Interview with the Minister for Universities and Research, Anna Maria Bernini, given to the Eurispes online magazine: “A centre of excellence on longevity in Italy”
PRESS RELEASE
A longevity research centre in Italy, bringing together a range of scientific expertise and a leadership with international partnerships. This is the prospect outlined by the Minister for Universities and Research, Anna Maria Bernini, speaking at the fourth edition of the Nutrition & Longevity Festival, organised by the Valter Longo Foundation in Cervia on 12 and 13 September.
“We have already begun working with Professor Valter Longo on a series of joint initiatives,” said Bernini in an exclusive interview with the online magazine of Eurispes – the Institute for Political, Economic and Social Studies – conducted by Antonio Alizzi on the sidelines of the round table on Longevity and Institutions in which she took part in Cervia.
The video interview is available at the following link https://www.leurispes.it/intervista-al-ministro-delluniversita-e-della-ricerca-anna-maria-bernini-in-italia-un-centro-di-eccellenza-sulla-longevita/
“I value Professor Longo’s work; I have included it among the research infrastructures we have been working on for the past four years, and I would like to go further still, namely to create a permanent infrastructure that brings together all the great centres of Italian excellence, and of Italian-international collaboration, on longevity, ageing and lifestyles, in a centre for ageing and longevity that is itself a unique centre of excellence”.
The starting point indicated by Minister Bernini is Age-It (Ageing Well in an Ageing Society), the research partnership funded under Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) and coordinated by the University of Florence. “Age-It is therefore the nucleus, the cradle, from which that fundamental research infrastructure dedicated to ageing and longevity will emerge,” Bernini explained.
Age-It brings together universities, research bodies and businesses in the study of ageing: from its biological mechanisms to its clinical, demographic and social consequences. The centre envisaged by Bernini would give continuity to this collaboration, while also incorporating research on nutrition, physical activity and lifestyles.
Alongside Bernini, the “Longevity and Institutions” round table was attended by Professor Longo himself, the Chief Executive Officer of the Valter Longo Foundation, Antonluca Matarazzo, and the Vice-President of the Senate, Mariolina Castellone. The exchange between the Minister and the latter revealed a shared determination to step up cooperation between institutions on these issues, now converging on this project. A joint commitment which, on a matter of interest to the whole country, transcends political divides.
