The fourth and last day of the Trento Festival of Economics showcased several prominent speakers from a national and, mostly, an international perspective.

Speaking on the national level, the Vice president of the Constitutional Court Daria De Pretis, participated in a debate on “New models of collaboration between the public and the third sector” at Sala Marangonerie (Buonconsiglio Castle); then the Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani expressed his view on the topic “Italy's exports, the engine of the country” at Teatro Sociale; lastly, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Matteo Salvini spoke at the event “Infrastructure: how it can change Italy” at Teatro Sociale. After an interview on several topics, the conversation went on presidentialism and local autonomy. While thanking the President of the autonomous province of Trento, Maurizio Fugatti, he claimed: “I think both presidentialism and more power to local autonomies act in perfect synergy: we need to provide Italians with the chance to choose a strong and stable government with a mandate lasting five years. Then at the end of the five years, the citizens will choose whether those they have indicated to govern have performed well or badly. At the same time, it is important to implement what the Constitution today already provides for, that is: to delegate the exercise of certain competencies to the regions that want and ask for it, to carry out the same functions of the Government spending less and perhaps providing better service”.

At an international level, much-awaited debates took place involving three Nobel laureates: Lech Walesa, Muhammad Yunus, and Adam Riess.

Nobel Peace Laureate and former President of the Republic of Poland, Lech Walesa, spoke from Teatro Sociale, addressing “Solidarity and values in the 21st century”. He launched an appeal to youngsters to continue on the path that was traced: “ My peers already know this, and so I am addressing young people in particular: Solidarność contributed to the fall of the Soviet Union and the abolition of the Warsaw Pact, to the unification of the two Germanies. We intended to eliminate the divisions as numerous in the world as ever. It was, however, only the beginning of our work.”

Then Muhammed Yunus, Nobel Peace Laureate and Founder of Grameen Bank reflected on “Sustainability and economic development” in Sala Depero at Palazzo della Provincia. He stated the need for a change: “If you follow the old roads, you always go to the same destination. The old road cannot take you to a new destination. If you look for a new destination, you have to build new roads, and that’s the challenge. How fast can we create it? When we speak about social business, we are trying to build these roads”.

Lastly, Adam Riess, Nobel Laureate in Physics and Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the Johns Hopkins University, lead the way in the event “Surprises from the expansion of the Universe” from Palazzo della Regione Autonoma Trentino Alto Adige. According to the scientist, the Universe is expanding faster than initially thought. He claimed, “There are several elements that are still a mystery. We still do not have clear, for example, the presence and role of dark energy that we find numerous in the Universe. But I want to reassure you and leave an optimistic message: science has defined a clear approach to studying these changes”.

The 18th edition of the Trento Festival of Economics closes today. It was organised by the 24 ORE Group with Trentino Marketing on behalf of the Autonomous Province of Trento and with the contribution of the City of Trento and the University of Trento. The numbers of the festival are significant, with the participation of 6 Nobel laureates, 19 ministers and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, over 90 speakers from the academic world, 40 of the most important national and international economists, 60 representatives of national and European institutions, 35 international speakers, and over 40 managers and entrepreneurs from some of the most prominent Italian and multinational companies.