Italy Pitches
"The tongue can paint what the eye can't see" - Chinese proverb
MISSION
The overall objective of this program is to show young people how to find their voice and train it to bring about social change. Participating students will be introduced to concepts such as corporate social responsibility (CSR), creating shared value (CSV), and impact investing. They will also learn how to construct an advocacy narrative, and how to translate it visually using digital skills.
THE PROGRAM
Italy Pitches was created by John Cabot University and the JCU Institute for Entrepreneurship, building on the tremendous success of JCU's Italy Reads and Italy Writes programs. It started as a national, English-language pitch competition for Italian high-school students, focusing on a 1-minute advocacy pitch for a nonprofit. It has evolved to incorporate video-making skills and to expand the reach of students’ work.
Participating students will select an Italian organization with a strong corporate social responsibility and will create an advocacy video that will effectively promote the values the organization stands for.
The project is articulated as a 30-hour self-administered program that will cover the following topics:
- The United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals
- Corporate Social Responsibility, Impact Investing and the Triple Bottom Line
- The Essentials of Video-Making
An advocacy video-pitch is a short video used to quickly convey the urgency for action towards one or more specific goals, using words, sounds and images to persuade the viewers to take action. Widely used for networking and fund-raising, pitching and video-pitching are learnable skills that generate confidence and empower students to change their world.
Participating Teachers can introduce Italy Pitches as part of the activities they develop in the classroom: students will select an organization with a strong commitment to corporate social responsibility and will produce a 2-minute video-pitch showcasing the company’s work to create social good.
In order to prepare the video-pitch, students will first have to complete the online program, specifically:
Section 1: Creating Shared Value
Section 2: Essentials of Video Making
Section 3: Company Research
Section 4: Video Production
Students can work individually or in groups, under the guidance of their teachers/tutors.
At the end of the program, students will submit their videos to JCU following the instructions provided in the online program. These videos will in turn be judged by a qualified jury. All participants will receive a Certificate of Participation, and a valuable Prize will be awarded to the best video-pitch. The winning videos in each category (company) will receive a €100 Amazon voucher.
A successful video-pitch will:
- Present a clearly articulated idea
- Convey the goals and social impact of the organization
- Provide a compelling reason to support the cause
- Engage the audience with captivating visual language
The technical criteria for selection include:
- Video quality and duration (recommended 2 minutes, maximum 3 minutes)
- Audio quality
- Use of lights
- Artistic interpretation
- Acting ability (if video includes actors)
- Creativity in the direction of the video
- Costumes and makeup
- Originality
Students who take part in Italy Pitches will:
- Perform research using digital sources in English
- Build a robust, persuasive argument supported by evidence
- Learn valuable visual communication skills
- Understand the big challenges confronting the world
- Develop a greater awareness for socially important topics
- Feel empowered and gain confidence
Italy Pitches is designed to be a very flexible tool that can help participating teachers apply a variety of themes taught in the classroom in a stimulating, engaging way.
Participating teachers will automatically become Friends of the Institute and will be invited to other events related to Entrepreneurship and innovation throughout the year.
All fourth-year students enrolled in participating Italian high schools qualify. The high schools joining the program for the first time may also register fifth year students.
- Deadline to sign up: 2 February
- Deadline to complete the online program and submit Final Cuts: 15 April
- Popular selection: 19-22 April
- Final Awards: 24 April.
This project qualifies as 30 hours for Percorsi per le Competenze e per l'Orientamento (PCTO) (ex-Alternanza Scuola Lavoro - ASL), broken down as follows:
Section 1: Creating Shared Value (3 hours)
Section 2: Essentials of Video Making (4 hours)
Section 3: Company Research and Profiling (8 hours)
Section 4: Video Production (15 hours)
N.B.: In order to participate in Italy Pitches as part of PCTO, and have these hours certified, an agreement between the high school and JCU must be stipulated prior to the start of the activity. Find out if your school has signed an agreement. Take a look at the map Impact of Programs for High Schools where partner schools are indicated.
Please contact [email protected] for details.
Elena Croce, Mattia Vallelonga, and Tommaso Bezzi, Class IVE, Liceo Scientifico Statale "Giovanni Keplero", Rome, for Enel Green Power.
Francesca Iezzi and Lavinia Domiziani, Class IIIE, Liceo Scientifico Statale "Giovanni Keplero", Rome, for Poste Italiane.
Sofia Ammendolia, Agnese Bordoni, and Camilla Maccabei, Class IE, IIS Classico Artistico - Liceo Classico G.C. Tacito - Terni, for Salvatore
Ferragamo.
Andrea Polsi, Davide Pucarelli, and Luca Baldarelli, Class IIIL, Liceo Scientifico Statale "Giovanni Keplero", Rome, for Piaggio.
Cinzia Solfiti, teacher at I.I.S. "Margherita Hack" (ret.)
"The Italy Pitches Program is a great opportunity to learn how to speak in public.
It's a really difficult skill which can be acquired using the techniques IFE teaches."
See all of the Programs for Italian High Schools (Programmi per le Scuole) offered by JCU.
JCU announces the winners of the Italy Pitches 2023-2024 Contest
Over 180 high school students from 6 schools in Rome, Pomezia, Velletri and Colleferro created advocacy pitches from among those presented by the program. The panel of judges selected the 8 best video pitches which were then posted on the Facebook page for the Institute for Entrepreneurship and submitted to a Popular Vote. Winners were calculated based on the number of liks, interactions, coverage, and impressions the post received during the period of the Popular Vote. Each of the top 5 videos will receive a prize of a gift voucher valued at 100 Euro. All students who complete the program receive certification of 30 hours for PCTO (Percorsi per le Competenze Trasversali e per l'Orientamento) in accordance with directives of the Ministry for Instruction and Merit. See JCU's Program for High Schools for details.
This year's winners are:
- Emma Ariel Di Matteo, Class III BLC (Professor Anna Ferrari) at IIS Via delle Sette Chiese, Roma (RM), for Barilla
- Emma Biancucci and Aurora Sportoletti, Class IV N (Professor Maria Rita Mastronardi) at IIS Via delle Scienze, Colleferro (RM), for Arcor
- Alessandro Barbieri, Valerio Belluzzi, and Lorenzo Tomassi, Class III L (Professor Giulia Gatticchi) at Liceo Scientifico Statale "Giovanni Keplero", Rome (RM), for Poste Italiane
- Maria Prosperi, Maria Elena Valeri, and Martina Valeri, Class IV O (Professor Silvia Bartolomei) at IIS Via delle Scienze, Colleferro (RM), for Salvatore Ferragamo
- Dawid Antuszewski and Matteo Minale, Class III L (Professor Giulia Gatticchi) at Liceo Scientifico Statale "Giovanni Keplero", Rome (RM), for Piaggio
Honorable Mention for performance on social media goes to Iulia Elena Danaila, Stefano Del Mastro, and Mattia Zinno, Class III L (Professor Giulia Gatticchi) at Liceo Scientifico Statale "Giovanni Keplero", Rome (RM), for Barilla.