Forty Years of Global Commitment
Over the past four decades, VIS has carried out more than a thousand development and emergency projects and has supported the work of the Salesians across five continents, reaching millions of girls, boys, and young people through educational and socio-professional inclusion programs. It has also formed generations of individuals committed to international cooperation, the promotion of human rights, and peace.
The new institutional video, produced with IME Comunicazione and released today for the first time, recounts this journey through the faces of the women and men who work daily in the field, dedicating themselves to the people and communities served by VIS. As the video highlights, these 40 years have been possible only thanks to the dedication and passion of so many who believed in that dream.
A Year of Encounter, Not Just Celebration
For its 40th anniversary, VIS has chosen to embark on a shared journey with all those who, through their contributions, are part of this story. It will not simply be a year of celebrations, but one of meetings, dialogue, shared experiences, deeper reflection, and a renewed vision for the future. This journey will unfold through different languages and in various places that represent the identity of VIS: Turin, Rome, the territories where volunteers and supporters are active, and the partner countries where projects are implemented and staff members serve in the field.
A Time of Transformation and Synergy
This anniversary comes at a moment of significant change for VIS, which has recently become a participatory foundation, with Missioni Don Bosco of Turin as its founding body. Together, they are undertaking a path of collaboration and synergy to increase the impact and effectiveness of their interventions.
For all expatriate and headquarters staff, the anniversary year will include a structured process of listening and internal climate analysis, carried out together with other Third Sector organizations and in collaboration with the University of Verona.
Part of this journey also includes the work done with students from the Graphic Design course at the Salesian University Institute of Venice and Verona (IUSVE), who created a special anniversary logo that will accompany the organization throughout this meaningful year.
Voices from the Leadership
“This 40th anniversary year,” stated Michela Vallarino, President of VIS, “is a time of great change for our organization, and we could not have celebrated it in a better way. With hearts full of esteem and gratitude for those who have helped write this story, we are ready to transform and relaunch it with renewed enthusiasm and motivation at a time when it seems more urgent than ever to speak about—and work for—integral human development, social justice, respect for the rule of law and human rights, and peace.”
“Having just concluded the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the First Salesian Missionary Expedition, I hope that, as VIS, we may know how to celebrate the past in order to live the present and dream of the future with the fidelity and creativity that Don Bosco teaches us,” added Fr. Luca Barone, President of Missioni Don Bosco and Vice President of VIS. “For young people and with young people as protagonists, let us put into practice what the Rector Major entrusts to the Salesian Family in the Strenna for 2026: ‘Do whatever He tells you.’ Let us therefore look at history and its events with realism to accept and face challenges; let us listen to God’s signs in the world, choose missionary frontiers with passion and professionalism, and act with the boldness of faith and the courage of pioneers.”
