An idea that becomes a prototype, the challenge of a product that measures itself against the market. It is the voice of a generation that stopped asking for space and began to conquer it. The Entrepreneurship Championships, a prestigious course promoted by the Junior Achievement Italia association led by president Anna Gionfriddo and CEO Miriam Cresta, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Merit (MIM), are preparing to celebrate their final in Rome on 4 and 5 June. An event that will see Sicily deploy its excellence with the ITT “Ettore Majorana” of Milazzo in the front row, fresh from an extraordinary organizational and competitive success.
The Mamertine institute was in fact the beating heart of the “Territorial Competition Sicily 2026″: for the first time, an institute was transformed into the venue of the event itself, acting as a co-designer and direct connection hub between the world of training and that of work. A goal that charts a new course for teaching, as proudly underlined by the head teacher, Prof. Bruno Lorenzo Castrovinci: «Looking ahead and planning the next final events of a challenging and profitable school year for the entire Majorana community, I cannot help but recall with immense satisfaction the day of last May 5th in which the Mamertine institute hosted the 2026 Sicily Territorial Competition, a stage of the path that leads to the national Entrepreneurship Championships, organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Merit. A choice that highlights the increasingly central role of schools as promoters of initiatives linked to entrepreneurship and, in this context, the ITT Ettore Majorana, co-designer and protagonist of the event, stood out as an active reality, well organized and capable of offering a stimulating and welcoming training environment, confirming the quality of the work carried out by teachers and students”.
“The event – continues the principal – saw the support of various institutions and local entities, including the Sicilian Region, Sicindustria Messina Giovani Imprenditori, Unioncamere Sicilia and the Gazzetta del Sud, media partner of the event, together with mentors and professionals who accompanied girls and boys on their journey, giving the initiative that natural and now essential value of connection between training and the world of work. The day, which due to the presence of hundreds of young people in the internal and exteriors of the Majorana was also characterized by the atmosphere of joyful creativity, which ended with the final awards and recognitions.
4 mini-companies stood out in the competition and therefore represented Sicily and our institute at the national final scheduled for 4 and 5 June in Rome: ElectricalArt JA, created by the 3A Electrotechnics class and coordinated by Professor Giovanni Mancuso, HELP JA of 3ACM coordinated by Professor Maria De Domenico, GLUEBOND JA of 3BBS coordinated by Professor Gioacchina Cappellano and Natural Shield JA of the 3CTL led by prof. Nicola Conte. Our best wishes certainly go to everyone, together with obviously congratulations and thanks to all the other classes of the school who, by putting themselves on the line, have put not only entrepreneurial ideas at the centre, but also transversal skills, team spirit and planning skills, which are increasingly required in the world of work”.
An exciting regional final
The Milazzo event recorded exceptional numbers: more than 500 students from 11 institutes across the island with over 40 mini-businesses born from the “Impresa in Azione”, “Upshift for Youth” and “Skills for the Future” programmes. An atmosphere of joyful creativity that invaded the spaces of the school, supported by a dense institutional network that saw the Sicilian Region, Sicindustria Messina Giovani Imprenditori and Unioncamere Sicilia alongside the participating boys and girls. Gazzetta del Sud was media partner of the event, confirming its commitment to giving voice to the new generations.
Here is the story of that day https://messina.gazzettadelsud.it/articoli/noi-magazine/2026/05/06/ampioni-dimpresa-litt-majorana-di-milazzo-con-lombrane- technological-wins-the-regional-final-and-flies-to-Rome-here-are-all-the-awarded-Sicilian-schools-29d0d05d-4cf4-4d1d-a521-106daeaeb38a/
The project that represents Sicily in Rome
Leading the Sicilian delegation, the mini-company “ElectricalArt_JA” achieved the pass for the final in Rome, created by the 3A Electrotechnics class of Majorana and coordinated by prof. Giovanni Mancuso. The project was born from a deep reading of the territory: a context with a strong tourist vocation that hosts excellent beaches and accommodation facilities. Precisely from here the idea of revolutionizing a symbolic and commonly used object such as the beach umbrella was born. By exploiting solar energy through a dedicated energy section and directed by a home automation control system, the participants created an independent, inclusive prototype with almost zero environmental impact. The remotely controlled opening and closing automation breaks down architectural barriers for people with disabilities or motor difficulties, while the integration of USB ports for charging mobile devices increases customer comfort. Together with them, representing the island in the Capital, there will be three other brilliant realities of the “Majorana”: HELP JA (3ACM with prof. Maria De Domenico), GLUEBOND JA (3BBS with prof. Gioacchina Cappellano) and Natural Shield JA (3CTL with prof. Nicola Conte)
All the Sicilian schools that participated in the final
The competition photographed a fertile Sicily, oriented towards ecological transition and social commitment. In addition to the absolute triumph and numerous awards brought home by ITT “Ettore Majorana”, who also distinguished himself with the projects “Aurea Flora JA”, “Natural Shield JA”, “Beesness S4F JA”, “Echopot JA”, “EcofoamJA”, “Peel Good Ja”, “Posidonia Green Solutions JA”, “PROXIMA ja” and “SpeakTogether”, the entire region responded with extraordinary promptness. The IISS “Luigi Russo” of Caltanissetta contributed with “Artemis”, “Cuority” and “Equidolls”, while the ITET “Leonardo da Vinci” of Milazzo responded with “EQUILIBRIA”, “Equiwork”, “Helper Service JA”, “MOODUO”, “Rinascita Donna JA”, “Safe Point” and “Tourism Justice Lab”. From Palermo, the IS “Duca degli Abruzzi-Einaudi-Pareto” participated with “Spreco Zero”, “SICUR ACQUA” and “Stop Spreco JA”. From Bagheria the IIS “S. D’Acquisto” with “Baby Care Society”, “Ecotek.JA”, “EquiWorkItaly” and “Shoppymap.JA”; from Bronte the IISS “Radice” with “CityCare JA”; from Palermo the IISS “Pio La Torre” with “Eyes Open”, “Nexus”, “Restart her” and “Save the love” and the Liceo “Einstein” with “Herivox”, “In Another View”, “Senato.srl”; from Sant’Agata di Militello the ITI “Torricelli” with “Grow Tech JA”; from Ragusa the ITCA “Besta” with “IbleoCare_JA”, while from Augusta the IS “Ruiz” with “Vivere Sicurezza”.
To complete the picture of the day, the Messina high schools “Minutoli” and “Verona Trento” contributed, actively participating in the network by animating the mini-business fair and the parallel competition of the “NEXT GI Messina” project carried out in collaboration with the Young Entrepreneurs of Confindustria.
The final of Generazione Impresa Calabria
While Sicily prepares for the Roman challenge of the Entrepreneurship Championships, on the other side of the Strait the enthusiasm and managerial vision of young people have found a parallel and equally pressing axis. In fact, the final of “GI – Generazione Impresa Calabria 2026” was held in Catanzaro, in the Green Hall of the Regional Citadel. A twin project to the one developed in Sicily with the acronym “NEXT GI”: a parallel initiative that does not directly relate to the selections for the national JA championships, but which espouses the same experiential philosophy in close synergy with Sicindustria and the Young Entrepreneurs Groups. Moderated by Dario Faraone, Regional Coordinator of JA Italia, the Calabrian teams gave life to a very intense “pitch battle” focused on innovative business ideas. Also in this case, the chronicle of the presentations demonstrates an extraordinary design vivacity and a strong adherence to the technological demands of the market. The “Grimaldi – Pacioli – Petrucci – Ferraris – Maresca” Professional Technical Center of Catanzaro presented itself with the students of class 5C, capable of diversifying the offer by proposing four distinct projects oriented towards the digitalisation of services and the food sector: “Fila Zero”, “Punto Zero”, “Pronto Clinica” and “Guida al Gusto”. The 2Q class of the “Valentini – Majorana” Higher Education Institute of Castrolibero, for the Administration, Finance and Marketing address, responded with three solutions with high technological and safety value called “Save Life”, “Umbrella Smart Line” and “Eco Loop”. The “Donegani – Ciliberto” Technology Center of Crotone instead deployed the experience of the 4L class of the Computer Science branch, presenting the “Click&Go” mobility application.
The city of Reggio Calabria was instead represented by the ITE Institute “Piria – Ferraris – Da Empoli”, where the 3A class of Administration, Finance and Marketing brought the “ReBoot Borgo” territorial regeneration and valorization project to the table. Finally, the ITG – ITI – ITE Higher Education Institute of Vibo Valentia, with the 4B class of the Business Information Systems course, completed the picture of the Calabrian pitches with a competitive trio of digital and commercial ideas structured around the “Nuvia”, “Localyze” and “Cafedro” projects.