Rosario Sapienza

Rosario Sapienza is an anthropologist with over 25 years of experience in social sciences, public policy analysis, strategic planning, and international cooperation. He has worked with major organizations such as the European Commission, AICS, IFAD, UNDP, UNICEF, and USAID. A former researcher at the CENSIS Foundation in Italy (1996–2000), he coordinated studies on migration, crime, human trafficking, and youth issues. After earning a Master’s in Euro Project Management, he joined ABATON Srl in Rome (2000–2009).

Rosario has managed, monitored, and evaluated projects in over 25 countries, focusing on EU cooperation policies, results-based management, and partnership building. He has led numerous capacity-building activities and European forums on social entrepreneurship, green transition, and social innovation. Since 2010, he has been co-founder of Impact Hub Sicilia, a Mediterranean node of the global social innovation network.

From 2014 to 2019, he directed the Joint Technical Secretariat of the Italy–Tunisia Cross-Border Programme, and since 2019 he has worked with TESIM, supporting EU territorial cooperation programmes in the Mediterranean.

A native Italian speaker, he is fluent in English and French and lives in Sicily with his wife and three children.