Journalist and communicator
Enrico Di Francesco was born in L'Aquila in 1958 and lives in Genoa, the city to which he has tied much of his professional and civic life.
A registered freelance journalist with a degree in Journalism from the University of Genoa (1997), he worked for more than forty years at RAI, Italy's public broadcaster, always working directly with the public. At the same time he ran press offices for many associations and institutions in Liguria, hosted television and radio programmes, and for three years was editor of the magazine River News in Milan, covering water sports such as canoeing and rafting. In the 2000s he also taught journalism and multimedia communication at the Lomellini Cantore middle school for six years, during his two terms as President of its School Council.
Italian Red Cross
His bond with the Italian Red Cross goes back to 1992. The following year he joined its Military Corps as an Auxiliary Officer, reaching the rank of First Captain Commissioner in 2007. Over the years he trained in healthcare and humanitarian work, from first aid to International Humanitarian Law of Armed Conflict, and among other experiences prepared for the humanitarian mission «Antica Babilonia» in Iraq.
Within the Genoa Committee he has held positions of responsibility: Area Delegate and Blood Donors Coordinator, member of the Local Committee's Presidency in charge of relations with the press and institutions, and founder of the RAI-CRI Blood Donors Group. He stood out for the assistance he gave after the collapse of the Morandi Bridge and during the Covid-19 emergency. He has trained as a social worker, BLSD provider and ambulance transport and rescue operator, keeping a direct and constant commitment in the field.
Volunteering and civic commitment
His volunteering extends to other organisations too: he was regional president of AIDO Liguria (the Italian organ donors association) for more than twenty years and, for a shorter period, a member of its national council; he chaired the Genoa Listening Centre for Social Hardship and served on school councils. In 2002 he received the «Lanterna d'Argento» award for his social commitment in Genoa.
Today
Living in Genoa for 46 years, he has also been active in trade unions, with CISL and UIL, defending the rights of workers and families, and for the last 4 years with UGL Pensionati, where he is regional coordinator and press officer. Since 2024 he has coordinated and taught the three-year journalism course at UNITRE Genoa, which in its first year, 2024-2025, was recognised by the Ligurian Order of Journalists and the Ligurian Journalists' Association.
In November 2026 his book «Oltre le battaglie» (Beyond the battles), on the silent stories of the Italian Red Cross Museum in Campomorone, is published by De Ferrari. The book →