Beacon — Costruire un Alfabeto Visivo per i Valori Europei

Building a Visual Alphabet for the European Values

This Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) proposes an interdisciplinary pathway to explore and visually translate the six values enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union—Dignity, Freedom, Equality, Solidarity, Citizenship and Justice. In a historical moment marked by conflict and polarisation, the programme re-centres European citizenship through a creative, participatory process that engages students, academics and professionals across countries and disciplines. Its ultimate goal is to co-create a Visual Alphabet for the European Values—a coherent system of pictograms, colour palettes, patterns and communication artefacts—usable in educational, civic and institutional contexts to strengthen belonging and cultural cohesion.

Aims and Objectives

The BIP pursues one overarching aim: to foster critical, intercultural reflection on EU values and express them through accessible visual languages. Specific objectives are to: (1) deepen critical awareness of how these values are interpreted and lived across national contexts; (2) build design and communication skills that turn complex concepts into universal visual forms; (3) cultivate international, cross-disciplinary collaboration among design, social sciences, cultural studies, law and communication; (4) produce transferable outputs for open dissemination; (5) enhance transversal and intercultural competences (teamwork, English-medium communication, creative problem-solving); and (6) consolidate academic and professional networks within local partners to enable replication.

Pedagogical Approach and Structure

The programme combines theory and practice through a studio-based, participatory pedagogy delivered mainly in English. It unfolds in two complementary stages:

Online phase (5 days)

interactive lectures, interdisciplinary seminars and collaborative sessions introduce the six values from historical, cultural and social perspectives. Students work synchronously (seminars, Q&A, discussion groups) and asynchronously (self-study, shared digital boards and documents), and are equipped with visual analysis methods and core design tools.

On-site phase in Palermo (5 days)

intensive co-design workshops transform prior reflection into concrete outputs. Multinational, multidisciplinary teams undertake iterative cycles of research, ideation, prototyping and collective review to develop pictograms, palettes, patterns and communication artefacts that will form the Visual Alphabet. Short expert inputs punctuate daily studio work; peer critique ensures coherence and quality.

Planned Activities and International Contribution

Activities include thematic seminars on EU values, visual languages, communication design and active citizenship; design labs for creating the graphic system; and collective review sessions for validation and harmonisation. The programme culminates in a public presentation in Palermo, engaging institutions, the local community and media, followed by an open digital publication. Foreign partners contribute specialist teaching (communication design, cultural studies, social sciences), coordinate transnational groups both online and on site, share good practices and case studies from their national contexts, and support assessment and dissemination—ensuring high academic quality and an authentically intercultural perspective.

Participants, Selection and Recognition

Approximately 44 students from universities—at Bachelor, Master and Doctoral levels—will participate, particularly from Design, Economics, Sociology, Human Rights, Law and Urban Studies, Literature, Linguistics, Education, Psychology, Human Geography, Anthropology and Philosophy. Selection is based on CV and motivation letter; assessment covers participation, assigned tasks and a final project. Successful participants receive a certificate and 3 ECTS. The programme is coordinated by Prof. Cinzia Ferrara with an organising team from UNIPA (five staff including project leads, plus two PhD students).

Expected Results and Impact

Students will develop a theoretical understanding of EU values and the role of visual communication as a tool for cohesion and inclusion; practical design competencies in co-creation; and intercultural skills for transnational teamwork. The Visual Alphabet constitutes a shared cultural asset—open, reusable and adaptable—supporting educational initiatives, civic communication and institutional outreach. At an institutional level, the BIP strengthens internationalisation and advances innovative blended, co-design pedagogies that are replicable across programmes.