CURRENT ISSUES
Current Issues
Losing a sense of place
Two workers on the importance of Richard Ginori
The historic Florentine firm Richard Ginori has been synonymous with fine tableware and giftware since its establishment almost three centuries ago. Opened in 1735 by a Florentine marquis, Carlo Ginori, the factory and Richard Ginori brand is still known around the …
Current Issues
Happy Valentine's Day!
The Florentine pays tribute to love this issue!
First,
we celebrate romantic love. After the recent legalisation of same-sex marriage
in the United Kingdom and France, we believe that it is a fine time to stress
that love is love, regardless of race, sex, religion, age or-as illuminated by
our exposé on Italian-expat …
Current Issues
The success or failure of a nation
A look at Italy's 2013 general elections
These
are exciting times for Italian politics. Eligible voters will be called to the
polls on February 24 and 25, 2013, to elect their next prime minister in what
may prove to be one of the most important parliamentary elections in the last
half century. …
Current Issues
Water, water everywhere
Flood damage and prevention in Tuscany
The
unprecedented heavy rains that fell in Tuscany in November 2012 caused almost
50 million euro in damage, leaving families without homes and decimating
hundreds of hectares of agricultural land. TF looks at the aftermath of the
disaster, and what is being done to prevent …
Current Issues
Instagrammed
The photo-sharing and social networking service Instagram is
revolutionising photography by bringing the medium to the masses, but few know
that its origins lie, in part, in Florence.
When
one of the co-founders, Kevin Systrom, studied at Stanford University in
Florence during the winter quarter of …
Current Issues
A look at the U.S. elections
La Pietra Dialogues: Elections experts analyze the results
In November 16 and 17, New York University (NYU)
Florence's La Pietra Dialogues held its fifth annual political conference, U.S.
Politics: Elections Experts Analyze the Results, discussing the recent U.S.
presidential election. As strategists and advisors from both the Republican and
Democratic parties analyzed what …
Current Issues
Of Guelphs and Ghibellines
Italy reduces provinces, reawakens ancient rivalries
In
1861, when Italy was united, there were 56 provinces. Over the years, their
number has nearly doubled to 107, including those in regions with special
status. Now, in its drive to cut spending, the lower house of Italy's
technocratic government approved a controversial decree …
Current Issues
No justice for the innocent
Sant'Anna massacre case dropped by German court
A long battle to prosecute the eight surviving Nazi
soldiers believed to be responsible for one of the bloodiest civilian massacres
to have occurred in Italy during World War II has ended in controversy.
On August 12, 1944, a group of
German officers from the …
Current Issues
Culture of corruption
Scandals leave their mark in latest elections
The Calciopoli and Vatileaks scandals are only the most recent among a series of high-profile cases of political corruption that have damaged public confidence in the Italian political system. Although Italy’s ‘culture of corruption’ is nothing new, it seems that disenchantment …
Current Issues
Growing Pains
European Union leaders come to Florence for the State of the Union conference
The European Union (EU) is in the throngs of its most serious crisis since its establishment: an economic arrangement that was meant to keep war unthinkable threatens to tear it apart. On May 9 and 10, Europe's leading academics, policy makers, …
Current Issues
Express yourself
Italy's latest austerity drive seeks citizen engagement-but will it work?
Italy's
technocratic government, led by Mario Monti, seeks to axe the country's public
expenditures, which are estimated at 653.4 billion euro annually, excluding
70.3 billion euro in interest on Italy's debt. To do so, Monti is asking the
nation's citizens for their help.
There has been …
Current Issues
New face for SMN station
Drop off your dry cleaning before you go
With train
stations in Naples and Rome now modernized, the national railway company,
Ferrovie dello Stato, is continuing in its effort to revamp another main
transportation hub in Italy: Florence's Santa Maria Novella (SMN) station.
Although the station, with the status of national landmark, will …
Current Issues
Pleasure or pain?
Florence on two feet, two wheels, or four tires
Were Dante to write the Inferno today, I have no doubt that
commuting in Florence would be among the punishments in his nine circles of
Hell. Thus, I was rather nonplussed to read Mayor Matteo Renzi's assertion that
his favorite means of getting around …
Current Issues
To change or not to change?
Florence faces a decision
Florentines have always been thought of as chiuso: closed off, resistant
to change. As the centuries passed, from inside their beautiful city
Florentines would watch with skepticism as the world outside their medieval
walls changed. They observed and discriminated, accepting some changes that
would improve …
Current Issues
Pergola theatre saved!
Florence sees a future in culture
by Sheela Raman
Florence is not the only major city in Europe that has struggled to keep its theatres houses open. Funding cuts and globalization have together threatened theatres across the continent, from the United Kingdom to Spain. While a number of Italy's historic …
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The English-speaking news magazine in Florence
Sunday, May 19, 2013