with local differences. The main objective of DIEM will be to strengthen and innovate the learning and teaching systems in the partner countries (Italy, Spain, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan and Palestine), promoting their integration and mutual compatibility. Furthermore, the focus on cultural heritage will make it possible to exploit its multiplier effect, promoting the exchange of know-how, the development of people and, ultimately, cultural growth. Within this framework, DIEM will aim to promote social inclusion and access to the world of work, with a focus on young people and disadvantaged groups. The project envisages an integrated approach, developing multidisciplinary activities that benefit from the consolidated experience of its partners.

Specifically, the project will be articulated around three main lines of intervention: the provision of teaching and training programmes at university and secondary school level for administrative staff; the creation of a teaching/learning toolkit capable of integrating tradition, new technologies (such as artificial intelligence) and experience gained during the pandemic; and the involvement of communities in the territories of the six partner countries, in addition to the direct beneficiaries.

The partnership includes leading academic institutions and organisations with strong territorial roots and experience in cooperation. In addition to Sapienza, the project leader, the Universidad Polytechnica de Valencia (Spain), Ain Shams University (Egypt), An-Najah National University (Palestine) and the MeNO ETS Foundation (Italy), the Tarmeem Centre for the Training on the Preservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (Jordan), ANIMED (Tunisia) are among the universities.