Vocabulary

invent	made of	sell/sold/sold
bush	pour out	good/better/best
trend	encourage	seek/sought/sought
neglect	leaf/leaves	entrepreneur
sector	agriculture	phenomenon
worm	qualified	overqualified
decide	take over	take/took/taken
acre	discover	abandoned
silk	pour (2)	feed/fed/fed
origin	come back	graduate (2)
fulfill	root (2)	come/came/come
obtain	boom (2)	give/gave/given
Earth	protect	mission (2)
fire (2)	base (2)	opportunity
full of	produce	lead/led/led (2)
pride	authentic	settle down
earn	worth it	at the end of the day (2)
region	challenge	sacrifice (2)
salary	jewelry	make/made/made
settle	equivalent	begin/began/begun
joy	dignity	grow/grew/grown (2)
mill	discover	pride and joy
ultra	field (3)	choose/chose/chosen
allow	essential	mile (1.6 km)
unable	traditional	atmosphere (2)
startup	raise (3)	feel/felt/felt (2)
fund	based in	crowdfunding
hire	method	find/found/found
pursue	passion (2)	leave/left/left

 
 
 
 
 
 

Video

 

 
 
 
 

Transcript

Now young Italians continue to pour out of the country, despite the economy doing better.

But there is an encouraging trend: graduates seeking their fortunes in the neglected countryside.

About one in ten young entrepreneurs in Italy is now in the agriculture sector.

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .

 
In the Italian countryside, a new phenomenon: young Italians re-discovering agriculture. They’re often overqualified, and across the country, fifty-thousand (50,000) men and women under the age of thirty-five (35) have decided to return to Mother Nature.

Domenico Vivo, Silk Farmer in Calabria: “My name is Domenico. I’m thirty (30) years old and I’ve been a farmer for three years.”

Domenico took over an abandoned farmland on the hills of Calabria: over twelve acres of bushes whose leaves feed silkworms.

Domenico Vivo, Silk Farmer in Calabria: “I came back to the countryside because this is our future, our origins, our roots and our culture are all here.”

Miles away from Naples, the big city where he was planning on becoming a sociologist, Domenico obtained financial help from the town and government to start his business here.

Domenico Vivo, Silk Farmer in Calabria: “My new life gives me lots of happiness. But I’m also trying to fulfill a mission: I’m helping keep the earth alive. I’m trying to help protect the environment.

Domenico also works on a farm with his girlfriend. She used to work for an airline based in Berlin.

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .

 
Miriam Pugliese, Silk Farmer in Calabria: “My name is Mariam. I’m twenty-eight (28) years old, and I’ve been a farmer for three years.”

Miriam was fired from her first job.

She then learned to produce silk — and she loves her new life.

Miriam Pugliese, Silk Farmer in Calabria: “You can’t become rich by leading a life on a farm. But our life is authentic and full of dignity.

So yes, we sacrifice a lot, but at the end of the day, it’s absolutely worth it.”

And this small business is booming: the couple sells clothes and jewelry made of silk. Together, they earn more than four thousand euros a month. In Italy, that is equivalent to the salary of two managers.

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .

 
In the same village, Stefano has also started a new business. He began by growing a vegetable garden the size of seven football fields.

Stefano Caccavari, Farmer and Miller in Calabria: “My name is Stefano. I’m twenty-nine (29) years old. And I’ve been a farmer for three years.

His pride and joy however is his ultra modern mill. Stefano studied computer science and economics. He had planned to settle down in the Silicon Valley. Instead, he’s chosen another challenge: succeed in his home region.

Stefano Caccavari, Farmer and Miller in Calabria: “There aren’t that many jobs in Calabria. So creating economic activity that allows families to live is essential.

We’re all young here because we invent our own work.”

The methods may be traditional, but the atmosphere feels more like that of a startup. Stefano raised more than half-a-million euros (€500,000) using crowd-funding websites.

He has hired seven people in less than one year. And for them, it’s a unique opportunity.

Samuele Cosantino, Baker: “Just like a lot of young people, I was unable to find a job. I was about to leave Italy. But thanks to Stefano, I was able to pursue my passion in my village.”

Thanks to the return of Stefano, Miriam, Domenico and many others, Italy has become the country with the highest number of youth working in agriculture in Europe.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *

 

Questions

Cabbage, Brussels Sprouts. All Italians stay in Italy. The never emigrate. True or false? Are there lots of good jobs in Italy?

Onion, Garlic, Leek, Chives. Until now, have there been lots of activity in the agricultural sector of Italy?

Broccoli, Cauliflower. The young Italian farmers in the video all studied agriculture, agronomy and horticulture at university. Is this right or wrong?

Eggplant. Do Domenico and Miriam raise and harvest oranges and lemons? Are they lower-class (poor), working-class, middle-class, upper-middle class or upper-class (rich)?

Tomato. The young entrepreneurs in the video took on bank loans. Is this correct or incorrect?

Cucumber, Pickle. Does Stefano produce cheese, cream and butter?

Carrot, Turnip, Parsnip. Are the young farmers bored with country life? Do they want to move to the city?
 
 
 
Spinach. Are there lots of good jobs in your city, region and country? Is there rural flight? Do young people from farms and villages migrate to cities?

Peppers, Bell Peppers, Chili Peppers. What are farms, villages and the country like? Are they thriving or shrinking?

Beans, Peas, Lentils, Chickpeas. Do some (young) people stay, move or return to farms and villages?

Parsley, Dill. My friends and I would like to live and work in the country. Yes or no?

Celery. What might happen in the future?

Squash, Zucchini. What should people and governments do?