Reducing obstacles to young people’s access to culture

The main initiatives aimed at facilitating young people’s access to cultural heritage include:

The National Youth Card (Carta Giovani Nazionale - CGN) is a digital tool designed for young people aged 18 to 35 living in Italy. It provides discounts on goods, services, events, and opportunities. The National Youth Card is an initiative of the Department for Youth Policies and Universal Civic Service and is part of the EYCA (European Youth Card Association) network. The card is available exclusively in digital format through the IO App, where users can view public and private partners and their offers. 

Young people aged 14 to 30, permanently or temporarily residing in the Lazio and Sardinia Regions, can access additional opportunities and benefits through the regional cards.

Youth cards aim to ensure equal rights and opportunities in accessing and enjoying a range of offers and/or benefits in the cultural, educational, sports, and leisure sectors, as well as services related to international mobility.

IoStudio - The Student Card (IoStudio-La Carta dello Studente), promoted by the Ministry of Education and Merit, is a nominative card that allows to attest the status of student in Italy and abroad. It provides access to benefits and discounts offered by various partners. The card is available to all students attending secondary schools. Thanks to a partnership with the Italian Postal Service, the card can be activated as a rechargeable prepaid card. Young students can take advantage of a wide range of discounts and offers for museums, cinemas, books, school supplies, technology, travel, and summer schools.

The Youth Culture Card and the Merit Card (Carta della cultura giovani e Carta del merito) are initiatives promoted by the Ministry of Culture (MiC) to support the cultural enrichment of 18-year-old people, as established by Decree 225/2023. Each card is worth 500 euros and is designed to promote cultural development and enhance its accessibility among young people.

Young people who have turned 18, and are legally resident in Italy and come from households with an EESI (Equivalent Economic Situation Indicator) not exceeding 35,000 euros, can apply for the Youth Culture Card. The card can be used in the year following their 18th birthday.

Young people who live are legally resident in Italy and have graduated from a secondary school with a final grade of at least 100 out of 100 by the time they turn 19, are eligible to apply for the Merit Card. The card can be used in the year following graduation and can be combined with the Youth Culture Card.

Both cards can be used to purchase books, subscriptions to newspapers and magazines, recorded music, audiovisual publishing products, and tickets for cinemas, theaters, museums, exhibitions, galleries, archaeological sites, natural parks, as well as for music, dance, and foreign language courses.

The Ministry of Culture promotes several initiatives aimed at encouraging young people’s participation in cultural activities, such as discounts for accessing cultural sites. Similar discounts are also available at the local level. 

Disseminating information on cultural opportunities

GIOVANI2030 is a web platform promoted by the Department for Youth Policies and Universal Civic Service for young people aged 14 to 35. It keeps users updated on projects, initiatives, and events across the country. The platform provides information on education, training, volunteering, culture, national, European, and international initiatives, as well as benefits and incentives for young people. Through an interactive map, users can select their area of interest and explore various opportunities and open calls available throughout Italy.

Many Italian Regions set up dedicated websites for young people, where they also promote projects, initiatives, and events related to culture and creativity.

In addition, there are several platforms dedicated to youth creativity, promoted and developed by public and private institutions to support culture. Notable examples include:

• The Association for the Circuit of Young Italian Artists (GAI) is an organization established to support youth creativity through training, promotion, and research initiatives. Since its founding in 1989, the GAI network has been running programs in collaboration with public and private organizations (Cf. 8.2).

• Chiamata alle arti is a project launched in 2010 to promote contemporary creativity. It is organized by the Youth Observatory (Osservatorio Giovani - OCPG) of the Department of Political and Communication Sciences at the University of Salerno, with the support of the Campania Region. The platform aims to engage and inform artists about initiatives, events, exhibitions, artistic collaborations, projects, and awards organized by the OCPG Observatory or its network of national and international partners.

• Polo del '900 is a cultural space designed and supported by the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation, the City of Turin, and the Piedmont Region. It is primarily aimed at young people, offering meeting and recreational spaces, as well as opportunities for civic and cultural growth through projects, assemblies, dialogues, and performances.

Knowledge of cultural heritage among young people

The promotion of cultural heritage knowledge, particularly among young people, is managed by the Center for Educational Services (Centro per i Servizi Educativi), which is part of the Directorate-General for Education, Research, and Cultural Institutions within the Ministry of Culture.

The Center's mission is to promote awareness of cultural heritage through educational projects and activities, with a particular focus on the school sector. Each year, the National Educational Offer (Offerta Formativa Nazionale) is made available through a dedicated database. The educational offer includes a variety of projects such as historical-documentary tours, workshops, school-to-work transition programs, internships, courses, training and refresher days courses and lecture series, mainly targeting the school and university systems.