A final grade of 100/100 on a school-leaving certificate reflects many hours of study and raises a question: which path should students take after graduation? At Villa Crastan in Pontedera, the ceremony honouring students from upper secondary schools across Pontedera and the Valdera area who completed their final State examination with a score of 100/100 or 100/100 cum laude combined recognition of their achievement with an exploration of the opportunities available locally.

The garden of the historic villa hosted the traditional awards ceremony for the highest-achieving graduates, attended by students, their families and representatives of their municipalities. Sixty-six students received an award, the majority of them young women, from several towns across the Valdera area. The presentation of the certificates, a tradition spanning more than twenty years, brought together school heads, teachers, local administrators and organisations active within the area’s research and education ecosystem, including the ARTES 4.0 Competence Center. Alongside the grades and names of the award recipients, one question emerged: what can the local area offer young people who, after leaving school, must decide where to study, work or put their abilities to the test?

ARTES 4.0 and its connection with Pontedera

Clementina Cruceli, Coordinator and Deputy Executive Director of the Competence Center, spoke on behalf of ARTES 4.0. Her remarks began with a personal journey rooted in the area’s scientific history: her studies in Biomedical Engineering in Pisa, followed by education and work at the Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies and, finally, her current role at ARTES 4.0. The experience she shared with the graduates illustrates how Pontedera can provide the conditions for building a scientific and professional career by drawing on expertise developed in local schools, universities, laboratories and businesses.

ARTES 4.0 is one of Italy’s eight Competence Centers established under the Industry 4.0 Plan to support companies in adopting advanced digital technologies. Its headquarters are located in the Pontedera area because this compact yet exceptionally dynamic setting brings together expertise in robotics, artificial intelligence, bioengineering, design and industrial processes. This wealth of knowledge makes the area one of Italy’s leading hubs for the development and application of advanced technologies.

Clementina Cruceli described this ecosystem through the concept of the Innovation Mile: a hub where the ARTES 4.0 Competence Center, the BioRobotics Institute of the Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, the Pont-Tech incubator, Piaggio, technology companies, startups founded by young entrepreneurs and educational institutions such as the Modartech Institute all operate side by side.

The strength of the Innovation Mile extends beyond geographical proximity. Laboratories, companies and educational programmes foster a continuous exchange of people and knowledge, enabling research projects to find industrial applications, students to connect with companies and young businesses to access specialised expertise.

Studying artificial intelligence to guide its use

The discussion with the highest-achieving graduates also addressed artificial intelligence, which is often viewed through two opposing reactions: fear and unreserved enthusiasm. Both attitudes can overshadow a genuine understanding of the technology. As Clementina Cruceli explained, studying AI means learning to recognise its capabilities, limitations and consequences. Technical expertise must be accompanied by awareness, ethical judgement and the ability to assess the purposes for which such a powerful tool is used. For young people preparing to enter university or the world of work, AI literacy will be relevant to almost every professional field, from medicine and manufacturing to communication and design.

The award recipients were therefore encouraged to continue their education while remaining aware of the opportunities already available around them. Pontedera is home to laboratories, companies and centres where knowledge can be transformed into technologies, services and new professions. The mile described by Clementina Cruceli reflects the short distance separating local schools from some of Italy’s most advanced research centres, pointing graduates towards a real environment in which they can put their skills, curiosity and ambitions to work.