EDITORIAL
I
t’s no coincidence that in the year’s-end issue of Bridge we have published Helen Mirren and Taylor Hackford’s heartfelt appeal against drilling oil in Salento.
The two Hollywood stars have demonstrated over the years that they feel an attachment to the extreme south of Puglia that goes far beyond the desire to have an enjoyable holiday here, the love you feel when your soul makes its home in a place you feel you belong to , even if you weren’t born there. A sort of miracle for our Puglia, which nowadays is sought out by international tourism and by the elite of the rich and famous, but when we talk in particular about the kings and “queens” of the cinema industry, the impact of an appeal, a deed, or an affirmation is even greater. The testimonial weight that great actors and great directors can lend to a place or a product is huge. Huge because in the collective imagination whoever is involved in cinema, and above all in a certain kind of cinema, that of quality, with great impact on the audience, becomes in some way the maker of our dreams, the balladeer of times gone by, who tells us, now we are grown up, the fairy tales we have never stopped needing. That is what creates that special fondness felt by the members of the audience for the people involved in making movies.
Mirren and Hackford have chosen not to be just accidental tourists in this land, but citizens, aware that by taking up a position against the drilling off the coast of Salento and committing themselves to other battles to safeguard the territory, they have indirectly indicated a model of sustainable development that does not sacrifice the extraordinary, but vulnerable, natural and architectural beauties of Puglia on the altar of hypothetical economic development.
The end of the year is the period in which everyone expresses resolutions and wishes. And an ecologically sustainable Puglia, a Puglia in which hypothetical development is not chased after at the cost of riding roughshod over the people’s wishes, a Puglia in which the payment for taking risks does not succeed in salving consciences, a Puglia respectful of others, inclusive, supportive, dedicated to the protection of the wonders of nature and beauty, a Puglia that is able to take advantage of its remaining a splendid oasis in which one can still live a people-friendly life is what we wish for.
Happy New Year to everyone!
365 days a year Between America and Puglia
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An unsettling story of the other America Otranto’s tree of life
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America’s lesson for Europe The Passing of Cristanziano Serricchio, poet of the light Ten reasons to come on holiday to Puglia “Extremely loud and incredibly close” Zeppole in California Those tears on the death of Dalla “Totally awesome” 9/11
ten years later The first time on the web