Panodyssey Writing Contest Awards
The winners are invited to Venice to receive the prize from the regional councilors of Veneto: Erika Baldin and Roberto Bet.
Palazzo Ferro Fini Regional Council – Venice, 26 may 2023.
On May 26, 2023, an esteemed event unfolded at the historic Palazzo Ferro Fini in Venice, as the award ceremony for two writing contests, centered around the themes of “Accurate Information and Communication” and “Legal Education”, took place. These contests were part of the European project CREA, funded by the INNOVLAB program and launched on the Panodyssey digital platform, a hub for writers and readers alike.
In recognition of their exceptional contributions, the six winners were not only rewarded with monetary rewards but also the pleasure of having their works published within the ‘Linea Magazine’ by Linea Edizioni, an Italian media partner
The award ceremony for the “digital” literary contest, launched as part of the European project CREA – Panodyssey, took place at Palazzo Ferro Fini. Panodyssey is the digital platform dedicated to writing and reading, born from the CREA project, which serves as a space for writers – both professional and amateur – to exchange ideas, read, socialize, promote their work, while simultaneously safeguarding the ownership of their texts and copyright.
Given the European context in which the Panodyssey platform was created, the themes selected for the competition directly align with the priorities of DG COMM. Writers were thus invited to engage with themes related to legal education and accurate information and communication.
The award ceremony was overseen by Veneto’s Regional Councillor, Erika Baldin, who delivered a passionate and captivating speech about the importance of effective communication. Drawing on examples spanning from ancient times, such as Sophocles and Manzoni, to more recent figures like Bush and Pasolini, she underscored how misguided, deceptive, or inaccurate communication can have far-reaching consequences, even altering the dynamics of the global economy. In conclusion, she addressed the winners, stating, “Throughout history, both sacred and secular literature have embraced the task of exposing wrongdoing—a demanding and difficult mission that you are reinvigorating today.”
It followed the intervention of Regional Councillor Roberto Bet centered on legality, another central theme of the competition. He emphasized how, “The Regional Council has been engaged for years in activities that involve respect for rules and civil coexistence.” For this reason, he views the participation, especially of young individuals, in such initiatives with great satisfaction.
Gian Angelo Bellati, President of Venetian Cluster, echoed the words of online participant and promoter, Alexandre Leforestier. He explained, ‘Our goal was to bring together writers of all ages to explore two pertinent themes and observe how different generations approach them. The prevailing theme was the importance of accurate information and the ability to distinguish genuine news from sensational fake stories. In the submitted texts, we found many real-life examples and calls for regulatory measures to address this concern.’
Lisa Marra, the publisher of Linea Edizioni, concluded the presentation of the literary contest by highlighting the importance of the publishing industry embracing new languages and innovative tools alongside traditional ones to make culture more accessible to everyone. She also stressed that promoting positive behaviors and values relies on clear and accurate communication, which plays a vital role in today’s world by spotlighting good examples and countering false information meant to manipulate public opinion
The winners
Lisa Marra then announced all the award winners:
For the 25+ category, the top three positions were secured by:
- “Il coraggio di essere buoni”, of Diana Lorenzo
- “Non farti vedere mai più”, of Bruschi Sabina
- “L’ho fatto per amore”,of Torrese Francesco Saverio
For the 16 – 25 category:
- “C’è ancora una speranza” of Castiglione Ilenia
- “Informarsi è un diritto, informarsi bene è un dovere”, of Gojani Ambeta
- “La data di scadenza degli assiomi cosmici”, of Perin Alessandro
All the winning texts can be found on the platform https://panodyssey.com/it by searching for the authors’ names or using the hashtags #Contest1 or #Contest2.
