What a joy to intertwine the “moving roots” of Italea Puglia with those of IT. A.CÀ Migrants and Travelers – Festival of Responsible Tourism, awarded by the UN World Tourism Organization for excellence and innovation in tourism!

The 2024 edition is dedicated to “roots like those of plants that have no borders, that make a nation through mixing and teach us another way of being together, cooperating, making community and making the world”. And what better reason than this to be part of the Apulian stage of the festival, which is held in Taranto and in the Terra delle Gravine from 1 to 3 November?

For the occasion, let’s celebrate in a big way: on Sunday 3 November starting at 8 pm in the evocative Masseria Pilano in Crispiano (Taranto) “Italea Puglia: the Festival of Apulian roots” arrives, the traveling festival promoted by Italea Puglia on the occasion of the 2024 “Year of Italian Roots” of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, to enhance the stories of the communities and the authentic traditions of the Heel of Italy.

The appointment is at the “Capocanale di IT. A.CÀ”, which re-proposes the form of the traditional meeting at the end of a long work, animated by the concert of Anna Cinzia Villani and Ippazio Rizzello, masters of the Salento popular revival.

 

“Italea Puglia: the Festival of Apulian roots” – The Capocanale of IT. A.CÀ

A special closing party of the associations involved in the IT stage. A.CÀ through the Tarantino and the Land of the Gravine, which sees the active collaboration of Italea Puglia, for an evening dedicated to the stories handed down by the generations who have inhabited the places crossed by the festival over time, and by those who left these lands out of necessity or for a spirit of adventure.

The Capocanale will be held in Crispiano, in the splendid setting of the Masseria Pilano, the heart of the territories of the Terra delle Gravine. The Pro Loco, in collaboration with 100Masserieintour, will delight us with typical local dishes and spaces dedicated to experiential workshops.

The event is supported by Italea Puglia. The coordination of the event is by the Infopoint of the Municipality of Crispiano. An unmissable opportunity to discover local traditions in a place rich in history and natural beauty.

Free admission and show, food and beverage for a fee; info and reservations 099612251 from 18.00 to 20.00; contact@crispianoturismo.it, taranto@festivalitaca.net.

The concert of Anna Cinzia Villani and Ippazio Rizzello

The feeling of departure and distance from their native land, revenge for loves born overseas, the joy of returning home and tears for those who do not return: the feelings and voices of emigrants come to life in the concert of Anna Cinzia Villani, one of the most famous and beloved voices of the traditional Salento revival, and Ippazio Rizzello, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist. The two artists, with a long path of research on the ethnomusical repertoire of Salento and beyond, lead an exciting journey through the stories of the Tacco and the great migratory adventure of the Italians.

 

Italea Puglia

Italea Puglia is part of the territorial network of the “Italea” project of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation as part of the PNRR “Roots Tourism” program. Italea Puglia tells Apulia to Apulians and Italians around the world, inviting them to make their own “journey of roots” in the Heel of Italy. It creates new bridges between local communities and those who have emigrated abroad. It contributes to the construction of a network between institutions, operators, associations and citizens of the territories, to recover values and knowledge of the past as tools to stay in the present, overturning the imagination on the places where the need to leave once originated.

The event, supported by Italea Puglia, is part of the Roots Tourism promotion program, wanted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation as part of the PNRR Project and funded by NextGenerationEU for the period 2022-2025.

 

It.a.cà 2024 – Taranto and Terra delle Gravine

Starting in May from Monte Catria and after crossing the whole boot, the “roots in motion” of the XVI^ edition of IT. A.CÀ Migrants and Travelers – Festival of Responsible Tourism. Awarded by the UN World Tourism Organization for excellence and innovation in tourism, IT. A.CÀ is the first and only festival in Italy on responsible tourism, which invites every year to discover places and cultures in a responsible and inclusive way and to reflect, to launch an idea of tourism that is more ethical and respectful of the environment and those who live there.

“Roots in motion” is the national theme chosen for this edition. Roots like those of plants that have no borders, that make a nation through mixing and teach us another way of being together, of cooperating, of making community and making the world. They will be the natural parks – such as the largest in the region, that of the Gravine – the archaeological areas, such as those of the reborn Park of the Messapian walls of Manduria and the Dolmens of Statte, the rock habitats of Massafra and Laterza, the Majorano Ethnographic Museum and the hypogea of the old city, the regenerated docks of the Porta Napoli district of Taranto and the Masseria Pilano of Crispiano, where music and local food and wine will be the protagonists of “Italea Puglia: the festival of Apulian roots”, the places of the stage with which the long itinerant caravan of the Festival closes – in Taranto and in the Land of the Gravine, on the weekend of All Saints, from 1 to 3 November.

The local stage of the Festival, the last national and only one in Puglia, is promoted by a vast provincial network of operators, associations, cooperatives and tourism offices, with the patronage of the Municipalities of Massafra, Crispiano, Statte and Laterza and the support of Confcommercio Taranto and Italea Puglia, the territorial network of the “Italea” project of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation as part of the PNRR “Roots Tourism” program. The guests of the stage, the good practices of inclusion put in place by the local network with the Puglia Region, the planned initiatives and the methods of participation will be illustrated during the presentation press conference on Monday 28 October, which will be opened by the greetings of the Provincial President of Confcommercio Taranto Leonardo Giangrande in the presence of the Mayors of the Municipalities concerned and the national coordinator of the Italea – Maeci program, Marina Gabrieli.

The festival was born in 2009 in Bologna, by YODA aps, NEXUS Emilia Romagna and COSPE onlus. Over the years it has created an important network that today has over 700 local, national and international realities, involving Italian territories and regions. It is the first and only Festival in Italy that deals with responsible tourism and tourism innovation from a sustainable perspective, to experience the territories while respecting cultures and the environment. In 2018 it obtained an important recognition for excellence and innovation in tourism from the UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization). Every year IT.A.CÀ invites you to discover places and cultures through walking and cycling itineraries, workshops, seminars, laboratories, exhibitions, concerts, documentaries, books and tastings, to launch an idea of tourism that is more ethical and respectful of the environment and communities. A unique path in many different territories, to transform incoming into becoming. Combining the sustainability of tourism with the well-being of citizens. The Festival is aimed at: citizens, students, non-profit organizations, companies, travel agencies, tourists, volunteers, institutions and local authorities, immigrant communities, artists and those who really want to know what it means to do “responsible tourism”. IT. A.CÀ – Festival of Responsible Tourism.