Lorenzo Berardi

18th Sep 2018 - Short story dealing with human migration and the often distorted way grown-ups perceive it today due to fear-based politics.

11th Sep 2018 - A short story on childhood and deceiving appearances as well as my first experiment with the tricky first-person-plural point of view.

4th Sep 2018 - From July 2018, the Czech Republic has stopped issuing long term working visas to Vietnamese citizens. A decision taken unexpectedly by the Babiš government to tackle illegal activities run by people hailing from Vietnam, but that goes against one of the strongest foreign communities in the Czech Republic.

1st Sep 2018 - A conversation with the artistic director of the Singer Jazz Festival in Warsaw and one of the best jazz critics and producers worldwide from Poland to Israel and return.

24th Aug 2018 - A few minutes for the 3rd channel of the Italian national radio on the upcoming edition of the Singer Festival in Warsaw and on the vibrant Jewish cultural scene in the Polish capital (from 19:00 onwards.)

1st Aug 2018 - August 2nd is a poignant anniversary for Poland and for Warsaw as it commemorates the 'W Hour', the moment when the Warsaw Uprising against the Nazis began in '44. However, in Poland today the simbology of the Uprising has been seized by neofascist movements, used in right-wing discourse and even by patriotic clothing brands, hence weakening the memory of that sacrifice.

21st July 2018 - Hungary will join the US as the only two countries in the United Nations not signing the Global Compact for Migration in December this year. A decision taken by the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs to reiterate the government's negative view on migration as opposed to that of the UN. Meanwhile, the European Commission has referred Hungary to the Court of Justice of the EU for non-compliance of its asylum and return legislation with European law. Two steps that deepen the frictions on migration policies between Viktor Orbán and the rest of the world.

17th Jul 2018 - A look into the burgeoning winemaking scene in Poland where local producers have been doing wonders over the last years.

15th Jul 2018 - Dozens of thousands of Poles were killed by Ukrainian nationalists in Volhynia in '43. Today Poland refers to those massacres as a "genocide" and created a national remembrance day on 11th July. However, what the Polish government omits to say is that thousands of Ukrainians were killed by Poles as retaliation in '45. This point of view and the contradictory approach of Ukrainian president Poroshenko on what happened in Volhynia are still causing frictions between Poland and Ukraine.

28th Jun 2018 - Ahead of a European meeting to discuss immigration, Polish PM, Mateusz Morawiecki, suggested that "something similar to a new Marshall Plan" should be launched to help Africa's economy and stop illegal migrants coming to Europe. A proposal that can be seen as a consequence of the colonialist discourse. Even though Poland never owned colonies, the country claimed colonial possessions in Africa between WWI and WWII.

24th Apr 2018 - More on the topic of property restitution in Poland.

19th Apr 2018 - A profile of the remarkable life and works of Janusz Korczak a doctor, pedagogue and writer who was a victim of the Holocaust and whose legacy is still important today.

13th Apr 2018 - Dozens of thousands of private properties were seized by Nazi and Soviet occupiers in Poland or nationalised by the Polish socialist government after WWII. Since the early 1990s, the heirs of their former owners have been trying to get many of these properties back or seeking compensation. However, Poland is the only country in the EU without a national legislation on property restitution, hence dissatisfying both: former and current owners. This may change soon if a controversial draft presented by the Polish government is turned into law.

13th Apr 2018 - AKS Zły is a Warsaw alternative football club founded in 2015 in the district of Praga and playing in the lowest tiers of Polish Football Association. What makes the club exceptional is that it doesn't have an owner, but it's self-financed and run by its members. Zły promotes values of democracy, social inclusion, multiculturalism, gender equality, and fair play. At Zły everyone is welcome provided they share the club's values (co-written with Salvatore Greco.)

27th Mar 2018 - Portrait of talented Polish actor Zbigniew Cybulski who was popular through the 1950s and 1960s and today is still an icon in his homecountry.