The setting of Rondine Cittadella della Pace hosted the Italian roundtable of the Ariadne Forecast 2025, a high-profile international meeting organized by Assifero and Ariadne to discuss trends, challenges, and opportunities that institutional philanthropy envisions for 2025 and beyond.

Since 2015, Ariadne has been compiling an annual report on this topic at the European level, based on contributions from an online survey supplemented by insights from roundtables. In Italy, Ariadne collaborates with Assifero, the leading network for institutional philanthropy in the country, which promotes the role of foundations and philanthropic organizations as strategic players for human and sustainable development, fostering dialogue and collaboration across different sectors.

The Italian event is part of a series of roundtables also held in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, gathering perspectives and insights from foundations, philanthropic entities, and investors engaged in the sector.

 

A Crucial Exchange for the Italian Context

The Rondine meeting provided a vital opportunity for exchange, allowing participants to actively contribute their experiences and visions. The debate focused on sustainability, innovation in funding methods, and the impact of global crises on the work of philanthropic organizations. Discussions were based on the preliminary findings of the annual report on the perspectives of European foundations and philanthropic institutions for human rights and social change, presented by Renata Cuk, Director of Programmes at Ariadne.

“Today’s communication is often dominated by pessimism and negativity, but here we come together with a sense of responsibility and optimism,” stated Stefania Mancini, President of Assifero, as she introduced the day’s agenda. “We represent a conscious choice: to act together, because only by working as a network can we build the world we want.”

Hosting the Ariadne Forecast for the first time was a great honor for Rondine Cittadella della Pace, reaffirming a longstanding relationship that was further strengthened in 2022 when the Fondazione di Comunità per Rondine joined the Assifero philanthropic network.

A distinctive feature of this edition was the active participation of fellows of the Rondine World House Program, who offered direct perspectives on contemporary challenges. Elina, an Armenian fellow, shared her testimony about the complex situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and how meeting the “enemy” in Rondine transformed her perspective. Tornike, a young Georgian journalist, spoke about his aspiration to turn his work into a tool for peace in the Caucasus.

“Here in Rondine, we experience every conflict as a crisis that concerns us. We are not an isolated haven, but a place where we ask ourselves every day: What can I do? What can we do?” said Franco Vaccari, founder of Rondine. “We must remember that everyone can take action. This is how we dissolve that sense of irrelevance that often paralyzes young people and give them concrete tools to contribute to change.”

 

Key Speakers

The event featured contributions from:

  • Catriona Gourlay, Director of PeaceNexus Foundation
  • Costanza Hermanin, Research Fellow at European University Institute; Founder and President of EquALL
  • Francesca Roberti, Project Associate at the European Media and Information Fund (EMIF)
  • Annachiara Zardini, Fundraising Associate at European Media and Information Fund (EMIF)

The discussion also delved into the role of organizations in supporting social resilience and community transformation, emphasizing the importance of perseverance in pursuing common goals. The insights gathered will contribute to the tenth edition of the Ariadne Forecast, offering a comprehensive outlook on the future of philanthropy in Italy and Europe for 2025.

This initiative once again confirms Rondine’s role as a laboratory for social innovation and a key meeting point for those working in peacebuilding and social transformation.