By Naouma Kourti, Caterina Cacciatori, Virginia Bernardi | Issue 25
The myth of Europe encapsulates meanings of migration that still have to be unfolded and studied.
One of the most celebrated myths is the one of Europe, the beautiful princess of Tyre in Lebanon, who Zeus himself abducted from her city and brought to Crete, giving her name to the whole continent. Since my school years, I wondered why an abducted woman was important enough to name a whole continent for millennia to come. But, if we look closer there is more in the myth of Europe than what the story tells us.
Putting aside for a moment the spirituality expressed by Zeus, the story of Europe is a migration story of a young woman. Europe moved in some way from Tyre where she was born, to Crete, the southernmost island of what is now considered a different continent. About the motivations of Europe to migrate, we can only speculate. The myth simply talks about an abduction from a spiritual power, Zeus, but this may have various interpretations. She might have been physically abducted, or the idea of migrating might have matured slowly in her mind because of some life-changing event that pushed her to take the decision to abandon her home and family.
Three women working at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission in Ispra have taken it upon themselves to document the migrant story of Europe.
Naouma Kourti writes the story, Caterina Cacciatori illustrates and Virginia Bernardi creates the videos. The first episode was launched in March 2023. The story unfolds in 5 seasons with about 5 episodes each, bringing Europe’s story to life in animation.
There are currently four episodes released from the first season. Episode one introduces Europe and her family to the public. In episode two, we introduce the character of her father. In episode three, Europe meets her bull as a calf and she learns of her father’s will to marry her to the Pharaoh. In episode four, she falls in love with a Cretan boy and prepares her escape from Tyre. In the upcoming episode five, she departs towards the unknown with the Cretan boy and her bull.
To see more on Europe’s story and her migration trajectory, view the series and subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/@europa-amigrationstory.
Naouma Kourti was born in Athens Greece and studied engineering in Germany. She worked in the European Commission in a variety of technology related projects. For two years she worked in JRC’s Science and Art Project. In 2017 she launched her fiction trilogy with the title Homer’s Wives that explored the subject of women leadership. By using the mythological figures of Helen, Penelope and Clytemnestra she wants to inspire today’s women leaders. In her new video series Europa – a migration story she explores the subject of women migration by fitting the mythological story of Europa in today’s migration context.
Caterina Cacciatori is an Environmental Engineer and researcher with a Master's degree in Sustainable Development, Natural Resources, and Peace from the University for Peace in Costa Rica. She joined the Ocean and Water unit at JRC Ispra three years ago and supports the "Gems of Water" project, an innovative initiative that connects advanced water quality monitoring techniques with local communities worldwide. In love with any forms of culture and arts, Caterina believes in the power of interdisciplinary approaches to tackle today's complex challenges, especially those around water.
Virginia Bernardi holds a BA in Classics from the University of Cambridge (UK) and an MPhil in Identities and Cultures of Europe from Trinity College Dublin (Ireland). Since 2021 she has been at JRC SciArt, working on communications, events, website administration and content creation. Her interests centre around how transdisciplinary collaborations – by creating and fostering dialogues, empathy, and engagement – can restore the traumatic gaps created in identity and society by discrimination, turmoil and structural issues.
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