Inside the walls of The American University of Florence’s (AUF) Palazzi Community Center exists more than just conventional classrooms. The open-air courtyard located behind the community center's Fedora pastry shop & restaurant functions as a dynamic learning space, where students cultivate knowledge through tactile engagement, environmentally conscious methods, and direct interaction with local members of the community.

For this evening's event, the atmosphere is transformed. Arrayed throughout the seating area are tin cans painted in shades of lavender and orange, each displaying soil, moss, and flowers sourced from the campus garden. Twine-wrapped orbs – known as Kokedama – dangle from the awnings, symbolizing sustainability, and Professor Lapo Morgantini’s belief that “We share ideas. It's not just me teaching – it’s a collaboration where students also teach me.”

The workshop, spearheaded by Professor Morgantini, introduced the Japanese art form of Kokedama to not only students, but a crowd of local community members eager to learn. Kokedama, which translates to “moss ball,” is a gardening practice that involves wrapping a plant’s roots in soil and moss and binding it with twine. Professor Morgantini explained that the plant was originally developed as a practical means to bring plants from the countryside to the city without using heavy pots but has since evolved into a showcase of beauty rooted in bonsai culture.

Professor Morgantini emphasized that all the materials used in Community Engagement Member Institution (CEMI) workshops are not purchased but grown or found. “Everything we use is from here,” he explained. The demonstration featured a table set with containers of soil, clay, water, and moss. As the students demonstrated each step, Professor Morgantini narrated the process, offering detailed explanations of the techniques involved. The students began by mixing the soil and clay on a flat dish to form the structural base of the ball, packing it tightly. This foundation was then wrapped in moss and wound with twine, mirroring the traditional Kokedama method. The final step involved carving a hole to nestle the plant – a process that the students described as “simple.” 

When asked about the relationships that CEMI demonstrations foster between students and the community, Professor Morgantini shared that every Wednesday there is one hour devoted to residents to have “shared moments together.” “It’s a laboratory in which two things collaborate, and we grow together,” he said. The students gain perspective being in contact with the community and the community with the students, nurturing what he described as “an exchange.” The demonstration was conducted entirely in Italian to facilitate intercultural engagement, and the session encouraged attendees to step forward and try the technique themselves, transforming learning from something verbal to something lived.

When asked what these community-based experiences provide to him, Professor Morgantini became visibly introspective, unveiling the profound impact such experiences can have within us. Through this hands-on, collaborative approach, he said, “my students inspire me.” Their curiosity motivates him, “to research more, to study more, to investigate more, and to continue to be curious about things.” In his words, “when you reach your forties and fifties, everything feels set and understood. But to be in contact with students - magical things happen. They ask me things, they push me to reset my ideas, to be young in a certain sense, to become a student again.”  His reflection underscores not just the importance of education, but the unifying force of curiosity shared among students, instructors, and community members. The Kokedama demonstration served not only as a lesson on gardening, but as a means of facilitating intellectual and interpersonal connection.