From 26 to 29 September, Gravina in Puglia hosts the first meeting of its twinning with the Serbian city of Leskovac: music, heritage, citizenship and relationships intended to continue over time.
Gravina in Puglia is hosting the first event of B.R.I.C.I.V.E. – “Bridging Cultures and Identities: Gravina in Puglia and Leskovac towards a Shared European Future”, the town twinning project between the Municipality of Gravina in Puglia and the City of Leskovac. The Serbian delegation arrived on 26 September, while from 27 to 29 September the programme gets fully under way with meetings, workshops, public events and activities designed to connect the two communities.
Town Twinning was created precisely for this purpose: to establish lasting relationships between territories in different countries through direct encounters between citizens, associations, schools and local authorities. It is more than an institutional visit; it is a process in which people get to know one another, compare experiences and traditions, and create practical opportunities for future cooperation.
B.R.I.C.I.V.E. involves young people, students, artists and musicians, adult and older citizens, cultural associations and civil society organisations, teachers and representatives of the education sector, local elected representatives and local authority staff. Particular attention is paid to the participation of people with fewer opportunities and to making activities accessible and inclusive. Alongside participants, historians, heritage experts, cultural professionals and people who keep local traditions alive support the various exchanges.
Culture is the language chosen to bring Gravina and Leskovac together. Music plays a central role: Italian and Serbian students and musicians work together on their respective repertoires, comparing different traditions and artistic approaches and preparing a joint performance. The process also includes art, historical memory and gastronomy, used as tools to tell the story of each territory’s identity and encourage spontaneous dialogue between people, rather than simply as elements of folklore.
The programme includes artistic and musical workshops, sessions exploring historical and cultural links between Puglia and Serbia, exchanges on culinary traditions and a Youth Music Lab at the Liceo Tarantino Auditorium. The public event in Piazza Plebiscito then brings the project into the heart of the city, with music, dance and an ethno-gastronomic workshop open to the community. One of its most original elements is the NAO robot, programmed by students to perform traditional dance movements and create a symbolic bridge between heritage, education and innovation.
Alongside cultural activities, B.R.I.C.I.V.E. makes space for active citizenship, solidarity between communities and the role of local authorities in creating new opportunities for participation. Exchanges between Italian and Serbian citizens also help to gather proposals and ideas for the future, so that the twinning can produce results extending beyond the days of the event.
The Gravina meeting is the first step in a broader process. The project includes a second event in Leskovac, where cooperation will be developed further. Its objectives include drawing up a Memorandum of Understanding between the two municipalities, dedicated to future cooperation and the development of new joint initiatives. Young people, schools, associations, artists and institutions will thus be able to continue meeting and developing relationships that began during the project.
This is where the value of B.R.I.C.I.V.E. lies: turning an event into a relationship. Ensuring that, after the delegations return home, contacts, ideas and shared projects remain. A bridge between Gravina and Leskovac built through people, stories and different cultures, yet able to look in the same direction.
