Over the last two and a half weeks, a few words have taken on great importance in my vocabulary. Those include a rushed “Grazie!” when someone points me in the correct direction, a confidently uttered “Buongiorno!” or “Buonasera!” in greeting after taking a second to check on the time, and the most important word: a timid and rushed “Scusa” to get through almost any interaction. Just like in English, I unfortunately abuse the word “sorry” when speaking Italian.

From March 9 to March 12, 2026, Accademia Europea di Firenze hosted the second edition of its Sustainability Week, a four-day immersive experience that brought environmental and cultural responsibility to the center of academic life.More than just a series of events, the Sustainability Weekrepresented a meaningful step forward in AEF’s long-term commitment to sustainability as a lived, shared, and interdisciplinary practice.

AEF Sustainability Week 2026:

Deepening Commitment to Environmental and Cultural Responsibility 

March 9–12, 2026 | Florence, Italy

From March 9 to March 12, 2026, Accademia Europea di Firenze willhostits second annualSustainability Week, an immersive four-day event that brings environmental responsibility to the heart of education.This year’s Sustainability Week reflects AEF’s deepening commitment to sustainability not as a slogan, but as a lived experience across disciplines, daily practices, and global perspectives.

THE ARRIVAL

I didn’t know a city could look at me before I learned how to see it. 
Before I understood how to love it, Florence was already reading my soul. 
I arrived with my soul wrapped in silence, 
with words I didn’t yet know how to say to myself. 
I didn’t come to find anything. 
I came, perhaps, to lose myself. 
And in that losing… 
I began to recognize myself. 
And I ended up finding parts of me I didn’t know were waiting to be seen.

When I first stepped into the Accademia Europea di Firenze (AEF), I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I knew I would be studying in a new city, meeting new people, and navigating unfamiliar routines, but I had no idea how much this experience would shape the way I see myself and the world around me. Looking back now, my time at AEF was far more than an academic programme; it was a period of personal expansion, self-reflection, and genuine growth.