(ANS – Milan) – Yesterday afternoon, October 11, 2012, as part of the International Participants Meeting of Expo 2015 underway in Milan, an agreement was signed for the participation of the Salesians in Expo 2015, the great universal exhibition to be held in Milan from the 1st of May to 31st October, 2015. To represent the Congregation of Don Bosco and to sign the agreement was the Don Bosco Network (DBN); Volunteers for International Development (VIS) had the task of taking on the implementation of the agreement: a great opportunity to raise awareness of education and youth participation.

For the Salesian Congregation: Fr Adriano Bregolin, Vicar of the Rector Major, Bro. Jean Paul Muller, General Economer, Fr Claudio Cacioli, Provincial of the Italian Province of Lombardo-Emiliana, were present along with Vice President of DBN, Joanna Stozek, and President of VIS, Carola Carazzone.

Regarding the Salesian support of the EXPO, Fr Adriano Bregolin said: “The Milan Universal Exposition 2015 offers to the Salesian Congregation a great educational opportunity to foster the educative awareness and participation of young people on a key theme of extreme relevance and importance for all the countries of the world: 'To feed the planet, energy for life'. In the year of the bicentenary of the birth of Don Bosco, the Salesian Congregation in 133 countries of the world will be glad to be able to make a significant contribution to freedom from hunger and the right to adequate nutrition, involving young people for individual and social commitment”.

Joanna Stozek, Vice President of DBN, the International Network of 8 non-governmental Salesian organizations, emphasises: “To represent the Salesian Congregation in one of the most important world events is a great honour and at the same time a great challenge for the Don Bosco Network. The chosen theme, extremely important for humanity, is at the same time fundamental to the Salesian world and for our network of NGOs to be always at the service of the planet's most vulnerable people. All Salesian communities in the world will be invited to contribute to the education and training effort that sets us apart to create a real impact on the public of Expo 2015.”

“The decision to join EXPO 2015 is in continuity with the daily commitment of the VIS and DBN in international cooperation programmes and education to worldwide development,” said Carola Carazzone, President of the VIS. “In a world of extremes and sharp inequalities in which 870 million people go hungry and 1 billion and 400 million people are overweight, of which 500 million people are obese, the theme of nutrition offers deep opportunities for reflection and action in relation to education and training to global citizenship and participation of young people, as well as cooperation in development.”

In the same afternoon, 4 other international networks also signed the partnership agreement: ActionAid International, Alliance2015, Caritas International and Oxfam International.

Published 12/10/2012