Almost 5.5 million euros of cascade funding was announced today at the University of Trieste. The funding is promoted by the iNEST programme, financed by the European Union - Next Generation EU from NRRP funds. 

Recipients of this initiative are micro, small, medium and large enterprises.

Following on from the first round in August 2023, this year, the calls for proposals issued by the 9 Spokes of the iNEST ecosystem targeting the North-East and the South of Italy are once again aimed at stimulating research, development and technology transfer initiatives, and at developing innovative procedures or increasing their maturity for full exploitation by enterprises.

Project proposals must be received by midnight on 8 July 2024. The calls for proposals in Spokes 8 and 9 of iNEST located in the Trieste area have two project themes: Maritime, marine and inland water technologies: towards the Digital Twin of the Upper Adriatic, and Models, Methods, Computing Technologies for Digital Twin. These themes are represented, respectively, by the University of Trieste and the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA).

As in the first round of funding, in this second round, both Spokes envisage a budget of €1,732,090 for the Triveneto (Friuli Venezia Giulia, Veneto and Trentino-alto Adige regions) call for applications and €979,141 for the Mezzogiorno (southern regions of Italy) call for applications. Over the two-year period 2023-24, a total of 5,422,462 euros will be allocated by each Spoke to companies.

The calls for tenders offer a great opportunity, in particular for the development of technology and materials that will benefit hi-tech and digital economy companies. The component and sensor sectors could equally benefit from the creation of digital 3D models or augmented reality applications which require data monitoring, collection, storage and analysis.

‘The regional university system,’ says Pierluigi Barbieri, Professor at UniTS and Coordinator of Spoke 8, ‘is working in synergy to create opportunities for collaboration between the public and private sectors that can guarantee and improve the attractiveness and competitiveness of our region.’

‘The project follows an innovation model which aims to use research as a base to modernise and grow the production system. This model thrives thanks to the partnership of the nine universities in the Triveneto area and thanks to the institutions of excellence in Trieste.’

‘There are, therefore, all the conditions,’ Barbieri concludes, ‘for the iNEST project to reach its potential and become a real activator of economic wellbeing and improved quality of life.’

‘Our main objective is to bring together expertise and trade associations. This is a great opportunity to boost and enhance the projects within enterprises. We hope that as many companies as possible will pay attention to this opportunity,' says René Buttò, head of SISSA's Enhancement and Innovation Office.

Franco Scolari, Director of the Polo Tecnologico Alto Adriatico, emphasised the Polo's role in translating research expertise into results for companies. Stefano Querin (OGS), representative for Spoke 8, also spoke at the press conference. 

The calls for cascade funding are available on the iNEST website  

Camilla Venturini, PhD student studying a joint programme in Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture at the University of Trieste and University of Udine, has received one of the 'Best paper under 40' awards. The award is in recognition of her contribution 'Towards a laboratory of territorial ecologies: the Trieste Karst', and was awarded during the XXVI Conference of the Italian Society of City Planners SIU which has just ended in Naples.

Camilla Venturini is currently doing a thesis in Urban Planning on 'FOODSCAPING. Rethinking territories through their food systems', tutored by Prof. Sara Basso of UniTS and Prof. Alessandra Marin of UniFE. It aims to identify how urban planning tools can contribute to regenerating local territories starting from food spaces, enhancing their identifying characteristics and mediating conflicts. The thesis examines Friuli Venezia Giulia as a context, focusing on case studies such as the city of Trieste.

The book ‘Prehistoric Caves of Friuli Venezia Giulia’ maps, describes and places in a precise but explanatory scientific context the caverns from which artefacts and animal remains exhibited in the museums of our territory originate.

Readers of the free downloadable publication, will also find some easily accessible itineraries for total immersion in one of the most fascinating and mysterious treasures of our natural heritage.

The book is the final act of a collaboration between the Central Directorate for Environmental Protection, Energy and Sustainable Development, the Geological Service and the Interdepartmental Centre for Science and Technology Applied to Cultural Heritage SCICC of UniTS for the implementation of the Regional Cave Database (CSR) with data on caves of archaeological interest related to the CRIGA (Computerised Annotated Database of Archaeological Caves) project, developed in the past for the Karst caves by UniTS. In the realisation of the project and the drafting of the publication, coordinated by UniTS, it was essential to collaborate with the Scientific and Archaeological Museums of Trieste and Udine, the Speleological Groups and Associations, as well as scholars from different scientific fields, who made it possible to extend the database to the entire region.

In animals, as in humans, each individual has its own personality. The personality of small mammals – i.e. the boldness, curiosity and aggressiveness of an individual – influences all stages of seed dispersal. This has been shown by numerous studies conducted by Alessio Mortelliti, Associate Professor of Ecology at the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Trieste and former Associate Professor in Wildlife Habitat Conservation at the University of Maine.

The relationship between rodents and plants is ambivalent. In some circumstances mice are antagonistic as they prey on acorns, in other circumstances both mice and trees benefit and then the relationship is termed mutualistic. Past studies have shown that certain individuals, the more daring or curious ones, are more likely to disperse seeds, meaning that these individuals are particularly important for the functioning of an ecosystem. Understanding which characteristics are crucial to ecosystems and how to conserve them is of primary importance for the adaptation of species to global changes. 

The aim of the research project is to study this relationship between the individual personality of small mammals and seed dispersal. The project is entitled ‘Predicting the range-shifts of woody plant species by incorporating the critical role of small mammal scatter-hoarders’ and is financed by a PRIN (Research Projects of National Interest) – NRRP. Research is currently underway in the Alba Valley, but will be conducted for the first time in Europe by the research group from the University of Trieste, under the leadership of Professor Alessio Mortelliti and in collaboration with the Sapienza University of Rome and the Julian Pre-Alps Park.

The hypothesis is grounded on numerous studies that Professor Alessio Mortelliti's research group has conducted over the past decade in Maine (USA). In particular, the researchers have discovered that courageous individuals are those who travel greater distances with their seeds and hide them in optimal sites for germination. Within a species and an ecosystem, therefore, some individuals are particularly important for seed dispersal and, consequently, also for a plant's adaptation to climate change. It is these individuals, in fact, that will allow plants such as oaks and beeches to adapt to climate change by migrating in latitude and altitude.

The researchers will conduct two field experiments, also helped by scholars from the University of Maine, who are visiting Italy in early June. In the first phase they will measure the personality of rodents and expose them to new seeds. The chosen seeds belong to a woody species not yet present in the ecosystems under investigation, but which may arrive in the future precisely as a response to climate change. The hypothesis is that the boldest individuals will be the ones to interact the most with these new, unfamiliar seeds. By tracking the seeds with a fluorescent powder and measuring germination rates, the researchers will associate each individual rodent with the final arrival point of the seeds. In addition to assessing whether certain personality traits increase the likelihood of dispersal, the researchers will also identify seed traits (e.g. mass, shape) that increase the likelihood of seeds being preyed upon or dispersed. Finally, by conducting a series of simulations, they will evaluate the potential effects of personality on the composition of forest communities and the adaptability of species to global changes.

The project will also lead to the creation of a guide on how to exploit the role of rodents to improve assisted migration, (i.e. the human-assisted movement of plants to more climatically suitable habitats) and a checklist of traits and plant species with a high probability of successful expansion.

Alessio Mortelliti has cultivated 20 years' experience in studying the ecology and behaviour of mammals and how this knowledge can facilitate their conservation. In the past, he has carried out numerous field projects in Italy, Austria, the United States, Indonesia, Kenya, Tunisia and Mauritania.

Inclusive and accessible tourism to meet the needs of people with disabilities and elderly people with limitations due to age and health problems: this is the aim of the new project ‘DATIS: Digital Frontiers for Inclusive Tourism’, involving the Department of Political and Social Sciences (DiSPeS) at UniTS.

The kick-off meeting of the two-year project, financed with over one million euros from the Italy-Slovenia Interreg Programme 2021-2027, was held on 28th May in Ljubljana, at the Beletrina publishing house.

The actions planned aim to improve digital accessibility and social inclusion in tourism in the cross-border region through an innovative, multidisciplinary and participatory approach, including the definition of guidelines and shared strategies.

Other matters planned include organising training workshops for tour operators, setting up a web portal on the accessibility of tourist services and implementing two pilot actions at the museums of San Michele sul Carso and the industrial heritage of Aidussina to test innovative solutions for users with different types of disabilities.

The project is led by Beletrina, a leading Slovenian organisation in the field of publishing and digital innovation, and sees as partners, in addition to DiSPeS, the regional agency PromoTurismoFVG, the consortium of social cooperatives Il Mosaico, the Tourist board of Nova Gorica and the Vipava Valley, and the Union of the Blind and Partially Blind of Slovenia. They are joined by the Municipality of Sagrado and Aidussina.

The DiSPeS, under the scientific direction of Prof. Moreno Zago, professor of Tourism Analysis and Planning and of Cross-border Relations and Local Development, will contribute to the administration of quantitative and qualitative questionnaires on travel experiences, the identification of best practices, and the analysis of the potential of the tourism sector.

He will also be responsible for the development of guidelines and a multilingual handbook on digital accessibility for tourist and institutional operators and for communication and dissemination activities of the results.

The project aims to reach a wide catchment area and to raise awareness among institutions and operators on the importance of digital accessibility and social inclusion.

Federico Rosei, full professor of Industrial Chemistry at the Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Trieste, has received two important international awards.

Rosei has been appointed Materials Research Society (MRS) Fellow 2024 for ‘his leadership in the nanomaterials synthesis and characterization, in particular multifunctional materials and their integration in optoelectronic devices, and for his sustained international efforts in service, mentoring and outreach in the field.’

The UniTS lecturer was also presented with the 2024 Fellowship Awards by the Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP) ‘in recognition of his remarkable achievements in materials physics, particularly multiferroic materials and quantum dots, coupled with outstanding mentorship of trainees, and for international leadership which promotes the excellence of Canadian physics on a global scale’.

Fetenech Meskele Ganebo, Dean of the School of Computer Science at Wolaita Sodo University - Ethiopia was a guest of UniTS for three months as part of a TWAS-SISSA-Lincei Research Cooperation Visits Programme grant. At UniTS, Ganebo worked with Sylvio Barbon Junior, a professor at the Department of Engineering and Architecture (DIA), harnessing the power of machine learning approaches to develop algorithms capable of predicting the spread of malaria.

According to the WHO World Malaria Report 2023, there are an estimated 249 million cases in 85 endemic countries in 2022, with 608,000 deaths. And Ethiopia, as WHO reports, is one of the three African countries that have suffered the most, along with Nigeria and Uganda.

In the high malaria transmission region of Wolaita, a densely populated rural area in southern Ethiopia, data on the spread of the disease is still collected manually. The first task for Ganebo and the Trieste team was therefore to digitise the available data.

‘The three months at UniTS were enough to achieve good results,’ said Ganebo, ‘The collaboration with Prof. Barbon Junior is promising. We have an ambitious plan to automate the collection of health data in the town of Wolaita Sodo and, at a later stage, throughout Ethiopia’. Automation would increase efficiency, accuracy and breadth of useful data, ensuring better patient care.

Once perfected, the algorithms will be used to study the combined effect of risk factors such as temperature, altitude, malaria vectors and population health status to provide health workers and policy makers with more effective predictive tools.

The technique will be used to create a regional surveillance protocol in Ethiopia to support health systems in managing mosquito control and resource allocation.

Ganebo is also the winner of the Spiga di Grano prize, awarded by the Cinzia Vitale non-profit association.

The TWAS-SISSA-Lincei research cooperation visit programme supports early-career researchers in UN-identified least developed countries on projects that contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

It offers training and collaboration opportunities at the scientific institutions of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia System of Scientific Innovation (Sis FVG) in Italy. It is supported by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAECI) and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS).

Photo: Prof. Eric Medvet, Prof.ssa Fetenech Meskele Ganebo e Prof. Sylvio Barbon Junior 

"Who are you calling a jackal?", this is the title of the first episode of the new podcast "gECO", the initiative developed within the Master's degree course in Ecology and Sustainability of Global Changes at the University of Trieste and produced entirely by the students, with the scientific supervision of the lecturers of the Department of Life Sciences and the course. A podcast created by young ecologists and designed to bring young people and adults closer to nature and discovering the environment that surrounds us. With guest Alessio Mortelliti, associate professor of Animal Ecology, the first episode is available free of charge on the Spotify online streaming platform and deals with the theme of the return of large carnivores to Italy and the often conflictual relationship between them and man.

gECO was born out of a desire, felt first and foremost by the students, to explore the themes of environmental, social and economic sustainability, while at the same time seeking to disseminate correct information to support actions that, starting with the individual, can be transformed into virtuous examples for society in general. This is why throughout the various episodes, gECO will also host thematic columns and present simple sustainability tips, offering listeners useful suggestions for reducing their own impact on the environment and acting consciously to guarantee a more sustainable future for new generations.

This initiative represents one of the integrative training activities that the Master's degree course in Ecology and Sustainability of Global Change offers its students, and is intended to promote the acquisition of soft skills and useful communicative abilities to further facilitate their entrance into the world of work.

gECO Podcast will be on a fortnightly basis and each episode will last approximately 30 minutes. All episodes will be available on SPOTIFY

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gECO: podcast written and produced by the students of Ecology and Sustainability of Global Change at the University of Trieste. Podcast speakers: Gaia Butini and Lorenzo Ferdinando Campaner. Editors: Federica Montenero, Giulia Cecco, Gaia Foltran, Davide Stocco, Irene Cecchia, Matilde Capitani, Guido Romagnoli, Maddalena D'Antiga, Allegra Polato, Martina Gasparut, Natalie Vargiu, Anna Vincenti, Gaia Butini, Paolo Meroi and Lorenzo Ferdinando Campaner. Sound supervision and post-production: Paolo Meroi.Theme song by Maddalena D'Antiga. Graphics and cover by Martina Gasparut. Lecturers on the scientific committee for content verification and support: Alessio Mortelliti, Chiara Manfrin, Giovanni Carrosio, Matteo Carzedda, Fabio Del Missier, Fabio Candotto Carniel and Francesco Petruzzellis.Academic project manager Giovanni Bacaro

Giacomo Filippini, a researcher from the Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Trieste, has been awarded the prestigious 'Giacomo Ciamician' medal of the Organic Chemistry Division of the Italian Chemical Society. The prize is awarded each year to a young researcher under 40 who has distinguished themselves at a national level for research of considerable originality and interest in the field of Organic Chemistry. Giacomo Filippini has been involved in the design and development of innovative (photo)catalytic transformations aimed at the synthesis of organic molecules of interest in the fields of theoretical and applied research.

The 'Giacomo Ciamician' medal will be awarded on Thursday 29th August 2024 during the 28th National Congress of the Italian Chemical Society in Milan, where Filippini will present the most significant parts of his research work.

Giacomo Filippini graduated with honours in Industrial Chemistry in 2013 from the University of Bologna, with an experimental thesis concerning the synthesis of new enantiomerically enriched atropisomers. In the same year he was accepted onto the PhD in Chemistry at the ICIQ in Tarragona (Spain), where he worked on the development of new enantioselective photo-organocatalytic transformations under the supervision of Prof. Paolo Melchiorre. In 2017 he was awarded his PhD and joined the group of Prof. Maurizio Prato as a research assistant at the University of Trieste, where he worked on the development of new carbon-based nano-catalytic systems. In April 2021, he won a competition for a type-A researcher position in Organic Chemistry, as part of the ERC project ‘eDOTS’ lead by Maurizio Prato) in the Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences at UniTS. Following this, he took up his position as type-B researcher in the same department in October 2023.