Spring Break
The Daily OrangeProfessor Spotlight: Natalia Piombino
By Ashley Poulin
Posted: 10/16/08, 11:27 PM EST Section: News
Natalia Piombino talks about the Italian mafia every day.
Piombino, a native of Sicily, Italy, is a professor at the SU Abroad center in Florence. Two years ago she worked to create a program with abroad students that combined scholarly work with community service. The goal: to explore the Italian mafia.
"The mafia is not something that you can touch," Piombino said. "I wanted to do more with the students than take them to places where people were killed or to talk to survivors."
The program brings together SU students and local Sicilian farmers three times a year and allows students to work alongside Sicilian farmers and Italian student volunteers for a day.
Most people in Italy recognize that land has been confiscated by the mafia. The mafia presence in Italy allows students to experience firsthand the mafia's effects. The City Administration of Corleone facilitated the relationship between Piombino and the cooperative farmers, as Corleone is recognized throughout Italy as the "hometown" of the mafia, Piombino said.
For Piombino, this trip isn't simply part of her job - it's something she enjoys. It's a way of passing on something "important and meaningful to students," and it allows Piombino to share her knowledge of Italian history, specifically of southern Italy.
Since she began teaching a decade ago, Piombino has taught at several other American university abroad programs, including Florida State University, Richmond University, University of Delaware and Vanderbilt University.
Piombino said she plans to continue to teach courses in Florence because she hasn't quite finished what she started there.
"I feel that I still have to do my part in Sicily," she said. "I feel like I have to give back."
alpoulin@syr.edu
Piombino, a native of Sicily, Italy, is a professor at the SU Abroad center in Florence. Two years ago she worked to create a program with abroad students that combined scholarly work with community service. The goal: to explore the Italian mafia.
"The mafia is not something that you can touch," Piombino said. "I wanted to do more with the students than take them to places where people were killed or to talk to survivors."
The program brings together SU students and local Sicilian farmers three times a year and allows students to work alongside Sicilian farmers and Italian student volunteers for a day.
Most people in Italy recognize that land has been confiscated by the mafia. The mafia presence in Italy allows students to experience firsthand the mafia's effects. The City Administration of Corleone facilitated the relationship between Piombino and the cooperative farmers, as Corleone is recognized throughout Italy as the "hometown" of the mafia, Piombino said.
For Piombino, this trip isn't simply part of her job - it's something she enjoys. It's a way of passing on something "important and meaningful to students," and it allows Piombino to share her knowledge of Italian history, specifically of southern Italy.
Since she began teaching a decade ago, Piombino has taught at several other American university abroad programs, including Florida State University, Richmond University, University of Delaware and Vanderbilt University.
Piombino said she plans to continue to teach courses in Florence because she hasn't quite finished what she started there.
"I feel that I still have to do my part in Sicily," she said. "I feel like I have to give back."
alpoulin@syr.edu
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