On 21st September, the 32nd World Alzheimer’s Day will be observed. In Italy, more than 600,000 people live with the disease, a number that ISTAT estimates will exceed two million by 2030.

The University of Trieste is taking part in the 2025 campaign promoted by Alzheimer’s Disease International: ‘Ask About Dementia. Ask About Alzheimer’s.’ On Sunday 21st September 2025, the façade of Building A will be illuminated in purple, the colour of the forget-me-not, the flower symbol of the disease.

‘In the field of applied clinical research,’ recalls Paolo Manganotti, professor of Neurology at the University of Trieste and Director of the Neurology Clinic at the local healthcare provider ASUGI, ‘the frontier is represented by the forthcoming availability of monoclonal antibodies, which appear to slow the progression of the disease, and by new forms of brain neuromodulation. These minimally invasive approaches modify the activity of neurons and neural circuits with the aim of correcting abnormal signals and treating neurological and psychiatric disorders.’

To mark the occasion, the Italian Alzheimer’s Federation has presented the World Alzheimer Report 2025, drafted by Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI). The document highlights rehabilitation as an effective and sustainable intervention, in line with new guidelines from the Italian National Institute of Health, and calls attention to two priorities: the provision of accessible telerehabilitation services throughout the country and the training of rehabilitation therapists, both of which are essential to improving the quality of life of people with dementia and their caregivers.

World Alzheimer’s Day offers an opportunity for the academic community to express solidarity and closeness to people with dementia, to their families and to

their caregivers, whose contribution remains invaluable and irreplaceable in ensuring continuity of care.

Across its institutional channels, UniTS will use the hashtags #AskAboutDementia and #AskAboutAlzheimers to connect with the international campaign and guide the public towards reliable information.

‘A university’s budget, and in particular its Social Report, is the starting point for defining a vision and a strategy for the future.’ With these words, Rector Donata Vianelli opened the Trieste stage of the national Oscar di Bilancio Roadshow, hosted in the Ceremony Hall of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Regional Palace and dedicated to financial and sustainability reporting in the relationship between enterprises, organisations and stakeholders.

‘The university world has undergone profound changes in recent years and is becoming increasingly complex,’ Vianelli observed. ‘This complexity is reflected in teaching, which must begin with listening to the needs of the community and guide students to become who they aspire to be.’

‘Research, too, is complex,’ she continued. ‘Basic research is the engine that can generate applied research, bringing direct benefits to the community. Innovation creates value only if it is able to support local enterprises. The university,’ she concluded, ‘must be a hub for dialogue, where companies can share their needs, but where universities must also put forward new projects.’

Rector Vianelli emphasised the importance of the Social Report for the University of Trieste, which has published it consistently since 2020. She also underlined the central role of gender equality: thanks to an initiative launched by the former Rector, the proportion of full professors who are women at UniTS has risen from 20 to 28 per cent.

The event focused on the importance of engaging stakeholders and the wider community, both to generate value and to demonstrate the positive impact of organisational actions through reporting tools. Transparency and rigour in communicating results were highlighted as essential conditions for building trust and credibility.

Now in its 61st edition, the Oscar di Bilancio Roadshow is promoted by the Italian federation for public relations (FERPI) together with Bocconi University and Borsa Italiana, with Deloitte as technical supporter and Il Sole 24 Ore as media partner. FERPI, as organiser, reaffirmed its commitment to ethical communication, even in an era of rapid technological change, promoting a culture of transparency and rigour in relations with the wider public.

The Trieste event featured the participation of Regional Councillor Alessia Rosolen and representatives of some of the area’s leading businesses, including Fincantieri, Generali and illycaffè, confirming the role of the Social Report as a tool for dialogue between institutions, enterprises and civil society.

Starting from 1st September 2025, the former Military Hospital complex in Via Fabio Severo has become a new student residence, stemming from an agreement between the University of Trieste and ARDiS, the Regional agency for the right to education.

The facility is state-owned and has been granted to UniTS for indefinite use. It will be managed by Ardis for five years, extendable upon renewal. The initiative is the result of a collaboration between the University of Trieste and the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, which aims to expand the range of student accommodation available in response to the growing demand for housing, made more urgent by the increase in University enrolments in recent years. It also aims to make the regional university system more attractive to prospective students.

The complex will accommodate up to 239 students in 163 rooms of various types: 24 single rooms measuring 16 square metres; 63 single rooms measuring 18 square metres; 64 double rooms; and 12 double rooms adapted to accommodate students with disabilities. A portion of the places, no less than 63, will be reserved for students of the Collegio di merito ‘Luciano Fonda’, who will be able to use the facilities and equipment dedicated to educational, cultural and recreational activities.

The University will retain access to the former Commander’s House, including the Chapel Room on the third floor (excluding the concierge area, which will be managed by Ardis). This area will house the Innovators Community Lab, the training programme that the University of Trieste dedicates to innovation and entrepreneurship, administrative offices and job placement and guidance activities.

Accommodation will be allocated through public calls for applications and priority will be given to capable and deserving students who have limited financial means and who meet the requirements set out in the regional guidelines.

‘For the University of Trieste,’ says Rector Donata Vianelli, ‘the redevelopment of the former Military Hospital as a student residence is of key importance in terms of policies for the right to education and services for students. In a period of increasing housing pressure, the availability of student accommodation is essential to ensure equal access to university education and to further enhance the appeal of our University.’

The DIGILAFS project (Digitisation of the Antonio Fonda Savio Legacy), promoted by the University of Trieste’s Library and Museum Services, seeks to enhance and preserve the documentary section of the Antonio Fonda Savio Legacy, held within the Writers and Regional Culture Archive.

DIGILAFS is one of the projects funded by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region as part of the regional call for proposals for “Interventions aimed at promoting the use of ICT solutions and augmented reality for the benefit of cultural operators” under the PR FESR 2021-2027 funds.

The approved €63,440 of funding will cover all expenses for the duration of the project, which is set to last 24 months. Project activities began on 1 July and will include the purchase of a professional planetary scanner for the purpose of document digitisation.

The documentary section of the Antonio Fonda Savio Legacy consists of personal documents and heterogeneous materials of particular importance, including a collection of letters by Pietro Nobile (414 items), historiographical documents relating to the world wars, family documents, records, postcards, photographs and 313 historic documents (parchments, papal bulls, proclamations).

The collection’s variety and historical interest coupled with the extremely fragile condition of most of the paper documents mean that its digitisation and online promotion are essential if this particular piece of cultural heritage is to be valorised and made accessible to potential interested parties.

The long-term objective of the project is to complete the digitisation of the cultural heritage preserved in the Archive of Writers and Regional Culture and, in the short term, to scan at least 40% of the documentary section of the Fonda Savio Legacy, in order to make it accessible to the public via the regional portal and the University Museum Services portal.

The project Compassionate Leadership – CompAct has been officially launched. Promoted and funded by the Veneto Region, it is part of a strategic intervention plan aimed at addressing the increasingly alarming rise in unplanned resignations. The project seeks to adapt the compassionate leadership model to the Italian healthcare context, proposing a leadership style capable of recognizing workplace distress, understanding its causes, and intervening to foster a more sustainable work organization — one that is centered on the idea of “caring for those who care.”

The University of Trieste is a key scientific partner in the adaptation and validation phase of the international model to the Italian context, alongside the Universities of Milan, Padua, and Verona. Representing UniTS are Prof. Sara Cervai (Work and Organizational Psychology) and Prof. Gabriele Blasutig (Organizational Sociology), both from the Department of Political and Social Sciences.

The project addresses the challenges posed by the so-called “Great Resignation” and the growing unease among healthcare workers, by promoting an approach based on mutual care, relational responsibility, and organizational wellbeing.

Developed with the scientific contributions of Michael West (King’s Fund UK), compassionate leadership is a model already successfully tested in several European countries, particularly in the United Kingdom. It has proven effective in improving workplace climate, reducing burnout, and increasing satisfaction among both healthcare professionals and patients — especially in emotionally demanding environments like healthcare settings.

“At the international level, results are promising,” said Prof. Sara Cervai. “We need to understand how this model can work in the Italian context, within a public healthcare system where people are experiencing alarming levels of distress. We are aware of the impact that leadership roles can have on staff wellbeing, and we aim to support both leaders and collaborators in regaining motivation and wellbeing in their professional practice, through a scientific approach.”

CompAct is a two-year action-research project, with field trials conducted in two Venetian Local Health Units (ULSS 3 Serenissima and ULSS 4 Veneto Orientale), involving both top and middle management in three operational units (internal medicine, emergency services, and primary care).

Within this framework, the University of Trieste is responsible for the cultural adaptation of the model, through translation, reworking, and comparison with existing best practices, in close dialogue with the professionals involved. The following stages will include implementation within healthcare organizations, scientific validation, and dissemination of results.
“There are many cultural and linguistic challenges ahead,” Cervai explained, “starting with the very meaning of the word compassionate, which in Italian must be understood as empathy and support, not as pity or sentimentality.”

The other academic partners will be in charge of quantitative validation (Prof. Paolo Gubitta, University of Padua), qualitative validation (Prof. Elisa Ambrosi, University of Verona), and dissemination (Prof. Federico Lega, University of Milan). The Veneto Region will oversee both the coordination and the implementation within the participating healthcare organizations.

The project’s kick-off meeting was held in Venice, at the Scuola Grande di San Marco Evangelista, in the presence of the Regional Minister of Health and the General Director for Health of the Veneto Region, the General Directors of the two participating ULSS units, and university representatives.

This initiative is part of the strategic actions outlined in Resolution No. 960/2024 of the Veneto Region to tackle the retention crisis in the public healthcare sector and stands as a virtuous example of collaboration between institutions, academia, and the healthcare system.

On 28th July, the World Health Organization (WHO) marks World Hepatitis Day with the aim of raising public awareness about viral infections affecting the liver and promoting effective strategies for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.

On this occasion, Professor Lory Crocè, Professor of Gastroenterology at the University of Trieste and Heaf of the Department of Liver Diseases at the local healthcare provider (ASUGI), is promoting a free screening day open to the public.

This initiative offers everyone the opportunity to access simple but essential tests to assess liver health and detect early signs of viral hepatitis infection. Available screenings include a rapid capillary test for hepatitis C, targeted at individuals excluded from regional screening (born before 1969 or after 1989), as well as blood sampling for serological screening offered to people within the specified age group. Thanks to collaboration with Echosens, participants will also have access to FibroScan examinations, a non-invasive test measuring liver stiffness to detect signs of fibrosis.

Chronic viral hepatitis remains a significant public health threat, partly because it often remains asymptomatic for years until severe complications such as cirrhosis or hepatocellular carcinoma develop. The spread of hepatitis C, in particular, was facilitated for decades by the lack of effective therapies and low awareness of the risks. Today, however, thanks to direct-acting antiviral drugs, over 98% of patients can be cured with short, well-tolerated, and easy-to-administer treatments. Early identification of infection is therefore crucial to halting its spread and reducing disease progression and mortality.

Regarding hepatitis B, research has also yielded important results: the compulsory vaccination introduced in Italy in 1992 has significantly reduced new cases, while nucleos(t)ide analogue therapies effectively suppress viral replication, improving the quality and life expectancy of people with chronic liver disease.

The screening event organised by the Complex Unit of Liver Diseases is made possible thanks to the collaboration and patronage of the University of Trieste, ASUGI, the Trieste Physiologists’ Association, the Trieste Nursing Professionals’ Association, the main Italian scientific societies in hepatology and gastroenterology – ASIF, FISMAD, and SIGE – as well as LILT. Patient associations including EpaC and AMAF, along with FIF health workers providing health education and information, also play a key role during the day.

Those interested can book a place by calling +39 040 3992953 on Tuesdays and Fridays from 11:00 to 12:00. Places are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Italian Cultural Institute in Cairo hosted a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the bilateral agreement between Italy and Egypt on scientific and technological cooperation, on the occasion of Italian Research Day in the World (giornata della ricerca italiana nel mondo).

The University of Trieste was represented by Vice-Rector Valter Sergo, who spoke during the session dedicated to opportunities for collaboration between universities and industry.

In his speech, Sergo presented Trieste as ‘a city with one of the highest densities of researchers in relation to its population’, emphasising the role of the University as the central hub of an integrated scientific system, open to international engagement and strongly oriented towards innovation.

It is not only an ideal learning environment for students and researchers, but also an attractive environment for high-tech companies interested in investing in research and development.

The event was promoted by the Italian Embassy in Cairo in collaboration with the Science, Technology and Innovation Funding Authority (STDF), the department of the Egyptian Ministry of Research responsible for implementing the three-year executive programme provided for in the agreement.

In addition to presenting the projects in progress in the period 2024–2026, the celebration fostered discussion on strategic issues between universities and companies from both countries: from artificial intelligence to space technologies, and from cultural heritage to medicine, the global challenges of climate and the water-energy-food nexus.

The University of Trieste's participation is part of the broader framework of the University's international relations, which for years has promoted scientific and academic cooperation with partners in the Mediterranean, Africa and the Middle East.

The virtual exhibition Italy in Antarctica is now online, created to mark the 46th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM XLVI) and the 26th Meeting of the Committee for Environmental Protection (CEP XXVI), hosted in Milan for the 2025 edition.

The exhibition explores Italy’s scientific presence in Antarctica, highlighting operational infrastructure, the governance model of the National Antarctic Research Programme (PNRA), and Italy’s strategic role in international cooperation on the continent.

Among the contributors to the project is the National Museum of Antarctica, which has exhibition sites at the Universities of Trieste, Genoa and Siena. The Museum serves as a national hub for the promotion and dissemination of scientific knowledge about Antarctica.

The initiative provides a valuable opportunity to share the findings of research conducted in the White Continent, with a particular focus on:

• environmental protection and management of ASPAs (Antarctic Specially Protected Areas)
• studies on the Marine Protected Area in the Ross Sea
• research on ecosystems and climate change
• pollutant monitoring
• results from Antarctic ice core drilling

The exhibition is accessible via direct link or by scanning the attached QR code. 

The University of Trieste is strengthening its commitment to research and training in the fight against primary liver cancer, one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality worldwide. In collaboration with Italian Liver Foundation (FIF), the Italian League for the Fight Against Cancer – Provincial Association of Trieste (LILT), and the local healthcare service ASUGI, the University is set to establish a shared operational protocol for the creation of themed working groups.

The agreement was announced during a multidisciplinary seminar held at FIF’s headquarters in Trieste, as part of an initiative dedicated to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The event brought together researchers, clinicians and students with the aim of promoting an integrated approach to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of HCC.

Professor Saveria Lory Crocè, Professor of Gastroenterology at the University of Trieste and Director of the Departmental University Clinic of Liver Diseases, highlighted the importance of technological innovation in tackling liver cancer:
"In today’s diagnostic and clinical landscape, there is a lack of standardised biomarkers and clinical indicators for the early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. New tools based on artificial intelligence will undoubtedly play a key role, a major area of research at our university.”

"Throughout the day," added Claudio Tiribelli, Scientific Director of the Italian Liver Foundation, “the focus was placed on the importance of primary and secondary prevention, early diagnosis, and multidisciplinary care of patients, as well as the need to invest in education and scientific outreach to raise public awareness about chronic liver diseases. The meeting ended with a clear message: only by pooling expertise, resources and vision can we improve the prevention and treatment of liver cancer, for the benefit of both patients and the wider community.”

The operational protocol between UniTS, FIF, LILT and ASUGI marks a significant step forward in establishing a structured collaboration, based on joint scientific research projects, academic training and public health initiatives that serve both the region and the scientific community.

Health, local communities, prevention, and public awareness are the key themes of Health Between Land and Sea, a new public engagement and social responsibility project launched by the Department of Medical, Surgical and Health Sciences (DSM) at the University of Trieste, starting on Saturday, June 21.

The initiative features a program of educational, sports, and experiential activities held in everyday settings such as the coastline, the sea, and the Karst Plateau. It aims to strengthen the connection between health, the local environment, and physical activity, while building a network of institutions, sports associations, and scientific organizations committed to promoting good prevention practices.

The project is funded through the University’s Public and Social Engagement Call – part of its Third Mission activities – which annually supports initiatives developed by departments to foster cultural growth, social development, public well-being, and quality of life.

"Beyond teaching and research," said Luigi Murena, Director of DSM, "the University must promote knowledge and culture. The event on Saturday, June 21 aligns perfectly with this goal. The program focuses on the theme of safety, conveyed and demonstrated in its many forms. Together with numerous partners, we have designed an engaging and stimulating program for the entire community."

The project, presented in the City Council Hall, is organized in partnership with the Municipality of Trieste—Departments for Urban Policy and for Sports and Public Property—and in collaboration with ASUGI (Local Health Authority), ICGEB, IRCCS Burlo Garofolo, Pallanuoto Trieste Samer&Co. Shipping, Trieste Campus, Triestina Nuoto Samer&Co. Shipping, and Band of Rescue – FIN Salvamento.

"With this first event," added Alex Buoite Stella, DSM delegate for public engagement, "we aim to meet citizens where they spend their leisure time. Our goal is to promote awareness of the benefits of community-based prevention and, at the same time, highlight the safety measures needed to manage and reduce risks—specifically those related to swimming and seaside activities. Information and prevention will be the key themes of the day."

One of the most popular summer gathering spots in Trieste, Barcola’s Pine Grove, will host the day’s activities, which begin in the morning. After the opening of the information stand and official greetings, attendees can join a physical warm-up session led by the Trieste Campus team. Young athletes from Triestina Nuoto will then dive into the sea for a live open-water swimming demonstration, followed by a canine rescue demonstration by Band of Rescue – FIN Salvamento. In the afternoon, players from Pallanuoto Trieste will hold a water polo training session. The day will conclude at 6 p.m. with a public talk focusing on the benefits and risks associated with sun exposure, swimming, and water rescue, featuring contributions from professors, doctors, and safety experts.

Upcoming events in the Health Between Land and Sea project include two community hikes, scheduled for September 2025 during the European Mobility Week, and March 2026, offering citizens the chance to discover the diverse trails and natural richness of the Trieste Karst.