Catherine, Princess of Wales is set to visit northern Italy next week to learn more about a pioneering education system created in the aftermath of the World War II.
According to reports, Catherine’s visit will include a stop in Reggio Emilia, where local communities helped establish some of Italy’s first nursery schools after the war by selling scrap metal left behind from abandoned German military equipment.
Those community-led efforts later became the foundation of the internationally recognised Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education, which focuses heavily on creativity, emotional development and social wellbeing.
The Princess of Wales has long shown interest in early childhood development through the work of the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, which she launched in 2021 to support research and awareness around children’s development.
The two-day visit, scheduled from May 13 to May 14, will mark Catherine’s first official overseas engagement since completing cancer treatment.
Speaking to Reuters, Marwa Mahmoud said British representatives had previously visited the city’s education services before Catherine expressed interest in seeing the schools herself.
Italian officials reportedly said the princess is particularly interested in the schools’ historical roots, their public and community-based structure, the role women played in their creation, and the connection between education and nature.
