"Waiting for European Researchers' Night": the University of Bologna meets the city

In the run-up to the European Researchers’ Night, scheduled for 26 September, “Waiting for the Night” returns with a rich programme of events organised by the Society consortium—made up of the University of Bologna, CNR, CINECA, INAF, INFN, INGV, and the University of Ferrara—aimed at sharing scientific research with the wider public.

The University of Bologna will bring science out of academia through a lively programme of activities for people of all ages, in Bologna and across its campuses.

On 15 September, from 18:30 to 22:30, the Department of Classical Philology and Italian Studies - FICLIT (Via Zamboni 32) will open its doors to the city for its first “White Night”: guided tours, information points, and interactive maps will allow visitors to explore the Department’s research centres and their work on cultural heritage conservation, archive development, book collections, teaching and linguistics, Digital Humanities, Open Science, and Medical Humanities. Visitors will also have the chance to enter the ADLab Laboratory, with its tools for digitising and cataloguing parchments and manuscripts, early printed books and microfilms, journals, and art photography, which form the Department’s Digital Library.

On 17 September at 16:00, the Academy of Sciences of the Institute of Bologna (Sala Ulisse, Via Zamboni 3) will host the lecture Esplorare il sistema solare (Exploring the Solar System), an event dedicated to astronomy and space discoveries marking the 400th anniversary of the birth of Cassini.

On 18 September at 17:00, the Banca di Bologna Conference Hall (Piazza Minghetti 4/D) will host the PhD Bologna Award, created in collaboration with Banca di Bologna to highlight doctoral theses with a potential social impact on the Bologna area. The ten best finalist theses will be presented and the five winners announced.

On 20 September at 18:00, the Centofiori Multipurpose Hall (Via Gorki 16) will present Oltre il visibile: il mondo strano della fisica quantistica e delle particelle (Beyond the Visible: the Strange World of Quantum Physics and Particles), an engaging journey into the microcosm of subatomic particles, with experiments and explanations designed for all audiences.

On 23 September at 17:00, the Katia Bertasi Multipurpose Hall (Via A. Fioravanti 18/3) will host Emozioni in Azione:La Chimica del Sentire (Emotions in Action: the Chemistry of Feeling), an event exploring the connection between chemistry and emotions through interactive experiments and scientific discussion.

Also on 23 September, at 18:00 in Biblioteca Salaborsa (Piazza Coperta, Piazza Nettuno 3), Generazioni: dialoghi tra scienza e società (Generations: Dialogues between Science and Society), organised as part of the Generazioni series, will present innovative research with a strong social impact. Participants will engage with doctoral candidates in a “Q-storm,” a lively dialogue where the storytelling takes shape from questions and curiosities raised by the audience.

On 24 September at 17:00, Apericerca: storie nel tempo e negli spazi dell'antichità greca e romana (Stories across the Time and Spaces of Ancient Greece and Rome) will take place at the Department of History and Cultures (Piazza San Giovanni in Monte 2). A group of historians will guide the audience on a journey through the time and spaces of classical Greece and Rome, among heroes, gods, and ordinary people.

On 25 September at 9:30, the University of Bologna Prison Education Project will present Transizioni e detenzione femminile.Una ricerca quali-quantitativa presso la sezione femminile della Casa circondariale di Bologna (Transitions and Women’s Imprisonment: A Quali-Quantitative Study at Bologna Women’s Prison at the Rocco D’Amato Correctional Facility) (Via del Gomito 2, restricted access).

Also on 25 September, at 14:30, the Cesena Campus (Via dell’Università 50) will host its Doctoral Day: an opportunity to discover the research projects of the Campus’s PhD candidates, who will present their work through three-minute pitches and posters, offering the public an overview of the most innovative research in agri-food, architecture, computer science, electronics, psychology, and aquaculture.

From 23 to 25 September, The Digitisation of Cultural Heritage, a series of meetings organised in collaboration with CUBO, the Corporate Museum of the Unipol Group, will explore the digitisation of historical archives and the artistic and photographic heritage of the University of Bologna and CUBO (Piazza Sergio Vieira de Mello 3/5). The meetings will start from one central question: why digitise cultural heritage? Because every fragment of memory that is not preserved and shared risks being lost— and with it, a piece of our collective identity.

On 26 September at 16:00, the Ravenna Campus (cloister of the Biblioteca Classense, Via A. Baccarini 3) will host PhD City Fest: Research for the City. Early-career researchers will take centre stage in a poster session, making their projects accessible to the wider public. It will be a chance to learn directly from those who are carrying out cutting-edge scientific work.

Also on 26 September at 17:00, Bologna, the University City (Portico of Palazzo d'Accursio, Piazza Maggiore, 6) will invite the public to discover the stories and anecdotes hidden in the city’s palaces, streets, and squares, revealing the extraordinary history of the University of Bologna and its inseparable bond with the city. The tour will conclude at Palazzo Poggi (Via Zamboni 33), coinciding with the official opening of the European Researchers’ Night.

Through its contribution to “Waiting for the Night,” the University of Bologna reaffirms its public mission: bringing science to the people, building dialogue between researchers and the community, and valuing knowledge as a tool for collective growth


Admission to all events is free. Full details on how to take part are available on the event webpage: https://www.nottedeiricercatori-society.eu/aspettando-la-notte