Stefano Cabrini
Hometown: Rome
Dr. Cabrini is the Director of the Nanofabrication Facility at the Molecular Foundry since 2006; leader of the interfacility Single Digit Nano Fabrication and Assembling program. He has over 200 publications in the field of nanofabrication and 30 years of experience in experimental physics, 22 years of experience in micro-nano-fabrication, electron-beam lithography, focused ion beam lithography, thin-film deposition and plasma etch processing. Recently he focused on the “Single Digit Nano Fabrication” program, or exact fabrication and organization of nanostructures with dimensions below 10 nm. He is the co-editor with Prof Satoshi Kawata of the book: “Nanofabrication Handbook” CRC Press 2012
Lorenzo
Ortona
Hometown: Rome
After graduating from the Universita’ La Sapienza di Roma with a law Degree, Mr. Ortona began his diplomatic career at OSCE and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Throughout his career he has served as Deputy Chief of Staff for the Undersecretary of State at the Foreign Affairs Ministry, has been a part of the Crisis Unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was Permanent Representation of Italy to the EU in Brussels, was the Head of the Economic, Scientific and Commercial Office in the Italian Embassy in Israel, and was the Chief of Staff of the Directorate General of the European Union at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
He now serves as the Consul General of Italy in San Francisco and is married to Sheila Hanson Pierce with two children, Luca and Sofia.
Elisabetta Cibo
Hometown: Rome
Elisabetta was born and raised in Rome, Italy. At 14, she moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina, with her parents where her father worked for the Italian Cooperation. During her two year stay, she was also able to travel all over South America.
After graduating in history of modern art in Rome, she worked for a contemporary art gallery in Notting Hill, London. Her search for the sun brought her to San Francisco where she found everything she was looking for and fell in love with the city. She studied marketing at UC Berkeley.
Due to visa restrictions, she moved back to Rome and worked for an American tour operator and met the love of her life, Alessandro. She’s now a certified yoga teacher, planning to move to the countryside, with Alessandro and their newborn baby Mario.
Irene Mingozzi
Hometown: Forli
Irene Mingozzi recently joined a venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley, Lombardstreet Ventures. In the previous 10 years in Art-er she managed innovation and acceleration programs, and in 2015 she opened the Emilia-Romagna Silicon Valley Innovation Hub, supporting 100+ companies in their approach from Europe to the US market.
Ilia Salomone-Smith
Ilia Salomone-Smith was born in New York, New York. Both parents were from the Abruzzi regio. They came to the United States as children. Ilia’s father, Prof A. William Salomone, was a European historian. Ilia was raised in a bilingual and bicultural home. Her early childhood was spent in Florence, Italy, where she later returned for studies in literature at the Universita degli Studi.
She received advanced degrees in Italian language and literature from Columbia University. In 1987 she began Primo Programma to teach Italian language and culture to children and teens in the Bay Area. The program in its 20 year history inspired both students and their families as they learned the language and culture of Italy including Cucina, Carnevale, Commedia dell’Arte, and Calcio. The school was renowned for its musical programs. In 1994 the Italian Republic recognized her program, her talents and contributions to Italy by bestowing her with the honor of “Cavaliere della Repubblica.”
Now she continues teaching her granddaughters to give them this unique connection to their Italian heritage.