(Mar. 28) “I am a citizen of the world and I chose to live in Australia because I like its vitality, its ocean and waves. I picked it for the spaces and pristine nature, and the respect that everyone has to protect it.” So says Alessandro Sacchi: thirty-two, born in Viterbo but Australian by adoption, A telecommunications engineer who works in Melbourne for the main Australian phone company. “I studied at the University of Pisa but I worked on my thesis abroad, at the KTH (Royal Institute of Technology) in Stockholm,” says Alessandro, talking about the beginning of his adventure. “After graduation, I lived in Spain for a period and then I returned to Italy, where I agreed to work for a consulting firm. I was in Rome until April 2007 when I expressed interest in a project of my company to be launched in Australia, and I was immediately sent to Melbourne.” This thanks to some specific, and not just technical, skills, such as “the good English knowledge and the availability of living abroad for medium to long term.” “In September 2008, when my time was about to end, I decided to stay in Melbourne permanently,” continues the young engineer. I continue to take care of IT consulting for the company I work for, a leading Australian telephone company. In particular – he says – I am responsible for coordinating the work of a team in the areas of Customer Care and Billing. I spend my working time in meetings with participants of different levels and skills, to explain a new product, to gather requirements, to assess the impacts a new system to be connected to existing ones, and stuff like that.” Australia is a special place to Alessandro, and now he is satisfied of the choice he made: “I live very well in here.” He also met several Italians in his path and about the phenomenon of new emigration he says: “Young people emigrate mainly to European countries. But here I meet many Italians working on an holiday VISA that allows you to work part-time and stay on vacation, something that can not be done on a tourist VISA. When they realize I aa Italian, with some exceptions, almost all of them complain about how they live here. I usually prefer to change the subject: I think those who decide to leave their country must be ready to accept a new culture with an open mind and tune into a way of life.” About his return in Italy Sacchi, who has a child, is cautious: “I cannot exclude it because everything could happen, but now I have no intention to return in Italy. Simply – he concludes – I like living here. I think it’s the best place to raise my children. ” (Gil/Peg)
