Human Rights Day is observed annually around the world on 10th December and commemorates the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, proclaimed in Paris in 1948. This landmark document enshrines the inalienable rights that everyone is entitled to as a human being - regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

This year's theme, ‘Our Rights, Our Future, Right Now’, is a call to acknowledge the importance and relevance of human rights in our everyday lives. 

We have an opportunity to change perceptions by speaking up against hate speech, correcting misinformation and countering disinformation. As UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said, ‘Human rights are the foundation for peaceful, just, and inclusive societies.’

The new Innovator Community Lab (ICL) of the University of Trieste has been officially presented, a training course dedicated to innovation and young entrepreneurship that continues and renews the role of the CLab.

The ICL project will have a strong international vocation and will see the introduction of significant structural innovations: the lab, which will still be aimed at UniTS students wishing to develop an entrepreneurial project based on an original idea, will award participants with training credits that will form part of the student’s university career.

At the end of the one-year course, the new programme will award five scholarships worth 5,000 euros each for the best students and participation in short training stays. Starting this year, two winners will travel as visiting students to a major innovation centre.

The call for applications for the new Innovator Community Lab 2025, presented at the meeting, will select 30 UniTS students to start entrepreneurial training. The deadline for applications is 20th January 2025, all information is available on the Innovator Community Lab portal.

The announcement of the new ICLab was made during the annual event that concludes the CLab’s activities: the evening had opened with a round table entitled ‘The revolution of failure: the engine of innovation’. Moderated by Cristiano Degano, Regional President of the Order of Journalists, the discussion was attended by experts and business leaders such as Elisabeth Weingraber, business consultant; Gerd Pircher, CEO of HSBC Italy; Alberto Conta, Head of Administration of illycaffè; Susanna Martucci, CEO of Alisea Società Benefit; and Serena Zacchigna, Professor of Molecular Biology at UniTS and ICGEB Cardiovascular Biology Group Leader. The speakers offered young entrepreneurs insights on how to turn failure into an opportunity for growth and success.

The event also featured students from the course who, at the end of a year of training and coaching, transformed business ideas into structured projects ready for the market. The finalists presented the projects they had developed in a wide range of fields using frontier technologies in strategic sectors or with fast-growing markets: from artificial intelligence to renewable energies, from sustainable home heating to the enhancement of Made in Italy, to the development of platforms for customising fantasy games.

The winners of this edition were Leonardo Zamparini, a Physics student, and Valentina Coggiola, a Marketing & Management student, with the BrusaDoor project, and three Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics students - Ivan Buttignon, Tommaso Moro and Enrico Savorgnan – with the LiteAI project.

BrusaDoor proposes the development of an infrared radiant door for home heating, with an innovative design and intelligent management that optimises space and ensures thermal comfort, effectively integrating heating and interior design.

LiteAI, on the other hand, aims to provide tools that can improve children’s educational experience, offering fully customised, inclusive learning paths focused on the development of soft skills through playful-pedagogical activities.

Finally, during the meeting, the new Innovator Community Lab 2025 call for proposals was presented, which will continue its objective of training young entrepreneurs and supporting the growth of innovation. The University of Trieste thus confirms its role as promoter of young entrepreneurship, enhancing the talent and creativity of its students.

‘Congratulations to the winners and to all the participants in the training course,’ concluded Rodolfo Taccani, Deputy Rector for Technology Transfer. ‘All the students involved have demonstrated creativity, determination and a high level of entrepreneurial spirit. We are proud as a university to contribute to the training of a generation of innovators that our entrepreneurial system sorely needs.’

A dynamic sector, ready to face the challenges of innovation and diversification. This is the conclusion of the report of the FVG Metalworking Observatory, in which the DEAMS Department of UniTS has participated, providing cases and evidence of this phenomenon.

Area Science Park, the University of Udine and Intesa Sanpaolo were also scientific partners in the project.

These are the three main themes that emerged from the report:

International Vocation

The engineering sector represents 46% of the regional manufacturing industry, with an electromechanical specialisation (94% of the engineering sector). In the November 2024 snapshot, the sector ‘held up’ better than predicted in the June flash report, with 5,114 companies (-0.3% compared to November 2023, instead of -0.7%), while the rest of manufacturing performed in line with forecasts. The province of Udine, which accounts for 45% of the regional companies, is the area that has recorded the largest decline since 2021 (-2.3%). The province of Pordenone remained stable with 32% of the companies. The tendency towards internationalisation remains strong (41% of companies); exports are more widespread among medium and large companies, which are often innovative and certified.

Diversification and Economic Performance

Intesa Sanpaolo's internal survey of its commercial network shows that FVG companies are increasing the geographical diversification of their sales and supply markets, above the Italian average. In 2023, turnover growth at current prices was 22.5%, with an improvement in margins (+2 points compared to 2019), driven by foreign operations (growth of 25.9%) and participation in the construction supply chain.

Business Diversification Strategies

In a rapidly changing market, FVG companies are exploring new strategies: some are focusing on geographical or sectoral diversification to grow or to avoid crises, while others are strengthening their presence in existing markets. However, diversification requires transversal skills and the ability to adapt to the rules of new markets not possessed by all companies.

From 4th to 8th December 2024, Trieste University Press (EUT) will be among the 597 exhibitors at ‘Più libri più liberi’ (the more books, the more freedom), the national fair of small and medium-sized publishers, hosted at the Rome Convention Centre - La Nuvola. A unique appointment for the publishing world that will bring together 597 exhibitors from all over Italy, ready to present novelties and catalogues to the general public.

EUT will be part of the UPI – Italian University Press collective stand (Stand B66-B68), in collaboration with other academic and scientific publishers. During the five days of the fair, curated by Chiara Valerio, more than 700 events are planned, including meetings with authors, debates and readings, offering the public and professionals an opportunity to dialogue and discover the new frontiers of small and medium publishing.

The theme of the 23rd edition, ‘The Measure of the World’, celebrates the 700th anniversary of the death of Marco Polo, author of The Million. A tribute to imagination as a tool for exploring and narrating the world through the pages of books, real maps for discovering new territories of thought.

Once again this year UniTS has taken ‘a hop, skip and a jump for research’!

A blue wave of 300 runners took part in the Telethon 24x1 Hour Relay Race, now tradition, with representatives from the entire academic community. The race was held in Udine over the weekend of 30th November and 1st December.

The runners, grouped in teams, each ran a one-hour stretch on the route established by organisers in the historic centre of Udine.

From Piazzale Europa to Piazza I Maggio in Udine, the UniTS running team mobilised all members of the University of Trieste to participate in the initiative dedicated to charitable causes and raising awareness of the importance of research of rare genetic diseases.

Vice-Rector Valter Sergo ran part of the race and took the lead at the opening of the event, along with Director General Luciana Rozzini and four heads of department (Massimo Degrassi - DiSU, Ivan Donati - DSV, Stefano Parolai - MIGe and Donata Vianelli - DEAMS) and a large number of professors, technical and administrative staff and students, some even braving the cold night-time temperatures.

By taking part in this initiative, the University community reaffirmed its commitment to research and its support for public initiatives which have a profound impact on society.

Once again in this edition of the Telethon, the UniTS community were the most numerous, colourful and festive representation of Trieste.

Federico Donelli, Professor of International Relations in the Department of Political and Social Sciences of the University of Trieste, was recently a guest at the Somali National University of Mogadisco (SNU), where he did a lecture for the students.

An official event in the academic field, Federico Donelli's lecture was the first by a visiting professor since the beginning of the Somali civil war, which has been taking place for over three decades.

In his speech, Donelli addressed recent political and security developments in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden area, with a particular focus on the constant intertwining of local, regional and global dimensions. Within this framework of general change, the area is being affected by local instability and fueled by regional and global rivalries and alliances.

Donelli deals with international security with a focus on the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa, and for several years has concentrated on the Red Sea region. “Travelling frequently for research purposes, I have been several times to Ethiopia, Somalia, Somaliland and Kenya. The area is, more than ever, of high geostrategic importance not only as a result of the Gaza war, but also in preparation for future global balance in the Indo-Pacific", explains the UniTS professor.

The SNU, while operating in a context of conflict and economic and political instability, continues to promote education as key to providing a future for the country and many of its young people.

‘The situation in Mogadishu remains critical,’ says Donelli, ‘but the most important aspect is the population’s constant effort to take action against the crisis. This strength was evident among SNU colleagues and students who took an active part in the post-lecture debate.’

Professor Donelli’s lecture, introduced by SNU Rector Hassan Osman Ga’al, was also attended by Italian Ambassador Pier Mario Daccò Coppi and his staff, who expressed appreciation for the University of Trieste’s commitment to Somalia.

The UniTS teacher’s invitation is part of a growing cooperation between the University of Trieste and SNU, who have been connected since 2015 by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two universities.

The commitment of Italian cooperation in Somalia in the field of science diplomacy started with a series of projects launched around 2012 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The project has worked with and still involves several Italian universities, including Sapienza University of Rome, Polytechnic University of Milan and the University of Pavia, and many others.

In the context of these projects, the mandate for Italian universities has always been that of the reconstruction and support of the Somali National University. UniTS has been specifically entrusted with its partnership with the Faculty of Economics. In this context, Italian universities have provided support through teaching materials, technology and skills transfers at various levels with SNU staff, from the Rector to the students. The current Rector of SNU, Hassan Osman Ga'al, visited the University of Trieste for a semester in 2018, while Somali students had the opportunity to attend courses offered by UniTS thanks to scholarships funded by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI).

Now a new phase of connection with Somalia is starting, involving a move from national cooperation to regional cooperation. In February 2024, the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region and the University of Trieste were visited by the Rector of the SNU and a delegation led by the Deputy Minister of Education. It was composed of Somali parliamentarians and members of the SAGAL association, including members of the Somali diaspora, to discuss possible collaboration agreements.

In addition to opening up important academic opportunities, this new collaboration with our region is a welcome sign of continuity for many of the main teachers of the Somali University, including the current rector and his predecessor, who obtained their PhDs in Friuli Venezia Giulia and have maintained a strong link with the region which has welcomed them so openly in the past.

For the first time, direct evidence of the use of psychotropic substances in ancient Ptolemaic Egyptian rituals has been uncovered: researchers have uncovered details invisible to the naked eye inside a ritual vessel dating back over 2,000 years. 

The study, co-ordinated by Enrico Greco, Professor of Chemistry of the Environment and Cultural Heritage at the University of Trieste, with the collaboration of the Tampa Museum of Art and the University of South Florida, the University of Milan and Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste, was published in the journal Scientific Reports (Nature Group) and supported by the European Research Infrastructure Consortium CERIC-ERIC.   

Based on direct scientific evidence, the study represents the first documented example of the intentional use of psychedelics in Egyptian rituals to induce dreamlike visions, meditative states and communication with the divine, and demonstrates the ancient Egyptians' sophisticated knowledge of natural resources and their effects on the human mind. Although hypotheses based on iconography and texts have been advanced in the past, this research provides concrete physical evidence. The findings also link these practices to wider Mediterranean and Near Eastern traditions, suggesting cultural exchanges that influenced the ritual and medical knowledge of ancient civilisations.

Enrico Greco, Professor of Chemistry of the Environment and Cultural Heritage at the University of Trieste and coordinator of the study, emphasises: ‘This discovery was only possible thanks to a highly multidisciplinary approach: by combining state-of-the-art scientific techniques with cultural, linguistic and historical analysis, we obtained information that traditional archaeology alone could not have provided. This underlines the power of interdisciplinary collaboration in solving the mysteries of antiquity.’

The research was carried out using advanced scientific techniques: proteomics, metabolomics, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy coupled to synchrotron light (SR µ-FTIR) and metabarcoding of plant DNA. Chiaramaria Stani, CERIC-ERIC researcher at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste's SISSI unit, emphasises: ‘These analyses made it possible to identify the ceremonial content of the vase, although the residual traces were minimal, but well preserved in the porosity of the pottery.’  

I The vase is decorated with the head of the Egyptian god Bes, a grotesque but benevolent deity often used as a protective amulet for the home. Study has also allowed the deity to be attributed a mystical role, linked to altered states of consciousness and divinatory rituals. There are about twelve other vases depicting the god Bes. 

Traces of Peganum harmala (Syrian rue), Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea (blue water lily) and a plant of the genus Cleome, all known for their psychotropic or medicinal properties, were detected in the mixture analysed. These substances were combined with fermented liquids or other ingredients such as honey or royal jelly. Furthermore, analysis revealed the presence of human fluids, such as blood and mucous membrane proteins, suggesting that the jar was used in symbolic and transformative rituals, probably related to female fertility, through the attainment of altered states of consciousness.
 

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Study published in Scientific Reports

Multianalytical investigation reveals psychotropic substances in a ptolemaic Egyptian vase

Davide Tanasi1, Branko F. van Oppen de Ruiter2, Fiorella Florian3, Radmila Pavlovic4,5, Luca Maria Chiesa4, Igor Fochi6, Chiaramaria Stani7, Lisa Vaccari8, Dale Chaput9, Giorgio Samorini10, Alberto Pallavicini3, Sabrina Semeraro11, Anastasia Serena Gaetano11, Sabina Licen11, Pierluigi Barbieri11 & Enrico Greco11

1. Department of History, University of South Florida, 4202 E Fowler Ave, Tampa, FL, 33620, US
2. Tampa Museum of Art, 120 W Gasparilla Plaza, Tampa, FL, 33602, US
3. Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, via Licio Giorgieri 5, Trieste, 34127, Italy
4. Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of Milan, via dell’Università 6, Lodi, 26900, Italy
5. ProMeFa, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, via dell’Olgettina 60, Milan, 20132, Italy
6. Thermo Fisher Scientific S.p.A., Rodano, Milan, 20090, Italy
7. CERIC-ERIC, S. S. 14 - km 163,5 in AREA Science Park, Basovizza, Trieste, 34149, Italy
8. Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A., S.S. 14 - km 163,5 in AREA Science Park, Basovizza, Trieste, 34149, Italy
9. Department Molecular Biosciences, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, 33620, USA
10. Independent Researcher, Bologna, Italy
11. Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, via Licio Giorgieri 1, Trieste, 34127, Italy

UniTS is one of the leading figures of the national PRO-BENE-COMUNE (i.e. for the common good) project, an initiative that involves nine Italian universities with the aim of tackling the challenges linked to the psychophysical wellbeing of university students in a holistic and multidisciplinary manner. The project aims to create a welcoming and inclusive university environment, thanks to psychological counselling, wellness promotion and awareness-raising activities on psychological distress, as well as a solid commitment to research.

Specifically, UniTS will recruit two new part-time psychologist-psychotherapists, with a minimum commitment of ten hours per week. A further three psychologists will be engaged in awareness-raising and training activities, thus expanding the offer of support and prevention. 

In addition, in January 2025, the University will launch a multidisciplinary research project on students' mental health concerns, identifying the main risk and vulnerability factors, as well as the protective factors that foster good psychological adaptation. A mental health information and education programme will also be implemented, aimed not only at students, but also at teaching and technical and administrative staff, with a focus on the prevention of addictions and the promotion of mental and physical wellbeing. The activities, which will start at the beginning of next year, will include film forums, sporting initiatives and social events.

The University has long been committed to promoting the well-being of those who study and work within its community. In particular, the Department of Economics, Business, Mathematics, and Statistics (DEAMS) has proven to be a leader in implementing various initiatives designed to support its students. These efforts aim to foster cohesion among the student body through peer support activities and assistance in academic pathways, ultimately creating a sense of well-being within the department.

In 2022, DEAMS established the role of Department Delegate for Student Relations, tasked with addressing students' needs and promoting activities focused on the well-being of the department’s student community. Since 2023, the Delegate has been supported by a new student Tutor for Student Relations, who is training in the field of psychology. This tutor provides a listening space for students dealing with issues related to their academic journey, study methods, or psychophysical well-being and university life. To date, the three tutors who have served in this role have engaged with over 35 students.

Against this background, on 27th November UniTS will host the workshop ‘Possibilities and Limits of Tutoring’, with the participation of Rosanna Ayton, an expert in inclusion and wellbeing, and Julia Pointon-Haas, head of counselling and wellbeing, both from King's College London. The event will focus on the role of tutoring in the university environment and will represent an opportunity for discussion and growth for the University, which once again demonstrates its ability to attract prestigious international collaborations and to position itself as a point of reference in promoting the well-being of the university community.

The event, promoted by DEAMS, will focus on the role of tutoring in the university environment and will serve as an opportunity for dialogue and growth for the University. Once again, it demonstrates its ability to attract prestigious international collaborations and position itself as a reference point in promoting the well-being of the university community.

The workshop will take place at 2:00 PM in the conference room of Building D (Economics) in Piazzale Europa and will be followed by a round table where the speakers will meet with working groups composed of students and staff from the University of Trieste.

A few days ago, Professor Gianfranco Dalla Barba, a lecturer at the University of Trieste for many years, unfortunately passed away prematurely.

Born in 1957, Dalla Barba was a scientist, neuropsychologist and, in his younger years, a top-level fencer who was an Olympic champion in saber fencing: an authentic example of a dual career.

As a scientist, he wrote and published more than 100 foundational studies in the field of memory disorders, consciousness, confabulations and Alzheimer's disease. He is also the author of two neuropsychological tests to assess confabulation (the Confabulation Screen, the Confabulation Battery).

After graduating in medicine and surgery (1985) and specialising in neurology at the University of Padua (1990), he obtained a PhD in neurological sciences at the University of Siena (1995) and later moved to France, where he became a first researcher at the INSERM in Paris (Chargé de Recherche de Première Classe).

In France he also worked as Attaché (consultant) at the Neurological Clinics of the Universities of Paris VI, Paris XII and Paris XIII. In 2007 he returned to Italy as Associate Professor of Psychobiology and Physiological Psychology at the University of Trieste, where he remained until 2023.

In his sporting career he achieved the most prestigious success for an athlete, winning the gold medal in the men's team sabre at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles with the Italian colours. Four years later, in Seoul, he stood on the Olympic podium again, winning bronze together with his teammates. In the same discipline, Dalla Barba also won three silver medals (one individual and two team) and two bronze (both team) at the World Championships.

As a university student, he also won four medals in three different editions of the Universiade: one gold, one silver and one bronze in the team sabre category and an individual bronze.

On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, which falls on 25th November, the Equal Opportunities Committee (CUG) of the University of Trieste is promoting a Focus Week to involve the university community and citizenship, with the aim of investigating the phenomenon from different perspectives and offering tools to know, train and inform.

According to the data of the Department of Public Security of the Ministry of the Interior in the first half of 2024, out of the total number of murders, 65% of the victims are men, but focusing the analysis on murders occurring in the family/relational sphere, the figure is reversed, since 65% of the victims are women; of these, 85% are at the hands of their partner or ex-partner.

The invitation to all women is not to underestimate any sign of psychological, economic or physical violence of which they are victims and to ask for help to get out of the condition of isolation and subjection in which they find themselves.

The young and very young are unfortunately involved in this phenomenon: the age of those who commit violence is low and a dramatic example of this is the case of group sexual violence, in which, in 2023, 65% of the alleged perpetrators were under 35 years of age: of these, about 25% were minors (14-17 years old), while a further 50% were in the still young 18-24 age bracket.

The Know, Train and Inform to Eliminate Violence Against Women Focus Week therefore intends to address young people such as university students at an early stage. Professors and lecturers from the University of Trieste's departments will explore themes such as violence against women, stereotypes, and inequalities during seminars. Once again this year, they will host the Seat Taken (Posto Occupato) initiative in UniTS classrooms, reaffirming the University's commitment to this cause.

‘Seat Taken’ symbolizes the remembrance of women who were victims of violence. Through the symbolic occupation of seats in lecture halls, it honours the memory of women who, before being killed by a husband, ex-partner, or lover, once occupied a seat in theatres, on trams, in schools, universities, and throughout society.

The Equal Opportunities Committee of the University of Trieste also promotes, in cooperation with other bodies and institutions in the area, a calendar of awareness-raising initiatives aimed at citizens, including

Stopping violence against women. Slovenia and Italy: comparing experiences

25th November 2024 at 11:00, Androna Baciocchi, Room B.

Speakers: 

Anna Campanile, VoceDonna Anti-Violence Centre, Pordenone, 

Delfina Di Stefano, Trieste Police Headquarters, 

Natalina Folla, University of Trieste, 

Jasna Podreka, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Patrizia Romito, University of Trieste

What ‘genre’ of violence?

27th November 2024 at 10:00, Bachelet Room, Building A, Piazzale Europa Campus.

Informative meeting for the student body organised in collaboration with the Student Council of the University of Trieste. 

Speakers:

Imma Tromba, President of the GOAP Anti-Violence Centre of Trieste

Francesca Pidone, counsellor at the University of Trieste. 

Introduced and coordinated by Maria Dolores Ferrara, President of the Equal Opportunities Committee of the University of Trieste

For information on how to participate in the scheduled activities, please write to presidenza.comitato.garanzia@units.it 

The University of Trieste, in order to express its solidarity with women victims of violence and to testify its commitment to raising awareness among young people and citizens on these issues, will illuminate the façade of Building A in red on Monday 25th November.

FULL PROGRAMME OF INITIATIVES