Farewell to David Sassoli, a true European
Read our message in Italian
It is with immense sadness that Europa Nostra has learnt of the sudden and premature death of David Sassoli, President of the European Parliament, in the night of 11 January 2022. Europa Nostra expresses its deepest sympathy and condolences to his family, to his institution – the European Parliament and all
its members, as well as to his numerous colleagues and friends across Italy, Europe and the world.
With the passing away of David Sassoli, we have lost not only a true European but also a true friend
of Europe’s cultural heritage and hence of Europa Nostra. His memory, his legacy and his example will continue to inspire our work for the benefit of Our Europe and its citizens.
Over the years, Europa Nostra had the honour, privilege and great pleasure to collaborate closely
with David Sassoli: he has always readily and strongly supported the mission and action of our
organisation and contributed to our key European events through inspiring and powerful video
messages. We have been impressed by his competence and integrity, his kindness and empathy, his
professionalism combined with a passionate dedication to the building of a peaceful, democratic and
cultural Europe.
He provided strong leadership and worked tirelessly to shape adequate European responses to so
many emergencies during his mandate – the sanitary emergency caused by COVID-19 pandemic, the
climate emergency caused by climate change, the democracy emergency caused by serious threats
to Europe’s democratic values, institutions and the rule of law, and numerous emergencies
threatening peace and sustainable development across the world. He did everything possible to
keep Europe and its citizens closer together by reinforcing their cooperation and by cherishing the
values of solidarity and justice in Europe and beyond.
Above all, he was a true believer in and a strong champion of the strength of European values, and in
particular of the indispensable role of culture and cultural heritage for the future of Our Europe.
His recent statement on the occasion of the European Cultural Heritage Summit in Venice in September 2021 will remain a lasting inspiration for our future work, as a forceful and lasting plea to place culture and cultural heritage where they belong: at the very heart of the European project.
“Cultural heritage tells our story, it contributes to making Europe a protagonist, to making us all feel part of this community, it is a way of combating hatred, nationalism, exclusion to foster our cohesion, to strengthen our humanity, to give a sense of belonging and to naturally build the future we want to leave to younger generations,” stated David Sassoli in his video message that you can watch below.
Addio carissimo Presidente e Amico!
You shall be greatly missed.
