Empowering the next generation: HITS at the Vatican Youth Symposium

In a year when global headlines have cast renewed attention on the Vatican, the Vatican Youth Symposium stood out as a powerful reminder of what truly matters: building a better future through shared knowledge, purpose, and action.

Organised by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network Youth at the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, the annual Symposium brought together young leaders from across the globe to collaborate on pressing challenges in sustainability, social justice, and innovation. Generali, through its innovation hub House of Insurtech Switzerland (HITS), was honoured to be part of this significant platform for dialogue and impact.

Representing Generali was Danilo Raponi, Group Head of Innovation and board member of HITS. The team guided a group of changemakers through three immersive hours of innovation practice. Danilo Raponi participated as a featured speaker in the plenary sessions, addressing the role of insurance in shaping a more resilient and equitable world. Drawing from Pope Francis’s Encyclical Laudato Si, he emphasized that care for our common home includes not only environmental responsibility but also moral leadership in financial systems.

Also, Dr. Samyr Mezzour, Chief Venturing Officer of HITS, and Alice Repetti, Project Lead, delivered a hands-on workshop titled The Arts & Crafts of Innovation at Generali. The goal? Equip emerging leaders with tangible tools for human-centric innovation - principles and frameworks that Generali uses to develop forward-thinking solutions in insurance and beyond. The workshop emphasized empathy, creativity, and structured experimentation, showing how these methods can be applied in any context, from social entrepreneurship to public service.

In a time of transition and reflection at the Vatican, the Symposium served as a hopeful signal: across borders and institutions, the next generation is stepping up, and Generali is proud to be part of their journey.