MUSEUM OF ITALIAN JUDAISM AND THE SHOAH – Guido Ottolenghi appointed new president

Entrepreneur Guido Ottolenghi has been appointed as the new president of the Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah (MEIS) in Ferrara for the next four years. The appointment, by Italy’sMinister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano, is effective immediately. Daniele Ravenna, Stefano Versari, Marco Gulinelli and Gloria Arbib will also be part of the new board. “Every transition in governance within institutions of significant importance presents both a challenge and an opportunity to assess past achievements,” stated the President of the Italian Jewish Communities– UCEI Noemi Di Segni.

“UCEI will offer its support and collaboration to new board, and we wish them, especially President Ottolenghi, success in expanding both the physical and the conceptual projects started years ago, so to provide a concrete response to the public’s pressing need for understanding Jewish life in Italy and for Italy.”

Ottolenghi, remarked Di Segni, “will be able to lead this important cultural institution shaping it into a space for learning and sharing the values of coexistence and collaboration.” She alsoexpressed “esteem and gratitude” to outgoing president Dario Disegni “for what he was been able to accomplish in the museum’s long years of initiation and consolidation” and for elevating the MEIS to “an institution very well-known both nationally and internationally.”

The Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah was instituted by a national law unanimously approved by the Italian Parliament in 2003. Its main aim, affirms article 1, is “to introduce Italian Judaism history, thought and culture” through educational activities, events, meetings, conferences, exhibitions, film screenings, and performances. The MEIS Foundation includes five institutions: the Ministry of Culture, the City of Ferrara, UCEI, the Contemporary Jewish Documentation Center – CDEC Foundation, and Emilia-Romagna Region.