The author reflects on the importance of uncultivated places for the environment and biodiversity, especially in the current climate context, in which the Earth responds violently to pollution and the indiscriminate exploitation of resources caused by human action.

In our society, the distinction between fat and thin signals the difference between two lifestyles, the first based on the consumption of animal food, the other on the prevalent consumption of foods of plant origin. The positive values of sobriety and healthiness are associated with this dietary practice: the success of the Mediterranean diet is combined with the affirmation of these value: olive oil, which is a fat, but vegetable, summarizes them in itself. On the feast of Saint Joseph, which is celebrated in numerous places in southern Puglia during Lent, the preparation of abundant food to offer to the community and, symbolically, to the saint, takes place in compliance with the food prohibitions of the period; they prohibit the consumption of meat, eggs, dairy products, even if some transgressions are considered legitimate: it is a celebration of the lean. In Spongano, near Otranto, on the occasion of the feast of Santa Vittoria, on the eve of the day, the residue from pressing the olives is used to prepare large candles carried in processions: it is a celebration whose fundamental element is the waste of oil olive oil: the value celebrated, in this case, is that of reuse which contrasts with exasperated consumerism.

There are numerous female characters in fairy tales who do not smile. In their stories we can recognize variations of the myth of Demeter, in which laughter and obscenity are productive of life and fertility.

The author presents some cases that tell the ways in which the "grico" language has gradually lost its communicative effectiveness and has known new uses in the current system of cultural heritage; he also reconstructs the two ephemeral moments of the encounter between Pier Paolo Pasolini and the language and culture of the Greek-speaking area of Salento.

De Giorgi represents the figure of the scholar of his time, engaged in many aspects of knowledge: the natural sciences, history, geography. He did not want to renounce to follow, as far as possible, the various paths of knowledge, animated, moreover, not only by the scientific spirit, but also by the strong awareness of the civil value of his commitment: he intended to contribute to the improvement of the conditions of the society in which lived.

Pochi giorni prima di morire, Pier Paolo Pasolini tenne una conferenza a Lecce (nella Puglia meridionale); nel pomeriggio si recò nella vicina Calimera, una cittadina della Grecìa salentina (area grecofona), e poté ascoltare i canti e le parole della lingua locale (grico) che aveva già avuto modo di conoscere; infatti molti anni prima aveva scritto il commento per il film di Cecilia Mangini Stendalì, in cui veniva ricostruita la pratica della lamentazione funebre in una località della Grecìa.

Carmelo is an old house builder, specialized in the ancient technique of closing the ceiling "a volta". His storytelling is full of technical knowledge and symbolic elements that combine coherently: the concepts of weight, solidity, strength, lightness are expressed in a language rich in references to the environment, colors, animals, objects of various kinds.

The summer School of Storia delle tradizioni popolari (sixth edition) which takes place in Tricase (southern Puglia) in the third week of July, this year had the theme "Villages. Life stories. Archives".

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Modernity does not follow a linear path, it instead produces confusion and uncertainty. Imagining the future requires a strong democratic commitment, based on respect for the environment and the recognition of people's rights.