International conference on innovation and well-being at school 

14 International Ambassadors of European Schoolnet in Città di Castello 

Improving wellbeing at school and designing new educational spaces, drawing on international experiences, were the focus of the international conference "Flexible Learning Spaces: Develop Innovative Learning & Wellbeing," held on October 9 in Città di Castello, in the province of Perugia. 

The conference was part of a broader program, held between October 8 and 10, which saw the participation of 14 international Ambassadors of the Future Classroom Lab – European Schoolnet (EUN) network and representatives of numerous schools from various Italian regions, all of which excel in experimenting with flexible spaces for innovating learning processes and improving wellbeing at school. 

During the conference, international experiences of innovating learning environments were presented; A new support service for municipalities and schools dedicated to the design of innovative educational spaces, promoted by the Umbria Regional Office in collaboration with INDIRE and ANCI, was also presented. The issue of the desertification of educational services in inland areas and small municipalities was also addressed from an international perspective. 

At the end of the conference, a local hub of the transnational network of Innovative Learning Spaces was inaugurated at the S. Filippo primary school in the historic center of Città di Castello, along with the exhibition "School as a laboratory: female pedagogies," which—based on documentation preserved at INDIRE, retraces the figures and contribution of the Baroni Franchetti family to the development of local education systems. The exhibition will then be open to the city and the surrounding area, in collaboration with Auser. 

This important event is part of the celebrations for the 100th anniversary of INDIRE (National Institute for Documentation, Innovation and Educational Research) and is organized by the I Circolo Didattico of Città di Castello in collaboration with INDIRE, USR Umbria, and EUN, with the patronage of the Municipality of Città di Castello and the collaboration of ANCI Umbria, Auser, Centro Studi Villa Montesca, La Tela Umbra, and the Altotevere Truffle Hunters Association. 

The conference proceedings will be available on the Futura platform of the Ministry of Education and Merit, as it is the first in a series of five meetings organized in collaboration by INDIRE, the Regional School Office, and ANCI Umbria. 

The updated agenda for the three-day event can be viewed at the following link.

Author: Massimo Belardinelli