Supporting people with incurable illnesses, relieving their suffering and safeguarding their dignity. This is the role that the University of Trieste’s first specialists in Palliative Medicine and Care will take on. Sofia Capparuccini, Giada Chies, Clarissa De Vido and Anna Ghizzo were awarded their specialist qualifications on Wednesday 4 November 2026.

The ceremony marked the completion of the first training cycle of the School of Specialisation, established by the Department of Medical, Surgical and Health Sciences.

UniTS was among the first Italian universities to introduce this programme, investing in the training of doctors equipped to address complex needs relating to people’s health and quality of life, while also supporting their families. These first specialist qualifications are a tangible outcome of that commitment and of the University’s contribution to strengthening the health service.

The four-year programme prepares doctors to address the complex needs of people with cancer and other chronic progressive diseases. Trainees learn to recognise when to introduce palliative care, assess disease progression, manage pain and other symptoms, and adapt treatment to the patient’s condition. The curriculum includes early and concurrent palliative care, which can begin while disease-directed treatment continues.

Particular attention is devoted to communication with patients and families, from diagnosis and prognosis to end-of-life discussions and conflict management. The programme addresses ethical issues and shared care planning, with goals and treatment decisions agreed together with the patient. Clinical expertise is combined with attention to each person’s psychological, social and spiritual needs, and the ability to work with professionals from different disciplines.

The teaching approach emphasises hands-on learning, supervised practice and clinical case discussions. Trainees rotate through internal medicine and oncology wards, pain management services and facilities within the palliative care network, gaining experience in hospitals, outpatient clinics, hospices and patients’ homes. They are also encouraged to take part in research and attend national and international seminars and conferences, with opportunities for placements at centres of excellence outside the training network.

The network involves the regional health authorities ASUGI, ASFO and ASUFC, encompassing Cattinara and Maggiore hospitals, as well as palliative care departments and hospices in the Trieste and Gorizia areas, Pordenone, Aviano, San Vito al Tagliamento and the Udine area. It also includes the Paediatrics Department at IRCCS Burlo Garofolo. The programme pays particular attention to continuity of care during the transition from childhood to adulthood.

The School was established at the initiative of Roberto Di Lenarda, then Rector of the University, and Dr Raffaella Antonione, Director of ASUGI’s Palliative Care and Hospice Network for the Trieste area. Professor Erik Roman-Pognuz has led the School since 2024.

“The qualification of our first specialists now brings that vision to fruition,” Professor Roman-Pognuz emphasises. It reflects a commitment to a field of medicine in which, as the Director points out, “clinical expertise, human sensitivity and attention to the most vulnerable must go hand in hand”.

“Our new colleagues’ expertise goes beyond technical and scientific knowledge,” adds Dr Antonione. “They will be able to respond with understanding to people’s suffering, to the anxiety behind aggression and the loneliness behind rejection: caring for others in all their complexity is, ultimately, the deepest meaning of medicine. We must thank Professor Roberto Di Lenarda, whose vision and passion made it possible to establish this School.”

A drawing by Cy Twombly, artworks created through collaborations between artists and researchers, and manuscripts and letters documenting the region’s cultural life are among the treasures held by the University of Trieste. From 10 November to 15 December, the University invites the public to explore its art and literary collections on four guided tours.

Organised by University Museum Services (smaTs), ‘Discovering the treasures of the University of Trieste’ takes visitors to the Art Gallery and the Archive of Writers and Regional Culture. Both are housed in the Humanities Library at 8 Via del Lazzaretto Vecchio. The tours are scheduled for 10 and 24 November and 1 and 15 December 2026. All four take place on Tuesdays from 16:30 to 18:30.

The tours explore the University’s ties to the region through art and literature. The Gallery, which opened in June 2025, houses the Donors ’24 Collection, formed from gifts made by artists, their heirs and collectors to mark the University’s centenary. It also displays works created by artists working with the University’s departments during the ‘Shine Bright Like A Diamond’ residencies. The Archive of Writers and Regional Culture holds manuscripts, correspondence, photographs and other materials documenting the literary and cultural life of Trieste and the wider Friuli Venezia Giulia region.

Each visit begins at the Archive, where Maria Cristina Pinzani will introduce the collections from 16:30 to 17:30. From 17:30 to 18:30, Lorenzo Michelli will guide visitors through the Gallery, exploring a different theme each time. The series moves from the collection’s origins and the artist residencies to the changing practice of painting, then to artists from Trieste and the connections between works and art forms. The final tour includes a closer look at Cy Twombly.

“Visitors will also discover how the University preserves its collections and shares them with the public,” says Professor Francesca Fiorentini, coordinator of smaTs. “Through these tours, local residents and anyone with an interest in art and literature will be able to see for themselves the works of art and documents that scholars study.”

Each tour is limited to 15 people. Advance booking is required. Email smats@units.it with your chosen date, first name, surname and contact details. Please let the organisers know if you need to cancel. Meet at 16:15 in the entrance hall at 8 Via del Lazzaretto Vecchio.

A closer look at the four Art Gallery tours

At each session, Maria Cristina Pinzani introduces the Archive of Writers and Regional Culture from 16:30 to 17:30. Lorenzo Michelli then leads a themed tour of the Gallery from 17:30 to 18:30.

Tuesday 10 November – Building a collection through gifts and artist residencies

The opening tour traces the origins and growth of the Donors ’24 Collection through the stories of the artists, heirs and collectors who entrusted their works to the University. Art once kept in homes, private collections or artists’ studios can now be seen and studied by the public. The tour also explores the ‘Shine Bright Like A Diamond’ residencies, curated by Eva Comuzzi, where exchanges with students, lecturers and researchers inspired artists to create new work. Visitors will see how an artist’s experience of a place shapes a work and follow its journey from creation to its place in the collection.

Tuesday 24 November – Continuity, change and possibility in painting today

Artists continue to find new possibilities in painting by experimenting with materials and drawing on other art forms. This tour explores the relationship between figuration and abstraction, and how marks on a surface give shape to an image. A still life by Mirella Schott Sbisà, landscapes by Manuela Sedmach, Aleksander Velišček’s portrait of Giorgio de Chirico and abstract compositions by Ivan Žerjal show how differently painters construct an image. Comparisons with drawings, photographs and three-dimensional works reveal where contemporary painters continue earlier traditions and where they experiment.

Tuesday 1 December – Trieste’s art, past and present

The collection offers a view of Trieste’s artistic life across several generations. This tour brings works by Arturo Rietti, Carlo Sbisà and Marcello Mascherini together with more recent work by artists including Serse and Mario Sillani Djerrahian. The works also reveal ties between artists, families, collectors and institutions, showing how gifts to the collection give the public access to the city’s cultural history. Together they portray a city whose past continues to inform its contemporary art.

Tuesday 15 December – Artworks, surprises and connections within the collection

The final tour brings together drawings, paintings, photographs and sculptures to uncover affinities between different works, techniques and artistic approaches. Visitors will explore the variety of the Donors Collection by looking at artists’ gestures, the part memory plays in their work and their choice of materials. The tour includes a closer look at Cy Twombly’s Untitled, a 1960 drawing in Indian ink on paper donated by Professor Bruno Callegher. Projected images of Twombly’s other works will place the drawing in the context of his wider practice and help visitors explore the relationship between marks, writing and space.

Parliament as a meeting place, where legislation, law and justice are called upon to recognise one another. This was the central theme of the lecture delivered by Federico Silvio Toniato, Secretary General of the Senate of the Italian Republic, to open the 2026/2027 academic year of the University of Trieste’s Master’s degree programme in Law, in the Aula Magna of the main building.

“Legislation that runs counter to law is not legislation; law without legislation is arbitrary; legislation without Parliament is not legislation.” Toniato developed his lecture, entitled “Parliament between Legislation, Justice and Law”, around these three observations, reflecting on the responsibilities of representative institutions and the meaning of the legislative function.

The title refers to three distinct concepts. Legislation is an act, with an author, a procedure and a text. Law is the body of principles, institutions and traditions within which that act acquires meaning. Justice, meanwhile, is a never fully satisfied demand that challenges both individual laws and the legal system. In Toniato’s interpretation, Parliament’s task is to maintain a dialogue between these dimensions, while recognising that they can never fully coincide.

Tracing a path from Roman law to the Italian Constitution, the Secretary General of the Senate stressed that legislation must be consistent with the principles of the legal system to which it belongs. At the same time, law cannot dispense with legislation without losing predictability, equality and democratic legitimacy.

Hence the central importance of parliamentary debate. In contemporary democracies, citizens deliberate through their representatives, gathered in an assembly that debates, amends texts and exercises oversight. For Toniato, the passage of legislation through the two Houses must therefore involve substantive debate: it is through this process that legislation can become a commune praeceptum, “a shared commitment of the republic”.

The ceremony opened with welcome remarks by Gian Paolo Dolso, Director of the Department of Legal, Language, Interpreting and Translation Studies, and Nicola Muffato, Coordinator of the degree programme in Law. The introductory presentation was given by Guido Rivosecchi, Full Professor of Constitutional and Public Law at the University of Padua.

Collecting the energy generated by offshore wind farms and transmitting it to the national electricity grid through a floating substation is the aim of PROFOSS. The University of Trieste is participating in the project through its Department of Engineering and Architecture, which has been awarded €495,000 for work on the technological integration, management and control of electrical systems.

Promoted by the Italian Ministry of Environment and Energy Security under Mission Innovation 2.0, the initiative is led by Fincantieri. Its partners include RINA Consulting and the Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Naples Federico II, alongside the University of Trieste. ENR, the national body for research and the promotion of standardisation, Hitachi Energy and Meccano Engineering also contribute to the work.

The substation provides the link between the wind turbines and the onshore grid: it collects the electricity generated by the turbines and adjusts its voltage for transmission through subsea cables. On a floating structure, these functions must be maintained despite the motion caused by wind and waves, which affects both the equipment and the electrical connections.

PROFOSS aims to develop a modular concept that can accommodate power requirements ranging from 500 to 1,000 megawatts, integrating the platform, its anchoring system and the upper structure, known as the topside, which houses the equipment. Development initially focuses on high-voltage alternating current, or HVAC, laying the groundwork for a subsequent high-voltage direct current, or HVDC, solution.

The UniTS research team includes Andrea Vicenzutti, the University’s scientific lead for the project, researcher Andrea Alessia Tavagnutti and Professor Giorgio Sulligoi.

“Our contribution focuses on technological integration and the management and control of electrical systems for generating and transmitting offshore wind energy along Italy’s coasts,” explains Vicenzutti. “We study the wind turbines and substation as parts of a single system, focusing on the factors that determine its feasibility and efficiency: the technical requirements for their connections, the impacts of the solutions adopted and the coordinated operation of the entire wind farm.”

One area of work involves reviewing the scientific and technological state of the art and the technical standards governing the interfaces between the substation and the national transmission grid, and between the substation and the wind turbines. In practical terms, this means identifying the available solutions and the requirements that the different components must meet to connect and operate together. The Trieste team has already completed a study in this area and presented its findings in a dedicated report.

The second area is the analysis and quantification of the technical, economic and environmental impacts associated with the large-scale deployment of offshore wind systems. This work considers the wind turbines and substation together, assessing the performance of technological solutions in relation to their costs and environmental effects.

The researchers are also defining and developing the concept for an automated real-time management and control system for the entire wind farm. The aim is to determine how to coordinate the different components so that they operate as a single installation, supporting system stability and the continuity of power transmission to shore.

“Through its participation in this project,” says Giorgio Sulligoi, “the University of Trieste is helping to overcome current technological and regulatory challenges, supporting the development of sustainable, next-generation energy systems in the deep waters of the Mediterranean.”

With deep sorrow, the University of Trieste remembers Professor Franco Cucchi, an esteemed lecturer and researcher who devoted his long and distinguished academic career to the study of geomorphology and applied geology, with a particular and passionate focus on karst phenomena and processes.

After graduating in Geology in 1972, Franco Cucchi began his scientific research career, first as a scholarship holder and contract researcher and, from 1981, as a researcher at the Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences of the University of Trieste. In 1988, he became Associate Professor at the Institute of Geography and Oceanography of the University of Messina, before returning to Trieste in 1991, where from 2002 he served as Full Professor in the scientific-disciplinary field GEO/04 – Physical Geography and Geomorphology.

Throughout his scientific career, he devoted particular attention to the study of karst phenomena, a field of research he pursued with rigour, enthusiasm and deep passion, contributing significantly to the understanding of geomorphological processes and karst landscapes. A pioneer of geological-technical mapping, he was among the first to recognise the importance of detailed knowledge of the territory, actively encouraging the sharing and dissemination of public data.

A highly respected lecturer and internationally recognised scholar, he was able to convey his enthusiasm for study and research to his students, guiding them throughout their education with expertise and dedication. In the same way, he generously shared his knowledge and experience with the many colleagues with whom he collaborated, contributing to the education and training of entire generations of professionals and researchers.

For many, Franco Cucchi was not only an authoritative scholar and a point of reference in the fields of geomorphology and karst studies, but also a mentor in both academic and personal life. His passion for research, his scientific curiosity and his ability to engage those around him left a profound mark on the academic community. His teaching and his contribution to research will remain part of the scientific and human heritage of the University of Trieste.

We remember him with our deepest affection and sincere gratitude.

Paolo Fornasiero, Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Trieste’s Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Vice-Rector for Research, has been elected Corresponding Member of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in the Class of Physical, Mathematical and Natural Sciences.

His election represents one of the most prestigious recognitions in the Italian and international scientific community and acknowledges Professor Fornasiero’s contribution to research in the fields of catalysis, advanced materials and chemistry for the energy transition.

Becoming a member of the Accademia dei Lincei is a great honour and a responsibility,” says Professor Fornasiero. “This recognition celebrates a journey built together with the many colleagues, researchers and students with whom I have had the privilege of working. I believe that, today more than ever, research must contribute not only to scientific progress, but also to the cultural and social development of the country, addressing the major challenges of sustainability, energy and innovation with scientific rigour and a spirit of collaboration.

Founded in 1603, the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei is the world’s oldest scientific academy still in operation. Throughout its history, its members have included figures such as Galileo Galilei, Stanislao Cannizzaro, Quintino Sella, Benedetto Croce and Albert Einstein. Today, it is Italy’s foremost scientific and cultural institution and serves as a scientific adviser to the President of the Italian Republic.

Professor Fornasiero’s scientific career is internationally recognised. His research focuses primarily on materials chemistry, heterogeneous catalysis, energy conversion processes and the development of sustainable technologies for reducing emissions and producing fuels and chemicals with a lower environmental impact.

The author of more than 370 scientific publications in leading international journals, Fornasiero is among the most highly cited researchers in his field and has served as coordinator and partner in numerous research projects funded by the European Union and by national and international organisations. Over the course of his career, he has received major scientific awards and is a member of prestigious international scientific societies.

His election to the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei also represents recognition of the scientific excellence of the University of Trieste, reaffirming its leading role in national and international research.

Burlo is joining forces with the University of Trieste for the “Accendi d’Oro, Accendi la Speranza” (“Light Up Gold, Light Up Hope”) campaign, promoted by FIAGOP – the Italian Federation of Paediatric Oncology and Haematology Parents’ and Survivors’ Associations – from 21 to 28 September 2026. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the challenges posed by childhood cancer and the importance of research in paediatric oncology and haematology.

The initiative is part of Gold September, the international childhood cancer awareness month promoted by the Childhood Cancer International network.

Since 1984, the specialist unit at the Trieste-based Scientific Institute for Research, Hospitalisation and Healthcare (IRCCS) has treated more than a thousand children and young people and performed 480 haematopoietic stem cell transplants. Thanks to advances in treatment, cure rates now stand at around 80%.

The continuing improvement in cure rates is driven by several factors, including increasingly effective chemotherapy protocols, the use of innovative drugs such as monoclonal antibodies and targeted therapies, and advances in molecular and genetic diagnostics.

“Curing a child with cancer is possible today,” explains Dr Marco Rabusin, Director of Paediatric Oncology and Haematology at Burlo. “This important achievement is the result of significant technological advances, combined with collaboration between healthcare professionals, patient associations and families to build a therapeutic alliance.”

By joining the campaign, the University of Trieste reaffirms the importance of supporting scientific research to develop increasingly effective treatments and improve the chances of a cure for children and adolescents with cancer. The University will light up the façade of Building A in gold, joining monuments, buildings and landmarks across Italy in displaying the campaign’s colour: a gesture of solidarity with young patients and their families, and a call for a shared commitment to the future of treatment.

Cardiology at the University of Trieste received two European recognitions at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress in Munich.

Marco Merlo, Associate Professor of Cardiology and Coordinator of the Degree Programme in Medicine and Surgery at UniTS, has been elected Chairperson of the ESC Working Group on Myocardial and Pericardial Diseases. Merlo also heads the Heart Failure and Cardiomyopathy Outpatient Clinic and leads clinical research within the Cardiology Department at ASUGI’s Cattinara Hospital, directed by Gianfranco Sinagra. His election reflects the Trieste group’s research into cardiomyopathies and heart failure, combining academic work with clinical care.

The congress also recognised “Impact of genetic testing on primary prevention ICD decision-making and clinical outcomes in dilated cardiomyopathy” as the best abstract in Myocardial and Pericardial Diseases. The research was presented by Annalisa Bernabei, a cardiology resident in Trieste.

Conducted under the scientific supervision of Alessia Paldino, Matteo Dal Ferro and Marco Merlo, the study examines the impact of genetic testing on decisions regarding implantable cardioverter-defibrillators for primary prevention and on clinical outcomes in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. It forms part of the Trieste Cardiology group’s clinical and translational research, aimed at translating scientific knowledge into tools for patient care.

On the occasion of World Alzheimer’s Day, observed today, 21 September, the University of Trieste will illuminate the façade of Building A in purple, renewing attention to a disease that represents one of the major health and social challenges associated with ageing. This year’s observance highlights a particularly dynamic phase in research, marked by the emergence of new therapeutic options and by advances in early diagnosis.

The 2026 international campaign promoted by Alzheimer’s Disease International is specifically dedicated to timely diagnosis, under the theme The Earlier You Know, The More You Can Do: A Dementia Diagnosis Matters. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the benefits that a diagnosis can offer people living with dementia and their families, enabling earlier access to treatment, support and care pathways, while also helping to overcome the stigma that still surrounds the disease.

“World Alzheimer’s Day comes at a time of profound change: for the first time, drugs are available that can remove amyloid from the brain and slow the progression of the disease in its early stages,” says Alberto Benussi, Professor of Neurology at the University of Trieste. The University Neurology Clinic at ASUGI is among the Italian centres involved in administering these treatments and studying their use in clinical practice.

Precisely because these therapies are more effective the earlier they are started, research in Trieste is also focusing on early diagnosis, through new blood biomarkers such as p-tau217, one of the tools currently attracting international research interest for its potential to make the identification of the disease earlier and more accurate.

A further line of research, particularly significant in a city and region that are naturally multilingual such as Trieste, concerns bilingualism. “By studying more than seven hundred people,” Professor Benussi continues, “the group observed that speaking more than one language is associated with greater cognitive reserve and with a better ability of the brain to withstand the effects of neurodegeneration.”

The entrance examination for the University of Trieste’s degree programmes in the health professions took place today. A total of 875 applicants registered for 525 available places across eleven programmes based in Trieste, Gorizia and Pordenone. Applications reached an all-time high, up 31% on 2025.

Interest extended across the full range of programmes: when first, second and third choices are combined, every programme attracted more expressions of preference than available places. Each applicant could select up to three degree programmes, ranked in order of preference, to be considered for admission to each.

Applications increased for Psychiatric Rehabilitation (+69%), Dental Hygiene in Trieste (+42.4%), Dental Hygiene in Pordenone (+39.4%), Medical Radiology, Diagnostic Imaging and Radiotherapy Techniques (+34.8%), Speech and Language Therapy (+30.2%), Physiotherapy (+21.5%, with a record number of applications) and Health Assistance (+17.4%).

Nursing also recorded a positive result, with first-choice applications rising by 21.2% compared with last year. This recovery significantly outpaced the national increase of 16.3% reported by FNOPI, Italy’s National Federation of Nursing Professions.

Physiotherapy remained the most sought-after programme, with 254 first-choice applications, followed by Nursing, with 143, and Speech and Language Therapy, with 112.

For the 2026/27 academic year, programmes will again be offered across the three locations. Trieste has 220 places in Nursing, 40 in Physiotherapy, 40 in Biomedical Laboratory Techniques, 30 in Medical Radiology, Diagnostic Imaging and Radiotherapy Techniques, 25 in Dental Hygiene, 30 in Psychiatric Rehabilitation and 30 in Speech and Language Therapy.

Gorizia offers 40 places in Health Assistance and 20 in Environmental and Occupational Prevention Techniques. In Pordenone, Dental Hygiene and Dietetics each offer 25 places.

Women continued to make up a clear majority of those registered for the entrance examination, once again accounting for more than 70% of applicants.

Applicants’ places of residence also highlight the programmes’ appeal beyond the region: one in five lives in another Italian region, with Veneto accounting for by far the largest share, at 16.1% of all applicants. The most represented provinces were Treviso, Venice and Belluno.

The examination took place in buildings H3 and C1 on the Piazzale Europa campus. Applicants had 100 minutes to answer 60 multiple-choice questions: 23 in biology, 15 in chemistry, 13 in physics and mathematics, five in logical reasoning and problem-solving, and four assessing reading comprehension and knowledge acquired during previous studies. Admission rankings will be published within 15 days of the examination.