“Arriving at the Isola of La Scala (Italy), on the 29th of January, 2014 – the Gen Verde wrote – we discovered that START NOW was no longer just our project, but it also belonged to the 100 youth with whom we held artistic workshops and also to the many adults who accompanied us during those days, working behind the scenes. Everyone shouted out with one voice: START NOW, Wow! “When we started the workshops on dance, singing, percussion and theatre, it was as if we had known each other always: we were all ready to share our talents. A young girl expressed herself in this way: “On stage I feel like I’m another person, free to express myself, different”. One of her companions answered: “Look you can be like this everyday…” “Saturday February 1, the youth and the Gen Verde together  now ready to go onstage, began the traditional “Winter Meeting – Celebration of life”, organized by the Pastoral Care of the Youth of Verona, which this year saw us all working together on the frontlines with the Diocese to bear witness that there is reason to hope. The Bishop, in his homily during the Mass and before the show, encouraged all the young people present saying: “With you the future is assured!”. “Art, once again, has become an instrument of dialogue, to take on a challenge. As we sang “… peace depends on you”, we made a commitment together, taking in also the 3,500 participants who, during the concert, sang along with us. A wave of fraternity has started from Verona and who knows where it will reach!” The Gen Verde international music group, is at present made up of 21 young women from 13 Countries. It has presented more than 1,400 shows during various tours in Europe, Asia, South and North America. The original style of this music group evolves together with the arrival of each new member. The various influences bring a specific  and rich cultural and ethnic mix  and a wide array of traditional  and contemporary genres. Up to the present, the band has released a total of 70 albums. While the composition of the group has changed throughout the years, the values underlying its artistic objectives have remained the same: to contribute towards creating a global culture of peace, dialogue and unity. The Gen Verde international performing arts group, has its homebase in the International Little City of Loppiano (Florence, Italy) where people from all origins and races share the creative and enriching experience of building unity in the midst of diversity.