"A great opportunity
to connect with people from all over the world!"
How the idea was born
It all started with “Uno Spritz per un’idea”: an aperitivo offered by DiverCity where citizens bring concrete proposals to improve the city. It was an Erasmus student who told us that Piacenza lacked spaces to socialize with local young people. Not just experiencing the city, but truly feeling part of the community: a simple yet powerful desire that we decided to embrace.
Some even took part in a training course in Rome, organized by the Agenzia Italiana per la Gioventù (AIG), to learn how to best manage funding and project design.
From idea to project
At DiverCity, we gather ideas and turn them into reality. Thanks to the support of the ESC30 program – funded by the European Solidarity Corps – we brought Meet&Eat to life. For months, the volunteer group, guided by coach Elisa Bonetti, met every week both online and in person to build the event step by step.
Local collaborations
We partnered with Piacenza Talenti, a key reference point for international youth, through which we reached out to both out-of-town and international students — also thanks to the presentation of the project at the Medicine and Surgery course of the University of Parma (Piacenza campus).
A special thanks also goes to Baciccia, who hosted us with great generosity and provided a welcoming space where the event could come to life. Their collaboration was essential in turning the idea into reality.
With local dishes, games, activities, and live music, the evening turned into a unique opportunity to make new friends and break down barriers.
The evening
On May 25th, 2025, at Baciccia in Piacenza, over 180 people took part in the very first edition of Meet&Eat. Each table brought together six people — international students and piasintëin doc — to spark dialogue and cultural exchange.
The enthusiasm gathered after the event confirmed to us that this is only the beginning: Piacenza can become an increasingly welcoming and international city, where diversity is a strength and young people are the driving force of change.
The talk
On September 28th, a few months after the success of the first edition, Meet&Eat returned with a new event dedicated to the project’s participants — and open to the public. Around thirty people took part in the talk “Should I stay or should I go”, a moment of dialogue on youth mobility experiences, opportunities abroad, and the perspectives for young people in Italy and in Piacenza.
The discussion was moderated by Francesco Bonetti, president of the DiverCity association, who led the conversation between Samuele Malta (aerospace engineer at the European Space Agency), Francesca Confalonieri (founder of Piacenza Segreta), and Francesco Brianzi (City Councillor for Youth Policies).
All this thanks to
Discover more
Watch the video showing the best moments of the evening.
