Capital of Culture 2025, Mattarella: "Agrigento is an expression of a culture of solidarity that speaks to the rest of the country"

The inauguration ceremony of Agrigento Italian Capital of Culture 2025 took place. Among the institutional authorities, the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella participated and gave a speech full of messages not only for the Sicilian citizens, but for the entire country.

President Mattarella's speech covered many topics, from the need for peace in the world, to the riches not only cultural of our country represented in its multiple beauty, to the message to the citizens of Lampedusa "that the wounds of our time have made the vanguard of European civilization. Expression of a culture of solidarity".

The President of the Republic also stated that “Agrigento intends to speak to the rest of the country and to Europe of which it is a part”. He then continued “Agrigento, radiating center of ancient Greek civilization already in the sixth century BC. The Akragas of Empedocles, who defined 'roots' the four elements that he indicated as constituting the whole: fire, air, earth, water.

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These four elements are now stylized in the official logo of Agrigento Capital of Culture: for Empedocles the unity of the elements was the spark of the birth of everything, while separation was the cause of death. A symbol that reiterates the need to recompose, to regenerate cohesion, to proceed together”.

Referring to the need to find cohesion in order to move forward together, the Head of State then added, “This is required by the memory of the dead in the wars that bloodied Europe, the Mediterranean and unfortunately many other regions of the planet. This is required by the tragic violations of human rights that erase dignity, and life itself. This is required by the existing and growing inequalities.

Extreme poverty, marginalization. The lament of the earth demands it, violated by the unlimited exploitation of resources, with its catastrophic consequences, starting with climate change. Culture is a source of humanity from which we can draw to provide ourselves with new, indispensable dynamism”.

Marcus Barbatus