Bocconi at MEETmeTonight 2024
An interactive experience to understand what climate change adaptation means, six conversations with as many professors to talk about space economy and the Constitution, demography and economic history, art and cancer treatment, and five “speed dates” with young researchers. This is Bocconi's contribution to MEETmeTonight, the event dedicated to popularizing science that will take place at the Science Park of Milano-Bicocca on Sept. 27 and 28, within the framework of the European Researchers' Night. Organized jointly by five Milanese universities (Università degli Studi Milano-Bicocca, Università degli Studi di Milano, Università Bocconi, Politecnico di Milano and Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele) and Formica Blu, the event aims to bring the general public closer to the world of research, science and innovation. This is not a first, as the format had already been used before the pandemic and returns with an even richer program.
MEETmeTonight will be spread over two days with a flurry of activities completely free of charge open to visitors of any age. Planned events include 27 interactive booths, 22 talks, 16 workshops and 3 performances. The event is part of the larger European project MEET (Missions: Engagement and Education for Tomorrow) and will kick off on Friday, Sept. 27, at 6pm with science-themed talks and performances. On Saturday, Sept. 28, visitors can stroll through interactive booths, workshops, talks and speed dates with researchers, as well as visit the EU Corner which illustrates EU-funded projects.
The Bocconi presence is all concentrated on the day of Saturday 28 and is structured on three fronts. The first is AdaptAction, an interactive exhibition area that under the broad theme of climate adaptation brings together scientific contributions by 5 of our professors and laboratories: Valentina Bosetti, Gianmarco Ottaviano, Vitaliano Fiorillo/AgriLab, Edoardo Croci /SurLab, Fabrizio Zerbini/Mobius. Visitors will use their smartphones for an immersive experience by following themed trails featuring video magterials and infographics. Guido Alfani, Francesca Buffa, Marta Cartabia, Simonetta Di Pippo, Letizia Mencarini and Alex Turrini will be among the protagonists of the stimulating Talk program coordinated by our lecturer and science communicator Elia Bombardelli. Close by, 5 of our PhD students will meet the public during the Speed Dates, quick one-on-one conversations with citizens.
Francesco Billari, rector of Bocconi, has said: “Knowing how to disseminate research is just as important for a university as doing impactful research. As researchers and as institutions, it is our duty, as part of the Third Mission, to be close to citizens, to cast knowledge as a common heritage. Only in this way can we advance as a society. As Bocconi, we have chosen to tell our story through the experiences and the lives of our researchers and to engage citizens and schools on the topic of climate change adaptation through AdaptAction, an immersive experience about cities, agriculture, impacts and synergies.” All initiatives are, as said above, free of charge. The complete MEETmeTonight program is available here (in Italian).