Young people in Italy are not disinterested in politics, they seek spaces for participation and expression. They choose volunteering, they do not distrust everything, but they feel left on the margins, especially by politics. They believe it is a tool to improve reality, even if they do not encounter opportunities to exercise an active role in the public sphere. Trends and feelings were confirmed by research by the Giuseppe Toniolo Institute's Youth Observatory, in collaboration with Ipsos, the Statistics Laboratory of the Catholic University. Two thousand young people were interviewed. Coordinating the research was Alessandro Rosina, professor of Demography and Social Statistics at the Catholic University. "First of all," he explains, "there is a demographic issue. The great democracies were born when the population had a base with a large age pyramid. Those who looked to the future were represented in the electorate. This is no longer the case. The older generations who are more attentive to issues of the present weigh in. Those who bring forward the demands of the future count less". The weight of young people and their perception of making a difference is downsized. They feel that nothing changes anyway if society does not consider them important in the debate. "They often find themselves having to go live and work abroad," Rosina adds, "to give weight to their future. Italy is a country that invests little in training and building an active role in work". For the younger generation, a central issue is the environment. Nearly two out of three say action should be taken now to combat climate change.
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