A two-hundred-year-old olive tree was planted in the garden of the Le Benedettine complex of the University of Pisa as a symbol of peace and dialogue. The ceremony took place on Tuesday 25 November and included the unveiling of a commemorative plaque.
Those present included the Rector Riccardo Zucchi, Francesco Leccese, Vice-Rector for Buildings and Real Estate Assets, Cristina Nali, Director of the Department of Agricultural, Food and Agro-Environmental Sciences, Gianluca Brunori, Director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Peace Sciences (CISP), Angelo Canale, Director of the “E. Avanzi” Agro-Environmental Research Centre, and Andrea Massaini, Marketing Manager at Vannucci Piante, the company that donated the olive tree.
“The University of Pisa,” said Rector Zucchi, “is strongly committed to peace, not only understood in the negative sense as the absence of war, but also as a positive value based on respect for human beings and for human life. It is a commitment we have enshrined in our Statute and one we pursue with conviction. This is why the olive tree is such an appropriate symbol: in the Genesis tradition it marks the end of the flood and is a sign of renewed alliance together with the rainbow. Beyond its religious meaning, this symbolism highlights a cultural concept that remains relevant today: peace is born from a positive outlook, placing human dignity at the forefront. It is in this spirit that we look to the meaning of this tree, as a tangible testament to the value we attach to peace.”
