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At the Laghetto dell’Eur, for four days, Fenix became a garden-city of politics: tents, booths, exhibits, dense debates, and a stage that never slept. Above all, it was thousands of young people from every region, reminding everyone that Italy’s conservative youth exist, study, argue, and aren’t afraid of real confrontation. That’s what sets the Gioventù Nazionale (GN) festival apart: the deliberate choice to invite even distant voices, make them talk without filters, and claim that identity has nothing to fear from a proper back-and-forth. The 2025 edition proved it with a packed schedule and a clear message: “We are an autonomous community, capable of new syntheses and responsibility.” Giorgia Meloni underscored it in her closing remarks, blending generational pride with political determination.
A four-day event that puts young people (and real debate) at the center
Fenix ran from September 18 to 21, once again at the Laghetto dell’Eur. The setting has become the symbol of the format: an open, popular festival, with political debates, cultural moments, and music. The opening “institutional derby” between Lazio’s President Francesco Rocca and Rome’s Mayor Roberto Gualtieri, followed by face-offs like Giovanni Donzelli vs. Stefano Bonaccini, embodied the promise of no-nonsense debate. Organizers spoke of “thousands of young people from all over Italy,” a forecast the square amply confirmed from day one to the final evening.
It’s no small thing that many panels were moderated by GN militants: both a pedagogical and political choice. A youth movement isn’t only an audience; it’s protagonists on stage—young people who prepare questions, control the tempo, and press guests. It’s a hands-on school for leadership. A glance at the official program shows how many moderations were entrusted to the movement’s young cadres.
The guests: pluralism as a method
This year’s roster of guests tells you everything about Fenix’s editorial line: alongside regional presidents, mayors, and ministers, there were journalists, intellectuals, and artists. And—culturally most significant—figures not aligned with the center-right. Over the days, you saw, among others, Peter Gomez, Luca Telese, and David Parenzo; and on day one, the direct confrontation between Lazio’s president Francesco Rocca and Rome’s mayor Roberto Gualtieri. Not a parade, but an “open field” with young referees.
The result? A climate both civil and combative, recalling the tradition of the conservative youth movement: frank discussion, no barricades, strength measured by arguments rather than volume. That’s what struck many observers: the ability to gather different sensibilities in the same political-cultural space without losing coherence.
The key panel: “Europe’s Destiny”
Among the most anticipated debates, the one dedicated to Europe set the political center of gravity for the festival: Europe’s Destiny. The Courage to Be in a New Time. On stage: Marion Maréchal (Identité Libertés); three key figures from FdI/ECR—Nicola Procaccini (ECR group co-chair in the European Parliament), Carlo Fidanza (FdI delegation leader), and Antonio Giordano (ECR Secretary-General)—together with Francesco Di Giuseppe, GN’s vice president. Moderation by Maicol Busilacchi, the movement’s international lead. A snapshot of the Fenix method: an international conservative guest, the Italian leadership of the ECR area, and GN’s “bridge generation” holding together analysis, vision, and grassroots.
The main takeaways
- Sovereignty and national interests within the European framework. Procaccini and Fidanza called for an EU that re-centers subsidiarity, competitiveness, external border security, and protection of the productive system. A critique of over-regulation that shackles SMEs, farming, and manufacturing—paired with a pro-enterprise, non-punitive tech transition.
- Identity and demography. Maréchal stressed the link between Europe’s cultural identity and birthrates: without a serious demographic strategy, Europe ages and shrinks, with direct effects on welfare, the workforce, and security. It dovetails with GN’s priorities (housing, stable jobs, work-family balance) and with Meloni’s national agenda.
- Europe as a power, not just a market. Giordano tied security (borders, trafficking, terrorism) to a common industrial policy on energy and critical technologies. For young people, added Di Giuseppe, “Europe” must mean tangible opportunities: less bureaucracy for startups, paid internships, and a functioning ITS-university-enterprise pipeline. A conservative point of view—yes—but with actionable proposals for the next EU institutional cycle.
The panel’s through-line can be summed up like this: either Europe returns to being a community of free, competitive nations, or it condemns itself to irrelevance. Assertive and divisive, perhaps—but it set the programmatic tone of the festival.
“You’re a spectacle”: Giorgia Meloni’s words (and the line they drew)
Fenix’s finale, on Sunday, bore the premier’s political imprint. Meloni thanked the young people, calling them “a spectacle,” and—crucially—highlighted GN’s autonomy: “You’re not a ‘Meloni youth wing’; you’re a movement with your own identity and your own head.” She then pivoted to the cultural fight: “We stand against the culture of hate from those who celebrated Charlie Kirk’s death; the threats are growing, but we’re not afraid.” The core message rejects the caricature of right-wing youth as a “claque” and summons them to a high standard of public responsibility: study, argue, and hold the stage with a straight back.
The rest was visual impact: the ovation at her entrance, the full square, the energy of a festival that was popular and political at once. These images raced across social media and video channels, helping explain why Fenix was perceived as a “people’s success,” not an insiders’ convention.
Why this event is crucial for Gioventù Nazionale (and for FdI)
Training and responsibility. Fenix is a responsibility accelerator. Entrusting so many panels to under-30 militants and leaders sends a clear message to the entire party: you grow here by asking tough questions, keeping time, and synthesizing. It’s the most effective school of pragmatic leadership.
Roots and listening. Bringing thousands of young people into a single square creates real-world networks—beyond the virtual—among universities, associations, local administrators, and the productive world. The youth wing becomes a sensor on the ground: hot issues (housing, jobs, birthrates, merit, security, technological transition) are distilled into proposals GN delivers to the party and institutions. The “youth agenda” that emerges from Fenix is inherently debatable—because it’s born from debate—but it’s also recognizable.
New syntheses. This is the most interesting political point. Throughout the festival, the braid of social conservatism (family, community, identity) and economic modernization (enterprise, innovation, technical education) produced a synthesis that speaks to very different youth segments. The Europe panel was exemplary: borders and competitiveness, identity and growth, freedom and responsibility. It’s the grammar GN is building its public profile on.
“Without filters,” for real
The claim didn’t stay a slogan. The debates showcased genuine crossings with the opposition, with journalists often critical of the government, and with radical environmentalist sensibilities; there were cultural moments too: from a tribute to Battiato to in-depth conversations with authors and reporters. In short, the conservative youth chose to show themselves to the country as they are: a community that debates, makes mistakes and replies, seeks allies, and never stops fighting on the terrain of ideas.
Public response—ovations, a full square, strong turnout—completed the communication loop: after years of toxic narratives, Fenix offered a visual and political counternarrative. Press releases aren’t enough to overturn stereotypes; you need a live festival that flips them in real time. That’s what happened at the Eur.
Fenix wasn’t (just) a festival: it was a cultural show of strength by the conservative youth movement. It put back at the center the idea that politics can be a public, popular practice—without filters. It built an alternative story about itself—neither mediated nor delegated—before thousands of young people who showed the country who they are, what they think, and how they argue. And, through the Europe panel and the premier’s words, it set a clear compass: identity, freedom, responsibility; competitive modernization within a Europe of nations; a firm rejection of the culture of hate and intimidation.
For Gioventù Nazionale—and, more broadly, for Fratelli d’Italia—it means having a permanent political laboratory where young people aren’t window-dressing but the engine. If this energy stays connected to the places where decisions are made—municipalities, universities, businesses, the European Parliament—Fenix will be remembered as the moment a generation stopped being “talked about” and started speaking for itself. In its own voice. And without filters.