The Italian government has launched an initiative to give a €500 (about $546) "cultural bonus" to young people on their 18th birthday, the Bookseller reported, adding that the money can be spent on "books, concert tickets, theatre tickets, cinema tickets, museum visits and trips to national parks." They can spend their voucher through an app called 18app.
The project "is designed to give young people a direct say where funds to promote culture will go, not bureaucracy. No distinction will be made between highbrow and pop culture," the Bookseller wrote. Prime minister Matteo Renzi had announced the program in November 2015, 10 days after the Paris attacks.