Italian Innovators

Sep 05 2023 24
Italian Innovators Podcast artwork

The Italian Innovators podcast tells the stories of great modern Italians in the fields of fashion, technology, business, music and design from the 19th century to the present. Episodes are 15-20 minutes each. They are published on the 1st of the month (presentation) and mid-month (interview). Check out the YouTube channel for video versions of episodes and the official webpage for a full outline of #innovators #interviews and #lessons.

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S5 E100 - Giulio Natta

Sep 05 2023 12 mins  
The inventor of plastic and the ethics of innovation. A presentation by Luca Cottini (PhD)* Oslo, December 10, 1963. The only Italian #scientist to receive a Nobel Prize in Chemistry* Achievement & fragility. From the invention of plastic to the management of waste* The imaginative mind of Giulio Natta. On #literature and #chemistry (Primo Levi)* A groundbreaking lab of innovat

S5 E99 - Giulia Falletti di Barolo

Aug 01 2023 14 mins  
The woman behind Italy’s greatest wine (A presentation by Luca Cottini, PhD)* The call to serve. The beginning of Giulia Falletti’s mission in Turin’s prisons* The story of Juliette Colbert de Maulevriér. From the French revolution to the Parisian encounter with Carlo Tancredi Falletti* From Napoleon’s rule to the Risorgimento. The growth of Turin in the 19th century, betw

S5 E98 - Arnoldo Mondadori & Angelo Rizzoli

Jul 01 2023 13 mins  
The Masters of Italian Publishing (A presentation by Luca Cottini, PhD)* The Martinitt orphanage in Milan, home of 3 great #innovators* From poverty to entrepreneurship. The parallel path of Angelo Rizzoli and Arnoldo Mondadori* The project of the Italian encyclopedia (Rizzoli, Bocconi, and Treccani)* The Borletti-Mondadori partnership. The rights of D’Annunzio and the birth of d

S5 E97 - Guido Alberti

Jun 01 2023 15 mins  
Liquore Strega and the bewitching power of literature (A presentation by Luca Cottini, PhD)* The fascination for "La" Strega (the witch) and the apprenticeship at "Lo" Strega liqueur factory* Poster #advertising and the aura of Strega. The blue, green, and red "witch" by Marcello Dudovich* The Roman city of Benevento, the legends of witchery, and the #drink of Giuseppe Alberti* A S

S5 E96 - What is "Made in Italy" made of? (lecture)

May 01 2023 27 mins  
A presentation by Luca Cottini (PhD). Keynote address of the International Conference of the Canadian Association of Italian Studies (CAIS). Delivered on July 5, 2022.* The culture behind the label. What model lies behind the Italian "impresa"? * The three components of the Italian "incanto": limit, #design, the chorality of "works" (#opera)* 1. The creative power of limit: care, r

S5 E95 - Piera Cillario

Apr 01 2023 12 mins  
The creative compass of Ferrero (A presentation by Luca Cottini, PhD)* Finding the recipe. How Pietro Ferrero arrived to the hazelnut and cocoa paste* The early years. The marriage of Piera and Pietro, the birth of Michele, three entrepreneurial failures, and the return to Alba* The Langhe and Italy’s civil war. From WWII to reconstruction (1943-1945)* The post-war birth of the G

S5 E94 - Gio Ponti

Mar 01 2023 16 mins  
The father of Italian design (A presentation by Luca Cottini, PhD)* Domus. The theory and practice of “industrial design” (What is design? Who is the designer?)* Designing life: a worldview in an object; a particular character in a space* Ponti and Milano. From formation to expositions, from practice to theory* Object-worlds. The passion for ceramics and glass. Lightness as bri

S5 E93 - Italy and the neuroscience of branding and innovation (Interview)

Feb 15 2023 18 mins  
A conversation between Luca Cottini (PhD) and Marco Baldocchi, Neuromarketing research director at NINA (the Italian Association of Applied Neurosciences), author, public speaker, and visionary entrepreneur in consulting and advertising.* From Lucca to Miami. From advertising to #neuroscience (1:05) * What is neurobranding? Why is neuroscience a key tool for #marketing? (2:35)* The

S5 E92 - Alfieri Maserati

Feb 01 2023 14 mins  
The pursuit of legend (A presentation by Luca Cottini, PhD)* The finish line at the 1908 Targa Florio. How it all started* The birth of Italy's #automobile industry. Nazzaro (#Ferrari); Trucco (#Maserati); Ceirano (#fiat)* The mechanic of Isotta Fraschini who became a pilot. The story of Alfieri Maserati* Visionary entrepreneurship, competition, and elegance. At the core of Maserat

S5 E91 - A nation's novel and the art of translating (Interview)

Jan 17 2023 38 mins  
A conversation between Luca Cottini (PhD) and Michael F. Moore, PhD (freelance translator, interpreter, and author of a wonderful English version of Alessandro Manzoni’s novel “The Betrothed")* A novel (and a language) for the Italian nation. Manzoni's I promessi sposi (1:00) * From Manzoni's characters to Italy's character. A prototype of the Italian psychology (6:20)* The Ame