Introduction “Women in the Mediterranean”, Jean-Claude Attard

Dear friends,

Welcome to the “Women in the Mediterranean” conference.

Two different, but not necessarily distinct, themes: women and the Mediterranean.

Two themes that were close to the heart of the late Pope Francis

Pope Francis saw the Mediterranean as a place of exchange, and sometimes even conflict.

This also means listening to the history and experience of the people who inhabit the Mediterranean region in order to decipher the events that connect the past to the present and to understand the wounds, as well as the potential that exists.

Women can be the most powerful antidote to our individualistic and selfish tendencies, our lack of openness and our indifference. A society that does not respect the greatness of women would not only be a cold society, but a society that has lost its heart, that has lost the "feeling of home." A society that does not respect the dignity of women would be a ruthless society, a society that has room only for calculation and speculation.

About twenty young people from around the Mediterranean are joining us today. Young people are the protagonists of this journey across the Mediterranean, not only as travelers, but also as pilgrims of hope and agents of change.

We are not here to reinvent the wheel, but to create "renewed and shared narratives that, based on listening to the past and the present, speak to people's hearts, narratives in which it is possible to see ourselves in a constructive, peaceful and hope-generating way."

Jean-Claude Attard, April 27, 2025, Valletta.

.translated from English.