An international study has revealed a new piece of Mars’ geological puzzle. The research, led by Brock University (St. Catharines, ON, Canada), in collaboration with the Royal Ontario Museum (Toronto, ON, Canada) and with the contribution of the University of Trieste, has identified for the first time the presence of garnet in a Martian meteorite, opening up new perspectives on the complexity of the processes that shaped the Red Planet.

The study, published in the international peer-reviewed journal Geochemical Perspectives Letters of the European Association of Geochemistry, involved Ana Černok, a researcher at the University of Trieste.

Garnet is a very common mineral on Earth, often associated with metamorphic rocks and with processes occurring under conditions of high temperature, high pressure or in the presence of hot fluids. Until now, however, it had never been recognised in samples from Mars or directly on the Martian surface. Its identification therefore expands the known mineralogical diversity of the planet and suggests the possibility that Mars may have undergone more complex geological processes than previously documented.

The sample analysed is a fragment of the Martian meteorite NWA 8171, preserved in the collections of the Royal Ontario Museum. During the mineralogical and chemical analyses, the research team identified an unexpected composition, initially attributed to a more common mineral such as pyroxene. Further investigations, carried out using specialised instruments, made it possible to recognise the presence of garnet.

The discovery could point to the existence of a previously unknown type of Martian rock, formed through metamorphic or metasomatic processes, or through new forms of magmatic differentiation. The authors of the study, however, remain cautious: further investigations will be required, particularly into the isotopic signatures of the sample, to establish whether the garnet actually formed on Mars or whether it has an “extra-Martian” origin, linked to a celestial body that was later incorporated into the planet’s surface.

Ana Černok’s contribution focused on the mineralogical and geochemical interpretation of the sample, drawing on her expertise in the study of meteorites and planetary materials. The scientific collaboration originated within the doctoral research of the first author, Tanya Kizovski, then based at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and now a faculty member at Brock University. Černok contributed to this work as a member of the supervisory team and as a scientific mentor.

“If chemical elements are the letters of the alphabet, then minerals are the words through which planets tell their story,” explains Ana Černok. “Discovering a new mineral on another world is like finding a lost word from an ancient language. Garnet tells us that Mars experienced more complex geological processes than we previously thought, adding a new piece to the story of its evolution.”

The work is the result of an international collaboration involving institutions from Canada, the United Kingdom and Italy, including Brock University, the Royal Ontario Museum, the University of Toronto, the University of Portsmouth, The Open University and the University of Trieste.

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The study Expanding Mars’ lithologic diversity: discovery of a garnet-bearing clast in NWA 8171 was published in Geochemical Perspectives Letters.

Publication link: https://doi.org/10.7185/geochemlet.2619

A study published in Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences has unexpectedly found that rhythmic passive movements, such as rocking or carrying-like motions, can change the emotional state of domestic chicks, inducing both calming and pleasurable responses. The study, conducted by Cinzia Chiandetti, Andrea Dissegna and Paolo Gallina from the University of Trieste, and Lorenzo Scalera from the University of Udine, investigates the effects of rhythmic motion in animals outside the mammalian class.

In mammals, slow rhythmic passive motion has long been recognized as an important component of parental care: it can reduce crying, lower heart rate and promote sleep. In humans, anecdotal observations also suggest that faster rhythmic movements in babies and young children, such as playful tossing in the air, swinging or rides such as roller coasters, can elicit pleasure and excitement.

To test whether these effects also occur outside mammals, and to understand when motion shifts from a primarily calming function to a potentially pleasurable one, the research team observed domestic chicks while they were being rocked. The use of chicks to study this phenomenon is unprecedented: these animals are able to walk immediately after hatching and, unlike mammalian infants, are not carried by their mother.

During the experiment, individual chicks were placed inside an opaque box attached to a precision robotic arm, programmed to reproduce rocking and carrying-like motions while varying their frequency — slow or fast — and direction — horizontal or vertical. The animals’ emotional state was monitored non-invasively by recording their vocalizations.

The results show that slow rocking and slow carrying-like movements reduce so-called “contact calls”, vocalizations associated with discomfort, isolation or separation. This finding mirrors the calming effects of maternal carrying already documented in mammals.

A particularly significant result, however, concerns the possibility that specific forms of rhythmic movement can also induce a positive response. When the chicks were exposed to fast horizontal rocking or fast carrying-like movements, they emitted a significantly higher number of affiliative vocalizations — so-called brood calls — which are usually produced in safe and socially positive contexts and are considered indicators of a pleasurable state.

Taken together, the findings suggest that the calming effects of carrying and rocking observed in mammals may stem from a widespread sensitivity to rhythm and motion in animals.

As the study’s authors note: “Our findings expand the functional scope of rhythmic stimulation, positioning it as a regulator of affect with both calming and pleasurable dimensions across vertebrate lineages.”

Because chicks do not experience maternal carrying in their natural history, their sensitivity to rhythmic movement appears to reflect a deeply conserved mechanism across vertebrates, rather than a response to specific parental care strategies.

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences is a multidisciplinary journal with more than two centuries of history, publishing high-impact research articles, reviews and perspective pieces dedicated to significant advances across all areas of scientific knowledge.

The journal is truly multidisciplinary in scope and welcomes contributions from researchers worldwide in the life sciences, physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, environmental sciences, and the intersections among these fields.

www.nyas.org

Research at the University of Trieste is entering the heart of the international debate on the new geographies of global security. Federico Donelli, Professor of International Relations at the Department of Political and Social Sciences – DiSPeS, has been appointed Research Fellow at the Wilson Center in Washington for the 2026–2027 year.

The prestigious U.S. center, established by the United States Congress in 1968 as the national memorial to President Woodrow Wilson, is today one of the leading places of exchange between research, geopolitical analysis and public policy. Its mission is to provide institutional decision-makers and the public with independent, nonpartisan insights on major issues in international relations, fostering dialogue between academia, institutions and policy-making.

The new class of Research Fellows, officially presented in Washington on June 9, brings together scholars, experts, journalists and public intellectuals selected through an international competitive process. The fellows will work on research projects designed to connect scientific production with the main challenges of contemporary foreign policy.

In this context, Donelli will develop the project “Great and Middle Power Competition in the Red Sea: Hybrid Security Orders and U.S. Strategic Interests”, dedicated to competition between great and middle powers in the Red Sea region and its implications for political, economic and security balances.

The Red Sea is currently one of the most sensitive passages in the global scenario: an essential maritime corridor between the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and the Indo-Pacific, where strategic, commercial and military interests are increasingly intertwined. The research will analyze the role of actors such as the United States, China, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, examining how their presence interacts with fragmented local contexts and hybrid forms of security governance.

At the center of the project there will therefore be not only competition between powers, but also the ways in which local actors adapt to, respond to and at times exploit external involvement, helping to redefine regional orders. The research will be based on qualitative analysis, interviews, fieldwork and the study of available documentation.

The results will lead to an academic study and a Wilson Center monograph also addressed to policymakers, with the aim of offering evidence-based interpretations and recommendations.

The appointment represents an important international recognition of Donelli’s scientific work, particularly in the study of transformations in global balances. His research focuses on international politics and security in the Middle East and Africa, with particular attention to the strategies of regional and extra-regional actors.

Donelli is the author of articles published in international journals including International Affairs, Third World Quarterly, Small Wars & Insurgencies and The International Spectator. His publications also include the volumes Turkey in Africa: Turkey’s Strategic Involvement in Sub-Saharan Africa and Power Competition in the Red Sea: Testing the Post-Liberal International Order.

From 13 to 16 June, Trieste will celebrate the literary genius of James Joyce with the 17th edition of #BloomsdayTrieste, this year focusing on the second chapter of Ulysses, Nestor, and on the great dilemmas of identity and history.

The University of Trieste, through the Department of Humanities, remains one of the key pillars of the event, curating not only its solid scientific framework but also its creative dimension, thanks to the contributions of professors Laura Pelaschiar and Paolo Quazzolo.

Through exegetical insights in historic cafés, guided tours and an evocative theatrical adaptation that will bring University professors, graduates and PhD students onto the stage of the Rossetti Theatre, UniTS turns one of the great works of twentieth-century literature into a living heritage shared with the whole community.

Events promoted by the University of Trieste in the PROGRAMME of this edition:

• SATURDAY 13 JUNE

11:00 | Antico Caffè San Marco
Via Cesare Battisti 18
Nestor in Half an Hour

The now traditional and much-anticipated flash-format event dedicated to individual chapters of Ulysses focuses this year on Nestor. The meeting is designed to reveal the structure, symbols and meanings of the second chapter of Joyce’s masterpiece in an agile and accessible format. This exegetical journey will be led by Laura Pelaschiar, professor at the University of Trieste and curator of the Joyce Museum, in the historic setting of Caffè San Marco.

20:00 | Teatro Politeama Rossetti
Largo Giorgio Gaber 1
Circe & Nestor – Theatrical adaptation

A central event in the evening programme, the performance offers an ambitious dramaturgical reworking that brings together the chapters Circe and Nestor. The text adaptation and direction are jointly by Laura Pelaschiar and Paolo Quazzolo, professors at the University of Trieste. The production stands out for its strong academic synergy: in addition to its scientific and directorial guidance, the staging brings to the Rossetti stage a group of PhD students and graduates from the University of Trieste — Elisa Mariuz, Valeria Piraino, Federica Rufolo and Tommaso Piccolo — turning literary research into stage action.

• SUNDAY 14 JUNE

11:00 | Spazio Forum – Museo LETS
Piazza Hortis 4
Joyce Museum Tour

A themed guided tour inside the rooms of the Joyce Museum to explore the dense network of relationships, influences and real-life traces that connected the Irish writer to the city of Trieste. The itinerary through documents and archive materials will be led by Laura Pelaschiar, University of Trieste, who will illustrate the decisive impact of Joyce’s Trieste years on the genesis of Ulysses.

12:00 | Spazio Forum – Museo LETS
Piazza Hortis 4
JJ Walking Tour

Immediately after the museum visit, a walking itinerary will begin through the symbolic places of James Joyce’s Trieste. The city landmarks, buildings and streets frequented by the author will become the setting for an itinerant narrative. The cultural walk will be led by Laura Pelaschiar, with the contribution and participation of Professor Paolo Quazzolo, University of Trieste, offering the public a rigorous yet accessible field-based analysis.

20:00 | Teatro Politeama Rossetti
Largo Giorgio Gaber 1
Circe & Nestor – Theatrical adaptation | Repeat performance

To close the days dedicated to the Joycean celebrations, the evening repeat performance of the theatrical adaptation will be staged. It will offer the public a further opportunity to attend the performance born from the scientific and artistic collaboration of professors, researchers and students of the University of Trieste.

Five years after graduation, Master’s degree graduates from the University of Trieste rank among the top performers regionally and nationally in terms of employment, salary levels and international mobility during their studies. These results reflect the University’s policies aimed at enhancing second-cycle degree programmes, which have led to an excellent 47% of students coming from other Italian regions and almost 7% from abroad.

This is what emerges from the 27th AlmaLaurea Report, which analysed the performance of students who graduated in 2025.

In detail, five years after graduation, the employment rate of Master’s degree graduates reaches 97.3%, exceeding both the regional figure of 96.5% and the national figure of 94.4%. Their average monthly salary amounts to €2,023, compared with €1,977 in Friuli Venezia Giulia and €1,903 in Italy.

These figures show clear growth compared with 2025, when employment for this category of graduates stood at 93%.

UniTS Master’s degree programmes continue to prove highly attractive: 47% of students come from other Italian regions, compared with a national average of less than 30%, while 6.7% come from other countries, marking an increase of almost one percentage point compared with last year.

The share of Master’s degree graduates who took part in a study experience abroad recognised by their degree programme is also increasing, rising from 13% in 2025 to 16.1% today.

Bachelor’s degree graduates also show excellent results. One year after graduation, 87% of Bachelor’s graduates who do not continue their studies are employed, up from 84.8% last year, compared with 81.2% nationally and 85.4% in Friuli Venezia Giulia. Their average net monthly salary is €1,543, higher than the national average of €1,491.

The high quality of the academic experience in Trieste is also confirmed by students’ overall assessments: 89% say they are generally satisfied with their university experience, with very positive evaluations also of their relationship with teaching staff (87%), the study workload (83%), and teaching activities and facilities (86.5%).

The 27th AlmaLaurea Report analysed the performance of more than 335,000 graduates from 2025 across 81 Italian universities, including 3,326 graduates from the University of Trieste: 1,917 Bachelor’s graduates, 1,026 two-year Master’s graduates and 383 single-cycle Master’s graduates.

Through its Career Service, UniTS carries out placement and career guidance activities for students, graduates and PhD candidates, with the aim of reducing as much as possible the time needed to enter the labour market: https://amm.units.it/placement

All information on the UniTS educational offer is available at: https://units.it/immatricolazioni26

A small green space on campus has been transformed into an open-air laboratory where students and staff can observe firsthand how nature adapts to the challenges posed by climate change.

This is the idea behind the T4EU Student Garden at the University of Trieste, developed within the framework of Work Package 6, “Green Campus Life, Inclusion and Wellbeing”, of the Transform4Europe (T4EU) European University Alliance. The initiative envisages the creation of a Student Garden at each partner university through a collaborative process aimed at raising awareness of ecological sustainability and environmental transformation across the academic community.

At UniTS, the project has taken shape in a previously unused green area located next to Building H3, on the side facing the University Botanical Garden. The site has been redesigned and redeveloped as a biodiversity hotspot, featuring predominantly native Mediterranean plant species selected for their ability to withstand increasingly frequent heatwaves and prolonged periods of drought.

At the heart of the initiative lies the concept of assisted plant migration—an approach already adopted in several European cities to support the resilience and sustainability of urban green spaces in the face of rapidly changing climatic conditions. The students involved took part in the design of the garden, the selection of plant species, and the planting activities. During the initial establishment phase, they will also contribute directly to the care of the garden through a scheduled irrigation programme.

The project was made possible through the collaboration between T4EU, the Department of Life Sciences (DSV), and several central administrative offices of the University, with the active involvement of DSV students. The design and implementation of the initiative were coordinated and supervised by Dr Andrea Moro, Curator of the University Botanical Garden, Professor Andrea Nardini, Full Professor of Plant Physiology, and Dr Martina Tomasella, Assistant Professor in Plant Physiology.

An official delegation from the University of Trieste took part in Mbeya, Tanzania, in the launch event of the international development cooperation project Towards the next generation of sustainable quality coffee producers in South Tanzania (TNG), funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation and coordinated by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region.

The mission, which took place in the Mbeya region, in the Southern Highlands, marked an important step in the operational launch of the 36-month project and in the strengthening of institutional, scientific and educational relations between the University of Trieste and local partners. UniTS is involved in the project through three of its Departments – IUSLIT, DEAMS and DSV – confirming the interdisciplinary nature of the University’s contribution. The official delegation in Tanzania was composed of Prof. Ilaria Micheli, from the Department of Legal, Language, Interpreting and Translation Studies, coordinator of the project activities planned by the University, and Dr Matteo Carzedda, from the Department of Economics, Business, Mathematics and Statistics.

The TNG project is based on a broad partnership that brings together, alongside the University of Trieste, Illycaffè, the Ernesto Illy Foundation, the Bari branch of CIHEAM – Mediterranean Agronomic Institute, the Regions of Mbeya, Songwe and Ruvuma, and the civil society organisation Café Africa – Tanzanian Branch.

The project aims to reach at least 12,000 local coffee producers in Southern Tanzania, contributing to the improvement of the production chain and to the development of a more sustainable, informed and resilient model. Within this framework, the role of UniTS is twofold, combining applied scientific research and knowledge transfer.

The research activities will focus on understanding the effects of climate change on the territory and identifying possible mitigation strategies, with the contribution of Giovanni Bacaro and Alberto Pallavicini from DSV; enhancing local practices and facilitating communication between farmers and trainers through the creation of multilingual technical-cultural vocabularies and manuals, under the coordination of Ilaria Micheli; and identifying economic and agricultural strategies suited to the local context, with the aim of strengthening farmers and improving the value of the raw material in the early stages of the value chain, with the contribution of Matteo Carzedda, Gianluigi Gallenti, Giuseppe Borruso and Barbara Campisi. Based on the evidence emerging from the research activities, the most appropriate content and methods will be defined for the training of local stakeholders and beneficiaries.

The official launch of the project took place in the conference hall of the Eden Highlands Hotel in Mbeya, in the presence of the Italian Ambassador to Tanzania, Giuseppe Sean Coppola, a UniTS alumnus; Paolo Razzini, AICS representative in Tanzania; Stefano Zannier, Friuli Venezia Giulia Regional Councillor for Agri-food, Forestry, Fishery and Mountain Resources; the highest authorities of the governments of the three Southern Tanzanian Regions involved in the project; and representatives of the Mbeya University of Science and Technology (MUST) and the Catholic University of Mbeya (CUoM), which will support the University of Trieste in its activities on site.

During the meeting, Ambassador Giuseppe Sean Coppola and Paolo Razzini highlighted the value of a particularly broad and diversified partnership, in which public bodies, universities, research institutions, companies and civil society organisations work together to pursue common goals. Research, technology transfer and training are the three pillars on which to build a shared development pathway, capable of generating concrete benefits for local communities and for the coffee supply chain as a whole.

The presence of the UniTS delegation in Tanzania also made it possible to strengthen cooperation with local academic institutions. The University’s representatives met with colleagues from MUST and CUoM to define how the two universities will support the project and to lay the foundations for future joint initiatives in the fields of development cooperation, research and international exchange of academic staff, technical and administrative staff, and students.

These collaborations will be developed within the framework of Memoranda of Understanding involving the University as a whole. The first agreement, with the Catholic University of Mbeya, was signed during the project launch, in the presence of the Italian Ambassador, the Regional Councillor and the Bishop of Mbeya, Wolfgang Pisa. The process for signing the agreement with the Mbeya University of Science and Technology is also nearing completion.

The mission also allowed the UniTS delegation to learn more about other international cooperation projects funded by AICS in the Mbeya region and carried out by civil society organisations and Italian volunteers, with particular attention to initiatives dedicated to children with disabilities. In this context, the delegation also visited the Utengule Coffee Plantation, one of the most advanced local organisations in coffee cultivation and selection, with which promising synergies were identified for the next phases of the project.

A significant part of the mission was also devoted to observing field training activities for operators of central coffee pulping units and for representatives of local AMCOS cooperatives in the Mbeya and Songwe regions. The training, led by Francesca Pellis and Gianluca Malvicini from Illycaffè, provided an initial opportunity for operational discussion on the needs of the supply chain and on the most effective ways to support local producers in improving the quality and sustainability of the production process.

The next step for the University of Trieste will be the selection of three research fellows who will support the academic staff in the field activities. The fellows will acquire specific skills and work closely with local networks, contributing to the continuity of the project activities and to their long-term integration within the territory.

MiGE hosted the international conference “STACK in Trieste 2026”, dedicated to the use of open-source digital tools to improve teaching in STEM courses and support scientific cooperation with African universities.

The initiative is part of a pathway launched in 2022, when the University of Trieste became the first university in Italy to install STACK, a software for teaching and automatic assessment in scientific disciplines. Since then, UniTS has developed its own question bank for foundation courses, which is now used by around 1,000 students every year.

STACK — System for Teaching and Assessment using a Computer algebra Kernel — allows students to practise independently through interactive exercises that are parametrically generated and automatically assessed. The system provides targeted feedback and guided solutions, enabling lecturers to introduce forms of continuous assessment even in large classes.

This aspect is particularly relevant in foundation STEM courses and in rapidly growing university contexts. In some African universities, for example, the increase in the student population has led to very large classes, with student-to-lecturer ratios that are difficult to manage using traditional tools.

“Demographic growth in Africa, together with other factors, has led to extremely large university STEM classes, in some cases with more than 1,000 students per lecturer. University resources have not grown proportionally, despite the fact that STEM education is increasingly central to the world of work and to development. At the same time, in the Italian context, continuous assessment in STEM is almost absent, as it requires considerable resources from lecturers. The open-source software STACK helps address both of these challenges, simultaneously and through a joint effort,” said Professor Lewanski of MiGE.

The conference brought together 46 participants from 12 countries. Delegations from Kenya, Rwanda and Somalia took part in the event, with 12 African lecturers representing Masinde Muliro University for Science and Technology, Maseno University, INES Ruhengeri and Somali National University.

The opening session featured contributions from Roberta Altin, Rector’s Delegate for Cooperation and Development; Silvia Pallaver, representing the UniTS Teaching and Learning Center and the DEH Alma project; and Federica Gori, from the International Project Design and Recruitment Office. Guests also included Marcelo Knobel, Director of UNESCO – The World Academy of Science; Christopher Sangwin, Professor at the University of Edinburgh and creator of STACK; and David Stern, Director of IDEMS International.

The development of STACK at UniTS, research into its impact on teaching, and support for the African STACK Community have been funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, Erasmus+ KA171 projects, PNRR doctoral scholarships for public administration, UniTS development cooperation projects, and the DEH Alma project.

From classroom design to boats on the water: UniTS took part in the opening of the Venice Boat Show 2026 with a delegation from the Department of Engineering and Architecture, composed of its director Giorgio Sulligoi, Vittorio Bucci, recently appointed coordinator of the degree programme in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, and Serena Bertagna, together with PhD candidates and students from the Master’s degree programme in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering.

The University’s presence highlighted the connection between engineering education, yacht and naval design, and dialogue with the maritime industry. This is a field in which UniTS has deep historical roots and which continues to develop today through teaching, applied research and projects involving students directly.

One of the key moments of the day was the presentation of the new boat by the Audace Sailing Team, recently unveiled and ready to compete in the SuMoth Challenge 2026. The project demonstrates the value of the experience developed within the team, which offers students a true hands-on training laboratory: a pathway in which theoretical knowledge, design and experimentation come together across all stages of work, from hull design and structural verification to construction and participation in university competitions.

The day also included the award ceremony of the MUVE Yacht Projects 2026 – Academy Lab, an initiative promoted as part of the Venice Boat Show and dedicated to the relationship between universities, young designers, companies and maritime culture. Students from the UniTS degree programme in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering also took part in the project, developing design proposals for contemporary yacht and boat design.

During the award ceremony, Professor Vittorio Bucci spoke about the transformations affecting the nautical sector and the skills required of future naval engineers. Ships and yachts are complex systems that integrate physics, materials, shipowners’ requirements, comfort and advanced technologies. For this reason, university education starts from solid engineering foundations and guides students towards increasingly integrated design, also through dialogue with the productive sector.

As Professor Sulligoi pointed out: “Perhaps not everyone knows that our Faculty of Engineering was founded precisely with the degree programme in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. Today, as then, and increasingly so, it is an engineering field that opens up to and embraces territories and stakeholders, and is honoured to present itself, and to see its students awarded, also in Venice, today described by authoritative speakers as ‘the oldest city of the future’.”

Participation in the Boat Show was also an opportunity for direct training for students and PhD candidates, who were able to explore topics related to technological innovation, yacht and naval design, and the development of the maritime sector through direct contact with industrial, design and institutional stakeholders in the field.

Accessible tourism does not begin when people reach their destination, but much earlier: when someone looks for information, checks whether a facility truly meets their needs and tries to understand whether they will be able to enjoy an experience independently and safely.

This is one of the main messages that emerged from the final event of DATIS – Digital Pioneers of Accessible Tourism, a project funded by the Interreg VI-A Italy-Slovenia 2021-2027 Programme, held on Tuesday 19 May 2026 at the Grand Hotel Entourage in Gorizia. The event, entitled Accessible tourism starts with accessible information, provided an opportunity to present the results to tourism and social-sector operators, institutions, organisations representing people with disabilities, researchers and accessibility experts from Italy and Slovenia.

In this process, the University of Trieste played a central role through its Department of Political and Social Sciences, contributing to the development of the project’s scientific basis and to the analysis of the real needs of the people involved. The research coordinated by UniTS collected more than 400 questionnaires from people with disabilities, interviewed online and in person, and explored the topic further through interviews and focus groups with around 50 people with visual, cognitive and mental disabilities, as well as operators, caregivers and family members.

The work was led for UniTS by Moreno Zago, Professor of Responsible Tourism Practices, with the support of the Quolity team, composed of Luca Bianchi, Marta Candussi and Francesca Samogizio. The University’s contribution made it possible to translate data, experiences and testimonies into useful guidance for tourism operators, institutions and local communities, with the aim of designing more accessible services, more reliable information and genuinely inclusive pathways.

Through a cross-border sample survey, in-depth interviews with people with disabilities, and analyses of accommodation facilities and tourism websites, DATIS connected physical, digital and communication accessibility, highlighting how decisive the quality of information is in making travel a truly possible and inclusive experience.

One figure shows the relevance of the issue particularly clearly: for more than 90 per cent of people with motor, sensory, cognitive or age-related disabilities, travelling is considered quite or very important. Travel is not only a leisure activity, but an experience that contributes to physical and mental well-being, strengthens autonomy and self-confidence, and helps counter social isolation.

At the same time, barriers continue to limit the right to travel for all. These are not only physical obstacles, but also incomplete, poorly readable or unreliable information, which can generate “false accessibility”: facilities or services presented as accessible, but not actually suited to people’s needs. Although respondents generally reported being treated respectfully, only 17 per cent of the people involved considered staff adequately prepared to respond to the needs and expectations of people with disabilities.

Digital tools are now one of the main gateways to travel: almost 60 per cent of the people involved use online tools to organise their tourism experiences. However, one third of the sample avoided choosing a destination precisely because of the lack of accessible information online. Complex navigation, poorly readable texts, lack of inclusive support tools and inaccessible content can become barriers as concrete as an architectural obstacle.

The analysis carried out as part of DATIS on 100 tourism websites in the cross-border area confirmed this critical issue: many portals are visually modern and technically structured, but still not fully usable by everyone. The average level of digital accessibility detected was 37 per cent for Slovenian tourism operators and 40 per cent for Italian operators.

The project’s results also include the DATIS web database, designed to make information on the digital accessibility of tourism operators in the cross-border area more visible and verifiable, together with guidelines and a strategy for more accessible tourism communication. These are useful tools both for people planning their journey and for operators seeking to improve the quality and clarity of the information they provide.

Specific attention was also given to pilot activities carried out at the Museums of Monte San Michele in Sagrado and the Museum of Industrial Heritage in Ajdovščina, involving people with visual, cognitive and mental disabilities. The pilot activities showed how immersive technologies, digital accessibility and multisensory content can transform cultural heritage into a more inclusive experience, provided that the solutions are simple, accessible and accompanied by adequate human support.

The direct involvement of people with disabilities is one of the central elements to emerge from the project. Accessible solutions cannot be designed solely on the basis of formal standards or technical checks, but must be built through listening to users, co-design and the concrete evaluation of experiences.