110 high school students from Florence gathered in the Aula Magna of the University of Trieste to meet Andra Bucci, a survivor of the Holocaust.

Andra and her sister Tatiana were deported to Auschwitz at the ages of just 4 and 6. In recognition of their ongoing commitment to sharing their testimony, the University of Trieste awarded them an Honorary Degree in Diplomacy and International Cooperation in 2020.

The event was part of the project “From Italy to Auschwitz: Places of History and Memory as Tools for Education”, promoted by the Region of Tuscany to mark the 80th anniversary of the Liberation from Nazi-Fascism.

One of the main aims of the educational journey was to explore and reflect on the history of key sites of memory, including the Risiera di San Sabba, a former Nazi concentration camp located in Trieste.

The 14th edition of Trieste Next, the Research Festival, has been officially presented. From September 26 to 28, 2025, Piazza Unità will once again become a grand stage for science: over the course of three days, more than 100 events and hundreds of scientists from all over the world will engage in dialogue with the public, reflecting together on the challenges of our time and exploring the frontiers of technological innovation.
This year’s theme is: “Life Within. Conversations across Science and Technology.”

“The University of Trieste, with its wide range of academic disciplines, is a perfect match for the 2025 edition of Trieste Next,” says Donata Vianelli, Rector of UniTS and President of the festival’s Scientific Committee.
“Once again, we’re offering visitors a rich and diverse program, supported by 200 volunteers who make the event possible. Thanks to the support of the Region, we will also host two internationally renowned guests: Brian Kobilka and David Quammen. For the first time, students and staff from our university have also been involved in designing the program. In addition to talks and events, we look forward to welcoming visitors in the exhibition pavilions in Piazza Unità d’Italia, where they can experience the latest developments, curiosities, and trends in scientific research first-hand.”

UniTS events at Trieste Next, day by day, with the active participation of the entire academic community:

Friday, September 26
Saturday, September 27
Sunday, September 28

These are the ten exhibition areas curated by UniTS at its stand in Piazza Unità:

UniTS Stand – September 26–28

The UniTS stand will feature a shop selling University merchandise during the following hours:

Friday 26 September: 4pm - 10pm

Saturday 27 September: 10am - 10pm

Sunday 28 September: 10am - 8pm

Trieste Next is promoted by the Municipality of Trieste, the University of Trieste, the NEM Nord-Est Multimedia Group/Il NordEst/Il Piccolo, Area Science Park, OGS – National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics, and SISSA – International School for Advanced Studies.
The event is co-promoted by the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia.
Organized by Post Eventi, the festival is a project of Trieste City of Knowledge and is held in collaboration with the European Parliament Office in Milan.
The main partner of the event is Generali.
Partners include AcegasApsAmga, Estenergy, Insiel, and Smact Competence Center.
Content partners include EuroBioHighTech, AIRC Foundation for Cancer Research, Fondazione Telethon, and the INAIL Prosthesis Centre.

www.triestenext.it

With its unique features and location, Gorizia provides not only a distinctive setting in Italy but also the opportunity to foster strong international relations. It is the new Joint Master’s Programme in Political Science – Integration & Governance (PoSIG), a two-year course delivered entirely in English that involves the University of Trieste, with Gorizia as its reference campus, and 13 universities from eight countries. Aimed at graduates in Political Science or International Relations, this inter-university joint degree further strengthens Gorizia’s international vocation.

Rector Donata Vianelli emphasised: ‘I am proud to present this new programme of our University in Gorizia, a campus we are committed to enhancing in close collaboration with local institutions. PoSIG is unique in Italy and Europe, and will be taught in this extraordinary border city. Its purpose is to bring people together and provide young people with opportunities of real value in the job market. I see Gorizia as a university city-campus that can attract students from all over Europe, overcoming boundaries while promoting collaboration and cultural and academic exchange.’

Mayor Rodolfo Ziberna added: ‘Year after year we are pleased to constantly more and more UniTS courses offered in Gorizia. Prestigious courses like this consolidate our city’s role in the geopolitical landscape and its international vocation. The launch of PoSIG is a great source of pride and will have an exceptional impact on our campus and on the city, especially looking towards the enlargement of the European Union.’

Giuliana Parotto, PoSIG Coordinator for the University of Trieste, explained: ‘During one of the Academies traditionally organised in Salzburg by the founders of PoSIG, I had the opportunity to meet in person the lecturers involved in this academic initiative. This led to the inclusion of UniTS this year as the sole Italian partner. Gorizia brings added value to this one-of-a-kind programme in Europe: it will host an international degree attracting students from across Europe and the Caucasus. Here, students will attend courses in methodology, international relations and political theory.’

Franz Kok, General Coordinator of PoSIG and representative of the Rector of the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg (PLUS), presented the programme in detail. Students will study at a minimum of two different partner institutions across Austria, Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Italy, North Macedonia, and Kosovo, obtaining a joint degree recognised by all participating universities. Entirely taught in English, the course combines a solid theoretical foundation with a strong research orientation on decision-making processes and public policies, with a particular focus on governance and integration in national and international contexts.

The curriculum includes modules in Comparative Politics, European Integration, International Relations, Public Administration and Policy, and Political Theory. The programme also features internships with international partner organisations such as the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), the Central European Initiative (CEI), the Institute of the Regions of Europe (IRE), the UNODC, and the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO). PoSIG promotes a European model of training in multilateral politics and represents a unique opportunity for those seeking expertise in integration and governance in international settings. The University of Trieste contributes 30 credits with courses in Strategic Studies – International Relations, Political Theory, Conflict Resolution – International Relations, Methodology – Project Cycle Management, and Methodology – Quantitative Analysis.

Founded in Salzburg in 2016, the course originally required students to complete their first year in either Salzburg or Ljubljana, but this restriction was lifted in 2023. Over the years the Consortium has expanded to include universities from the Caucasus, accredited in 2025.

Joining the Consortium is a significant step in UniTS’s internationalisation strategy: no other Italian university offers a Joint Degree of this kind. The PoSIG diploma is highly attractive and will help strengthen international relations with regions beyond the European Union, looking ahead to their potential accession.

Currently, including PLUS and UniTS, the Consortium comprises 13 universities from eight countries:

• Albania, Tirana: European University of Tirana (UET); University of Tirana (UTIR)
• Armenia, Yerevan: Yerevan State University (YSU); Eurasia International University (EIU)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo: University of Sarajevo (UNSA); Sarajevo School of Science and Technology (SSST)
• Georgia, Tbilisi: Tbilisi State University (TSU); Georgian Institute for Public Affairs (GIPA)
• North Macedonia, Skopje: Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje (UKIM)
• Kosovo, Prishtina: University of Business and Technology (UBT); University of Prishtina (UP)

Almost 500 third- and fourth-year high-school students have enrolled in the second round of the Summer Training Modules (https://portale.units.it/en/studiare/orientarsi/moduli-formativi), which are set to fill UniTS classrooms from 1st to 5th September.

Most of the students come from high schools in Friuli Venezia Giulia, but some are travelling from Aosta, Belluno, Cremona, Bergamo, Mantua, Pavia, Pordenone, Treviso, Venice, Verona, Vicenza, Alessandria, Cosenza and Rome.

The second round was inaugurated by the Rector's Delegate for Prospective Student Policies, Prof. Elisabetta Madriz, with a brief introduction to the Summer Training Modules, followed by a quick presentation by the Luciano Fonda College.

On 3rd September, the Luciano Fonda College, located in the former Military Hospital at Via Fabio Severo 40, will host an evening event with an aperitif and a talk on climate, energy and conviviality for registered participants.

The floor was then given to the UniTs Prospective Students Support staff, who coordinated testimonials from student ambassadors. The result was a powerful peer testimony which not only highlighted the range of different paths taken, but also showed that an individual’s path is not always linear and that, precisely for this reason, attention and deep self-knowledge is needed to make the most of one's talents and passions.

These experiences shared about making choices and different university paths provided useful food for thought in what was an important moment in the support of future students.

There are 12 modules scheduled until 5th September, which will be run by University lecturers across the following fields: humanities, engineering, earth sciences, physics, chemistry, pharmacy and pharmaceutical chemistry and technology, law, mathematics, artificial intelligence and data science, statistics, and biology.

The Summer Training Modules are an outreach project now in its eleventh year. The Modules are designed for third- and fourth-year high-school students to help them explore their interests through an intensive experience of university life in a field of their choice with the aim of supporting them in making an informed choice about their educational path.

A total of 702 students enrolled in the first session in July, signing up for one of the 17 modules offered across the fields of architecture, healthcare professions, economics and management, engineering, mathematics and earth sciences, humanities, dentistry and dental prosthetics, political, and international and diplomatic sciences.

The total number of enrolments in 2025 shows a steady increase in the number of students participating in this important outreach initiative, with 1,190 enrolments compared to 1,075 in 2024. This demonstrates not only the initiative’s strong appeal, but also that this UniTS taster experience is seen to be effective.

All info: https://portale.units.it/it/studiare/orientarsi/moduli-formativi 

UniTS's internationalisation activities have a global outlook and include exchanges, collaborations and joint projects across the world. Particular attention is paid to South America and the University has already signed several international agreements with institutions in this area of the globe. Outreach work conducted by Angelo Venchiarutti, Professor of Private Law, situates itself in this context. Indeed, Prof. Venchiarutti was awarded the title of Honorary Lawyer by the Colegio de los Advocados de Lima Sur (Lima) and the Colegio de los Advocados de Junin (Huancayo) in Peru in August.

The scientific dissemination activities that Prof. Venchiarutti carried out in the South American country during August led to the establishment of future collaborative relationships with the major universities in Peru, the University of Lima - Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos and the Universidad Autónoma del Perú, both of which are interested in signing collaboration agreements with the University of Trieste.

For the first time, a group of European researchers led by the University of Lisbon, with the participation of the University of Trieste, has identified a ‘sinking’ piece of plate, in the lower part of the lithosphere (the outermost layer of the Earth) in an area of the Atlantic Ocean.

This geological phenomenon is called ‘lithosphere delamination’ and is known to cause ‘seismic events. However, the phenomenon had previously only been documented on continents.

The discovery, published in Nature Geoscience, therefore opens up new perspectives on seismic risk prediction in Europe.

Using sophisticated seismic tomography techniques, which employ seismic waves from earthquakes to understand the structure of the Earth at great depths, researchers have detected a high-velocity anomaly up to 250 km deep beneath the Horseshoe Abyssal Plain, in the south-western region of the Iberian Peninsula, between the African and Eurasian plates, an area known for its intense seismic activity, the scene of historic earthquakes such as the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 (M8.5 – 8.7) and the San Vincenzo earthquake of 1969 (M7.9).

In this region, despite the lack of obvious surface signs like twisted landscapes or underwater mountains, a portion of the oceanic lithosphere is sinking into the Earth's mantle, creating new faults.

This phenomenon, enhanced by the presence of a thick serpentinised layer (which acts as a weak layer), could explain the origin of historical earthquakes of great magnitude.

Chiara Civiero, geophysicist and researcher at the Department of Mathematics, Computer Science and Geosciences at the University of Trieste, co-author of the study and head of the tomographic analyses, emphasises: 'This discovery opens up new avenues for understanding the evolution of the very early stages of oceanic subduction with important implications for plate tectonics. If even areas without obvious surface faults, such as the Horseshoe Abyssal Plain, can be subject to strong earthquakes, there is a need to revise seismic hazard models to include deep processes and structures that cannot be mapped using traditional methods.’

Alongside the subduction of the oceanic lithosphere, a process whereby one plate can slide under another if compression occurs along the contact margin, the delamination of the continental lithosphere is the main mechanism through which the Earth's surface is recycled into the mantle. Tectonic plates, i.e. the rigid lithospheric plates and the most rigid outer part of planet Earth, are in fact constantly moving in slow motion, with some edges separating and others colliding. 

Numerical models developed by researchers suggest that delamination could evolve into a fully fledged subduction zone, contributing to a tectonic reorganisation of the Atlantic. This process could lead to the formation of a new subduction system that would connect to the Gibraltar Arc, with long-term implications for the closure of the Atlantic Ocean.

***************************

Study published in Nature Geoscience

Seismic evidence for oceanic plate delamination offshore Southwest Iberia

João C. Duarte*1,2, Nicolas Riel3, Chiara Civiero4, Sónia Silva1, Filipe M. Rosas1, Wouter P. Schellart5, Jaime Almeida6,7, Pedro Terrinha8, António Ribeiro1

1. IDL - Instituto Dom Luiz, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, 1749-016, Lisboa, Portugal
2. UNIARQ, Centro de Arqueologia da Universidade de Lisboa, 1600-214, Lisboa, Portugal
3. Institute of Geosciences, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, J.-J.-Becher-Weg 21, D-55128 Mainz, Germany
4. Department of Mathematics, Computer Science and Geosciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
5. Department of Earth Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
6. SEGAL, Departamento de Informática (UBI), Rua Marquês d’Ávila e Bolama, Covilhã, 6201-0012, Portugal
7. IDL - Instituto Dom Luiz, Universidade da Beira Interior, Covilhã, 6201-0012, Portugal
8. Instituto Português do Mar e da Atmosfera (IPMA), Lisboa, Portugal

From 3 September 2025, seminars, films and workshops to discuss sustainable mobility, the energy transition, the design of more comfortable, inclusive and resilient urban environments, the redevelopment of the building heritage, the redesign of Trieste's seafront and the reconfiguration of open spaces and landscapes to be water and heat resistant.

These are the themes to be addressed through Let's change! The climate is changing. Let's talk about it. This social responsibility project, which is organised and run by the Department of Engineering and Architecture at UniTS and co-funded by the University, aims to offer an open discussion based on the researchers’ work and reflections.

In recent decades, the effects of climate change have become increasingly tangible in Trieste. Negative impacts on terrestrial and marine ecosystems as well as extreme weather events such as flooding and heat waves are causing increasingly significant damage to the territory, infrastructure and public service buildings, economic activities, and health. From this perspective, we must make sure we are prepared to face present and future challenges. Key and increasingly urgent measures for ensuring this include sharing scientific knowledge about the transition underway, and promoting awareness and supporting mobilisation initiatives within administrations and society as a whole.

Let's change! is for everyone, but focuses particularly on young people, from school students to university students. All activities are free of charge and multidisciplinary in nature. Each topic will be discussed from different perspectives, using clear and accessible language.

More details at: letschange.dia.units.it 

The project, is currently set to run until early 2026 and the activity schedule will be progressively updated on the website. Citizens have the chance to shape the content of activities by completing the following questionnaire: https://dsvunits.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3rZXOENS4Xh8dAG

Let's change! will be accompanied by the publication of Quaderni, a bulletin which can be downloaded free of charge from the website, containing a summary of the activities developed by the project and the results from the questionnaires. This publication promises to be a useful resource for organising further meetings and debates between the University and the city on the kind of future we would like to see.

Programme of events

3rd September 2025, at 18:00
San Marco Café, Trieste
Trump, electric buses and alternative transport
Speakers: Alois Bonifacio and Andrea Mio
Moderator: Simona Regina

It may seem strange, but international geopolitical imbalances are linked to the fact that the new electric buses in Trieste are manufactured in China, and, more generally, to the energy transition. At the heart of the matter is group of raw materials, including rare-earth elements and lithium, which we all use on a daily basis, often without realising it. So perhaps it would be better to use other innovative means of transport, such as cable cars? Even in this case, however, certain conditions must be met in order to avoid serious repercussions. This talk offers attendees a light-hearted way to learn about issues that affect us all and our future.

23rd September 2025, at 18:00
Knulp bar and bookshop, Trieste
The city that suffocates and overwhelms us
Speakers: Eleonora Ceschin, Paola Cigalotto and Cristiano Cozzolino
Moderator: Fabio Del Missier

As in many other cities around the world, the impacts of climate change have become increasingly tangible in Trieste in recent decades. Extreme events are causing significant damage to urban spaces and the health of citizens, infrastructure and community facilities, and economic activities. Among the most noticeable effects are those caused by rising temperatures and flooding. To adapt to these changes and ensure well-being, we need more green spaces in the city. We will discuss the many possible solutions for transforming Trieste into a more beautiful, comfortable and liveable city.

17th October 2025, at 18:00
Stazione Rogers, Trieste
The energy transition: what is the role of technology?
Speakers: Alessandro Massi Pavan and Carlo Antonio Stival
Moderator: Giovanni Carrosio

The new millennium is characterised by an energy transition in which fossil fuels gradually replace renewable energy sources. The exponential global growth of renewable energy sources is linked to numerous factors, including the limited availability of fossil fuels, efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the need to reduce the costs of the energy system. During this talk, global scenarios will be presented along with the technologies that can enable the transition, including: the role of photovoltaics, energy storage, electric mobility, renewable energy communities and energy saving.

6th November 2025, at 18:00
San Marco Café, Trieste
Not just construction: does living differently help reduce climate impact?
Speakers: Marco Manzan, Chiara Bedon and Ronelly De Souza

What are the environmental impacts of daily energy consumption in our homes? And what are the more general impacts related to our lifestyles and the ways in which we move around? The aim of this talk is to raise awareness of these issues, which are closely linked to individual choices, and to offer some practical ideas on possible habits with a lower environmental impact.

Film screenings

21th October 2025, at 21:00
Cinema Ariston, Trieste
Snowpiercer
Directed by Bong Joon-ho, starring Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Ed Harris, John Hurt, Tilda Swinton,  Jamie Bell. South Korea, USA, France, 2013
Introduction by Elena Marchigiani (DIA) and Daniela Terzoli (Cappella Underground)

2031. In a world decimated by a new ice age caused by failed experiments to stop global warming, a group of survivors remain alive inside a train, the ‘Snowpiercer’, which continues to travel around the Earth and obtains the energy to do so through an apparently perpetual motion engine. The train is a microcosm of human society divided into social classes; the poorest live in the rear carriages, where they feed exclusively on the ‘protein’ bars that are given to them; the richest live in the front carriages. Coexistence between them inevitably leads to struggles and revolutions.

18 th November 2025, ore 21:00
Cinema Ariston, Trieste
2040 – Let's save the planet!
Directed by Damon Gameau, starring Damon Gameau, Eva Lazzaro, Zoë Gameau, Davini Malcolm, Paul Hawken. USA, 2019. 
Introduction by Elena Marchigiani (DIA) and Daniela Terzoli (Cappella Underground)

What hopes for life and what future will our planet have? Imagining a better future for his daughter – who will be 21 in 2040 – Australian director Damon Gameau travels to discover areas of the world where men and women are working every day to actively tackle climate change.

Educational workshops (secondary schools) organised in collaboration with Immaginario Scientifico – Science museum
Dates to be confirmed in September - tentatively between October 2025 and January 2026
 

Are we building smart&green?
Chiara Bedon and Marco Fasan
Workshop

The construction sector is characterised by the increasing use of technology and advanced tools, which civil engineers use to support design, maintenance, monitoring and diagnostics in the context of continuous innovation. The workshop aims to introduce young people to civil engineering, teaching them about commonly used materials, models and tools, including through practical demonstrations.

The energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources
Alessandro Massi Pavan
Workshop

The new millennium is seeing an energy transition where renewable sources are replacing fossil fuels. The growth of renewables is due to factors such as the scarcity of fossil fuels, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the need to lower energy costs. The workshop describes one of the possible energy chains useful for the transition, including solar energy production, its storage using hydrogen and its conversion into electricity with a fuel cell. The activity also covers other enabling technologies for managing the intermittent nature of renewables.

Playing with climate?
Sergio Pratali Maffei
Discussion Game

The activity consists of a series of workshops using the LEGO SERIOUS PLAY methodology, led by a certified facilitator. The aim is to involve all participants in a ‘hands-on’ reasoning process, accessible to all, which looks at possible future scenarios resulting from climate change. Participants will define possible actions, which will take shape in a ‘text/landscape’ where the individual models produced will interact with each other.

Participation in Trieste NEXT 

26th September 2025, at 9:00
Trieste Next, school outreach activities 
In the water, in the heat. Cities in transition
Speakers: Fabio Del Missier, Federico Roman and Eleonora Ceschin
Moderator: Raoul Kirchmayr

In Trieste, as in many cities, weather and climate change are having a tangible impact on spaces, public health, economic activities and infrastructure. Extreme events, such as rising temperatures and heavy rainfall, are putting the liveability of the urban environment at risk. This activity illustrates the links between mental and physical health and the changes taking place, proposing solutions to make cities more resilient. The aim is to communicate the urgent need to adopt a conscious and responsible attitude towards the transition of cities into adaptive environments.

Enrolment for the 2025/2026 academic year is now open for the 25 master courses offered by the University of Trieste, with 11 first-level master degrees (vocational masters) and 14 second-level master degrees (advanced masters). The course catalogue, offered by eight departments, addresses topics in a cross-disciplinary manner across the fields of medicine, economics and management, law, socio-politics, and education, with a strong emphasis on interdisciplinarity and sustainability.

This year, seven new innovative masters with a strong vocational focus have been added to the course catalogue.

NEW COURSES FOR 2025-2026

Labour Law for Human Resources Management and Consulting (first-level)
This course integrates labour law with criminal, tax, European and corporate law. The aim of the course is to train students to support human resource management in digital, environmental and social transitions. The programme is divided into five modules ranging from legal fundamentals to interdisciplinary focuses, with practical seminars conducted by professionals in the field and a concluding final lecture. It combines theoretical rigour, practical applications and an interdisciplinary perspective.

Bioethics and Paediatric Palliative Care (first-level)
This course addresses the clinical, ethical and relational dimensions of caring for children with incurable chronic diseases. It integrates clinical bioethics and palliative care skills, developing decision-making and communication skills with the dignity of the child and the family at the centre. It proposes an approach that values interprofessionality and promotes a culture of paediatric palliative care as an essential part of care, in line with the principles of humanisation of medicine and professional responsibility.

Land-Side Connections in Ports (second-level)
This course combines technical skills in rail and intermodal transport with economic knowledge for cost analysis and scenario forecasting, and legal knowledge for the correct setting of flows in compliance with tax and customs regulations. The focus on statistics and digital technologies is an integral part of the course, with particular attention paid to the use of data and performance indicators. The course trains participants to face the new challenges of port logistics and international land-side connections.

Robotic Surgery (second-level)
An advanced course for doctors interested in robot-assisted pelvic and renal surgery. It involves progression from basic skills, acquired on animated and inanimate models, to ultra-specialised skills in the operating theatre. This course is a travelling and international master, with experience in three robotic surgery centres, one of which is in Slovenia, thus offering participants direct exposure to a range of environments and broadening their professional horizons.

Aesthetic Medicine (second-level)
This master course integrates knowledge of plastic surgery and dermatology with the most modern non-invasive and non-surgical techniques. The use of fillers, botulinum toxin and lasers are incorporated into the specialist's clinical practice through responsible and informed use, with the aim of responding to the growing demand for aesthetic medicine. This course combines scientific progress, ethical awareness and technical skills.

INSTITUTIONAL AGREEMENTS AND SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTS

Within the new courses, there are two programmes developed under the agreement signed with the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies:

Social and Companionship Care – PiCAS (first-level)
This course is designed for social workers, educators and psychologists, and seeks to strengthen the skills of multidisciplinary teams working in local social services. It focuses on the integrated care of individuals and families in vulnerable or poor conditions, using up-to-date operational and assessment tools. The course promotes the co-construction of interventions, evidence-based social planning and a ‘side by side’ participatory approach, in line with the National Inclusion Plan and LEPS.

Planning, management and evaluation of social services (second level)
An advanced course to develop skills in planning, programming, implementing and monitoring the integrated system of social interventions and services. In line with the National Inclusion Plan and LEPS, it promotes critical and systemic approaches to social policies, supporting co-programming, co-design and participatory governance. Participants will acquire the operational and theoretical tools needed to build inclusive and sustainable territorial networks capable of responding to the complex needs of communities.

Both Master's programmes are currently awaiting approval from the Ministry, so the relevant enrolment procedures are not yet active. Details will be provided as soon as possible.

For information about the course Social Care and Support – PiCAS (Level I): master.mlps1@units.it, for Planning, Management and Evaluation of Social Services (Level II): master.mlps2@units.it

Finally, as part of the special agreements, the fourth edition of a well-established course, organised in collaboration with the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, has been confirmed:

Third Sector Law and Management – DMTS (second-level)
The master programme is aimed at those who have already obtained a master's degree (laurea magistrale). The course, offered by the Department of Political and Social Sciences, provides comprehensive and multidisciplinary training, preparing participants to guide organisations through regulatory, management and fundraising challenges. The programme combines theory and practice, and students gain practical experience through project work and internships. The partnership with the FVG Region guarantees a strong link with the territory, promoting the creation of collaborative networks and social innovation. Participants will have the opportunity to develop skills in governance, leadership, resource management and communication, with a focus on social impact and sustainability.

HOW TO APPLY

Applications must be submitted via the online Student Academic Services (Esse3). For deadlines, procedures and requirements, please consult the official call for applications.

Results were presented in Trieste from the cross-border clinical research project X-BRAIN.net - Network for cross-border cooperation aimed at the rehabilitation of stroke patients with innovative technologies, funded by the Interreg Italy-Slovenia Programme with a total budget of €750,000.

Coordinated by the Department of Medicine, Surgery and Health Sciences at the University of Trieste, the project involved the participation of the Science and Research Centre Koper (ZRS Koper), the Neurological Clinic of ASUGI’s Cattinara Hospital and the Neurology Unit of Izola General Hospital.

The aim of the project is to make stroke rehabilitation more effective, a crucial challenge for today's healthcare system, by activating a targeted protocol in the very first days, enhanced by the use of innovative technologies. ‘The multimodal approach,’ explains project coordinator Professor Gianni Biolo of the University of Trieste, ‘combines nutritional integration, cognitive training through virtual reality and prehabilitation activities to ensure the maintenance of muscle mass and strength and to modulate the reorganisation processes within the central nervous system that are typical of immobility, promoting a more rapid recovery at the end of the period of inactivity.’

The experimental phase was conducted on healthy volunteers, with an average age of 68, who had to stay in bed for ten days. ‘From a nutritional point of view,’ continues Biolo, ‘we intervened by increasing protein intake from 0.8 to 1.4 grams per kilogram of body weight per day and introducing a daily intake of 3.5 grams of the amino acid leucine, in order to ensure the maintenance of muscle mass.’

‘Through immersive and multisensory environments,’ explains Dr Luka Šlosar of the Science and Research Centre Koper, ‘the volunteers underwent mental training that preserved the flow of neuromuscular information and modulated the reorganisation processes within the central nervous system. In this way, it was possible to promote the maintenance of muscle strength and accelerate recovery times.’

‘Strokes are one of the leading causes of disability worldwide,’ emphasises Professor Paolo Manganotti, director of the Neurological Clinic at Cattinara Hospital, ‘with consequences that profoundly affect daily life. Intervening in the first few days with targeted rehabilitation programmes is essential for recovering compromised functions and improving quality of life. Thanks to the project, we were able to set up an active room entirely dedicated to the acute phase, equipped with virtual reality devices that allow for safe, stimulating and personalised exercises. The immersive and interactive aspect increases patient motivation and consistency, which are decisive factors in a successful recovery.’

A portable, inexpensive sensor capable of detecting the presence of chemical pollutants (PFAS) in water in just a few minutes. This is the result of a study coordinated by Marcello Berto of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (UniMoRe), in collaboration with Pierangelo Metrangolo of the Polytechnic University of Milan (PoliMi) and Lucia Pasquato of the University of Trieste (UniTS). The research has just been published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials and is part of the PRIN-Nifty project funded by the Italian Ministry of Universities and Research (MUR).

PFAS, poly- and perfluorinated alkyl substances, are chemical compounds used in numerous consumer products, from non-stick pans to waterproof fabrics. Resistant to degradation, they accumulate in living tissues and spread into the environment – water, soil and air – even over long distances, making them one of the most insidious pollutants for health today.

The sensor developed by the three universities responds to this need: it is based on an organic electrolyte modulation transistor, capable of distinguishing different types of PFAS thanks to a special molecular coating designed by the UniTS research group.

'The heart of the sensor,' explains Lucia Pasquato, professor of organic chemistry at the Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 'is a gold electrode coated with a mixed self-assembled monolayer (SAM) consisting of two types of molecules. Our group has been working on these coatings for over 15 years, particularly those containing fluorinated molecules, and we have developed the expertise to design them in such a way as to make them stable, reproducible and effective. In this case, the aim was to create a SAM that would bring the water to be analysed into contact with the electrode and at the same time be able to interact with PFAS. To do this, we combined two components: fluorinated thiols, which promote the recognition of contaminants thanks to fluorine-fluorine interactions, and hydrophilic thiols, which improve the wettability of the surface. This combination, together with the expertise of the UniMoRe and PoliMi groups, has resulted in a portable, inexpensive and high-performance sensor.’ 

The full article on Advanced Functional Materials