Interview with Dr. Fiore about Her Cultural Diplomacy Through Research and Programming

The February issue of the magazine I Love Sicilia published an interview by Liliana Rosano with Dr. Teresa Fiore about her decade-long endeavors as a scholar, teacher and coordinator of programs that as a whole amount to cultural diplomacy work between Italy and the U.S., and with a Sicilian accent on several occasions. The focus of the magazine spotlights her projects related to Sicily, i.e., past events at Montclair State University (Emma Dante’s theater, the Mancuso brothers’ music, Fabrizia Lanza’s culinary art) and plans for future activities (Davide Enia’s theater, Silvia Giambrone’s art, projects involving immigrants based in Sicily and Sicilian entrepreneurs whose civic-minded start-ups replace mafia-controlled businesses).

Rosano’s questions about Fiore’s teaching and her research bring attention to her MSU courses on migrations from and to Italy, as well as her current NEH-supported project about Italian for Spanish speakers and the Spanish legacy in Italy and Latin America.

The piece is also an opportunity to briefly reflect on the current situation in the U.S. and the NY metropolitan area in relation to the political climate and public health issues, as well as to invite Italian students to consider the U.S. as a destination for their studies once the pandemic is over.

See the full interview in Italian.