Olivetto understands the importance of the shift to digital

Hindering the achievement of this feat, however, is the fact that the M5S candidate is not currently in Australia, but is in Europe on a business trip planned before the fall of the government.

When submitting her candidacy to the party leaders, this is something Olivetto must have taken into account.

However, this does not detract from the fact that this distance will create quite a few difficulties for her campaign.

“Unfortunately, I am in Europe on a trip already organised before the government fell,” she explained to Il Globo’s Marco Patavino, who interviewed her on IL GLOBO.TV.

“And so I will, alas, be campaigning remotely.”

This is not an easy situation and highlights the party’s flaws rather than those of the candidate herself. However, Olivetto has no intention of giving up, and will try to make the most of the support of the M5S local activist groups in the face of a difficult electoral campaign.

In fact, Veronica Olivetto's entry into the political sphere was born from similar grassroots activism.

She properly considered the idea of committing herself to politics during the pandemic, a period in which she worked “to help Italians who were stranded abroad”.

“From there I realised that there was discrepancy and fragmentation among the many community organisations in Australia,” she explains.

And it is precisely the dedicated effort to mend this fragmentation that will be one of the main objectives to which the M5S candidate says she will turn her attention, should she be elected.

Olivetto is convinced that this will also have an impact on the community's involvement in Italian politics, electoral participation and the inclusion of new migrants in the community's civic and social life.

According to Olivetto, in order to remedy these problems, we must first of all turn our attention to AIRE.

“Registration with the Anagrafe Degli Italiani Residenti All'Estero should be much more streamlined - predominantly online,” she explains.

“As far as participation in elections is concerned, what is lacking is better information on voting and more flexible deadlines. There is no doubt, however, that among the new post-2000 migrant generations there is a sense of detachment from government bodies, institutions and social security services. This is also why I chose to run for office: to reconnect these young people with the community.”

"I also feel that there are many people who believe that voting abroad is not necessary or not needed,” Olivetto continues.

“But this is misguided, because the representatives we vote for are the ones who pass laws that affect our lives, even if we are abroad. Property taxes and access to national healthcare, just to name a couple.”

Therefore, according to Olivetto, a leap forward in the digitalisation of services and institutional communication is essential to boost the participation and involvement of younger generations.

"This is one of the things I would like to address if I am elected," she says.

"Italy is a country with inestimable resources, but its systems are cumbersome, and we here in Australia can clearly see this,” she continues.

“We must ensure that people and companies do not waste their energy on simply making things work, but instead focus on their strategies and objectives.”

But that's not all, because thanks to digitalisation, Olivetto argues that it will be possible “to create a network through which 21^st century migrant families, who risk losing their ties with the Italian culture and language, can be united.

“Through the network you could make their voices heard and you could also influence the work of certain institutions, or of social services, helping them become more collaborative. This could unite the two generations and create a much stronger and much more cohesive community.”

For Olivetto, digitalisation, the crux of the M5S candidate's campaign, could also help in the dissemination of language and culture, “through remote lessons and courses that are also aimed at people living in other states”

“We always talk about Sydney and Melbourne, but our community is spread all over Australia and we must not forget that,” she emphasises.

However, one must not forget that as an MP, should she be elected, Olivetto will be expected to be involved in national politics, in which societal issues are endemic, despite the M5S' efforts to combat poverty through the Citizenship Income.  

A measure which, according to Olivetto, “must be improved”, especially in terms of accessibility. The fact that the M5S is criticised particularly regarding Citizenship Income is unacceptable, as Olivetto explains.

“Wanting to help people who are below the poverty line should never be a criticism,” she says.

“To say that young Italians are listless is not correct. In Australia we know this, as thousands have also come here to work in various fields. Even those Italians abroad are a community that distinguishes itself through hard work.