With the start of December, the volume of online purchases increases and e-commerce reaches one of the most intense periods of the year. In the face of the constant rise in users, however, there is a portion of the population that cannot complete or even start a transaction due to inaccessible websites.

Eye-Able Italia, a European scale-up specialising in AI-based digital accessibility solutions combined with human expertise, proposes a list of five myths that continue to hinder full inclusion in online commerce.

The Five Myths Hindering Accessible E-commerce

1. "I Have the Accessibility Widget, So I'm Good"

The widget can improve the user experience, but it does not solve structural problems: it does not correct the code, does not generate alternative texts and does not eliminate navigation inconsistencies. Without technical interventions, a site remains inaccessible.

2. "Accessibility is Only for People with Disabilities"

Accessibility benefits a much wider audience: senior users, people browsing on smartphones, users with slow connections or temporary limitations. It is a transversal value that improves the experience for everyone.

3. "My Company is Not Involved"

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) provides obligations for those offering digital products or services in the European market: e-commerce, banking services, transport, streaming and various digital devices. Only micro-enterprises are exempt, but the legislation still promotes inclusive pathways.

4. "Adapting is Too Expensive and Complex"

Considering accessibility as a cost is a mistake. Fines for non-compliance can reach up to 5% of turnover. An "accessibility by design" approach reduces future costs, improves reputation and opens new market opportunities.

5. "Once Done, I Don't Need to Think About It Anymore"

Accessibility requires ongoing updates. Every site modification can introduce new barriers. Constant monitoring, internal training and a company culture oriented towards inclusion are needed.

Eye-Able Italia's Perspective

"Ensuring accessibility is not only a regulatory obligation, but a social responsibility and a great business opportunity," states Lorenzo Scumaci, CEO of Eye-Able Italia. According to the company, debunking these myths is a necessary step to build a truly inclusive digital ecosystem.

Monaco Optimist Team Race 2026, at the Yacht Club de Monaco 15 young sailors' teams from 12 countries

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The Monaco Optimist Team Race 2026 started at the Yacht Club de Monaco, establishing itself as one of the benchmark youth regattas in the international calendar. On the first day of racing, fifteen teams of young sailors from twelve countries faced each other on the water to advance through the group stage and qualify for subsequent rounds. The event brings together boys and girls under 14 years of age and brings to the Principality the global elite of the Optimist class, with a format designed to place teamwork and technical growth at the center.

A format inspired by team racing and the America's Cup

The Monaco Optimist Team Race adopts the team racing format, a discipline that privileges strategy, communication, and situation management over pure speed alone. Each team is composed of four helmsmen who compete in short and fast-paced races, in a series of one-on-one matches between teams.

The event structure includes a "round robin" group phase, in which all teams compete in a complete bracket; subsequently, the best teams advance to quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals, which represent the concluding moment of the event. The common goal for young sailors is to win as many matches as possible to move their team up the standings, while learning to make quick decisions in a highly competitive context.

Young captains on the water: decisions, responsibility, and teamwork

According to international judge Chris Atkins, sailing offers young people a unique opportunity: at 10, 11, or 14 years old they can take a plane, reach another country, and compete in racing against peers from different continents and cultures. On the water, young sailors become captains of their own boats, assume control of maneuvers, and are called upon to make all decisions in real time, in an international and multilingual environment.

This dimension puts them face to face with sporting and relational responsibilities that go beyond any single regatta: they must coordinate with teammates, interpret the racing course and adapt to weather conditions, building skills useful even outside of sport. The emphasis on teamwork, typical of team racing, leads them to look beyond individual results to focus on collective outcomes, a concept central to higher sailing classes and yachting in general.

International clinic and training with Chris Atkins

Alongside the regattas, the Monaco Optimist Team Race is accompanied by an international clinic led by Chris Atkins, a world reference figure in team racing with over 45 years of experience. Three-time winner of the British National Squad Racing Championship, former selector of the British Olympic team for Beijing and London, and World Sailing arbitrator, Atkins oversees specific work on tactics, technique, and management of racing situations.

Over three days of training, the teams involved have the opportunity to perfect maneuvers, refine decisions in crossing situations, and gain a deep understanding of the peculiarities of the team race format, from racing priorities to penalty management. The stated objective is not only to improve technical level, but to allow each athlete to return home as a more conscious sailor and person, with tools useful for future career stages.

The role of the Yacht Club de Monaco in the development of youth sailing

For the Yacht Club de Monaco, the Monaco Optimist Team Race is a cornerstone of its sporting strategy, which aims to promote team spirit, discipline, self-control, and respect for rules among the young. The club hosts the teams, provides facilities and logistical support, and promotes dialogue between members of its own Sports Section and foreign delegations.

According to general secretary Bernard d'Alessandri, the competition has a value that goes beyond any single edition: today's Optimist sailors are tomorrow's sailors, and learning to work for team results is fundamental in a discipline where, as you move up in category, the presence of numerous crews on board is the norm. In this context, Monaco positions itself as a permanent laboratory for the new generation of sailing.

Ever more international participation

The 2026 edition confirms and strengthens the international profile of the regatta: fifteen under-14 teams arrive from twelve nations, from Uruguay to the United States, passing through Ireland, Italy, and various European countries. The variety of origins creates an environment of cultural exchange that accompanies the sporting one, with delegations sharing days on the quay, technical briefings, and moments of dialogue outside the water.

For the participating federations and clubs, the Monaco stop is considered a strategic passage in the training path of their young sailors, both for the level of opponents and for the quality of organization and racing conditions in the bay of the Principality.

A roll of honor that tells the story of the event's growth

Since 2010, the Monaco Optimist Team Race has built a record that reflects the progressive expansion of the participant base. In an early phase Switzerland often prevailed with the Société Nautique de Genève and the Gstaad Yacht Club, to which were added over time victories by teams from Germany, Finland, Turkey, and Monaco itself.

In more recent years, American participation has emerged strongly, with victories in 2020 and 2022, while in 2023 Croatia achieved a surprise with the JKU Deep Blue team. Each edition has highlighted a new reality capable of imposing itself at the highest levels of youth team racing, confirming the event as a privileged observatory on the future protagonists of international sailing.

Monaco as a laboratory for the next generation of sailors

For four days, the Monaco Optimist Team Race transforms the stretch of sea in front of the Yacht Club de Monaco into a training ground for young sailors, where technique and strategy intertwine in a highly formative context. Through the team race format, the international clinic, and competition between teams from multiple continents, the event helps prepare a new generation of sailors accustomed to competing in complex scenarios, communicating in teams, and making quick decisions in varying conditions.

Luiss Guido Carli University has inaugurated the new 2025–2026 Academic Year with a ceremony dedicated to the future of Europe, international transformations and the role of artificial intelligence in education. The event took place in the Aula Magna of the Viale Pola campus in Rome, in the presence of the university's leadership, students and institutional and economic guests.

Institutional and Economic Guests

The ceremony marked the official opening of the 2025–2026 Academic Year at Luiss Guido Carli University, with a focus on Europe in its legal, institutional and economic perspectives. At the heart of the event was a discussion on the changes redefining the European and international framework and on the responsibilities of universities in educating new generations.

Among the guests of honour were Giovanni Amoroso, President of the Constitutional Court, and Carlo Messina, Managing Director and CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo. Their contributions brought to the debate the perspectives of the institutions and the financial system on the challenges facing the European Union and Italy.

Rector Paolo Boccardelli's Address

In his opening speech, Rector Paolo Boccardelli described Europe as immersed in a complex and structural phase of transformation. Geopolitics, industrial and technological transition, sustainability, demographic and social changes were identified as the factors reshaping the balances that have underpinned stability in recent decades.

The Role of Luiss in the European Context

Boccardelli emphasised that Luiss cannot limit itself to observing these processes, but is called upon to "take the field" by virtue of its mission and identity. The university aims to strengthen educational innovation, research and training programmes capable of preparing students oriented towards the common good, with the goal of contributing to the construction of Europe's future through advanced skills and civic awareness.

Architecture of Knowledge and Artificial Intelligence

One of the central themes of the ceremony was the definition of a new "architecture of knowledge" within the university. Luiss aims to rethink educational models, skills and teaching methods, including the role of artificial intelligence in learning processes and course design.

Teaching, Skills and Innovation

The university intends to integrate digital tools and AI-based solutions to make learning pathways more effective and to develop transversal competences required by the labour market. This also includes interdisciplinary programmes and greater interaction between legal, economic, political and technological disciplines.

Towards a New "Industrial Renaissance"

Another strategic focus presented concerns the promotion of a new "Italian and European industrial Renaissance". The objective is to strengthen the link between academic knowledge and practical know-how, with particular attention to relations between universities, industry and the business world.

Collaboration with the Productive System

Collaboration with Confindustria is indicated as one of the tools for consolidating this alliance between education and the productive fabric. Through structured partnerships, the university aims to foster the development of applied skills, joint projects and pathways that accompany students towards a conscious entry into the world of work.

International Outlook and Academic Alliances

During the ceremony, the strengthening of the university's international dimension was reiterated. Luiss aims to build new academic alliances and achieve a more prominent presence in the main channels of European university cooperation.

The Italy–France Academic Channel

Among the examples mentioned was the Italy–France academic channel activated with Sciences Po, which represents a model of structured collaboration between universities. Through shared programmes and joint pathways, these partnerships aim to train profiles capable of operating in European and multi-level contexts.

Giovanni Amoroso's Address

Giovanni Amoroso, President of the Constitutional Court, focused his speech on the relationship between the Italian Constitution and the European Union. His reflections concerned the role of the Court within the current framework of EU law, with attention to the points of intersection between domestic law and EU law.

Constitution and European Union

Amoroso analysed the mechanisms through which constitutional case law engages with European norms, highlighting the spaces for dialogue and the tensions that characterise the evolution of the legal system. In this context, legal education is presented as a decisive factor for understanding the complexity of the multi-level dimension.

Economic Challenges According to Carlo Messina

Carlo Messina, Managing Director and CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo, focused his speech on the economic challenges affecting Italy and Europe. He described this phase as a potentially decisive moment for building a more solid growth perspective at the European level.

Common Debt, Markets and Productive System

Key points included the possible strengthening of common European debt and the unification of markets as levers for shared growth. Messina highlighted Italy's strengths: political stability, careful management of public accounts, diversified manufacturing system, widespread savings and a solid banking system, considered the basis for sustaining investments and development.

Human Capital and the Role of Young People

A central passage was dedicated to human capital, identified as a decisive element for the country's competitiveness. Talent, creativity and adaptability were presented as the factors distinguishing the Italian system, with a call to listen to and support young people in their aspirations, recognising their energy as a key to sustainable growth.

Giorgio Fossa's Closing Remarks

The ceremony was concluded by the address of Luiss President Giorgio Fossa, who reiterated the university's role as a place of education and social responsibility. The task of the university was described as going beyond the mere transfer of skills, orienting itself towards preparation for the world in all its dimensions.

Alliance Between Universities, Institutions and Businesses

Fossa emphasised the importance of a stable alliance between the productive, institutional and university systems. Only structured collaboration can transform knowledge into vision and vision into progress, in a European context where the quality of education is closely linked to the ability to innovate and interpret global changes.