Events and News

Invent, innovate and transform the future of cultural heritage with Copernicus

ISPRA, together with the National Copernicus Users Forum and the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), is organizing a Hackathon entitled “Cultural Space”. This is a multidisciplinary event for young talents aimed at promoting innovation in the sectors of cultural heritage, air quality and climate change, making use of the Copernicus Earth observation products made available by the CAMS and C3S services.

Adapting Communities

The climate crisis requires a strong common commitment to deal with the extreme weather events that increasingly hit our cities, threatening society, ecosystems and the economy. The watchword for cities is to adapt. The world of research is committed to supporting and developing strategies to make our urban areas resilient, capable of facing the threats caused by climate change, such as intense rainfall and heat waves, also through the active involvement of citizens.

World Water Day 2025

World Water Day is celebrated on March 22, an annual United Nations observance focused on the importance of fresh water.
With over 2 billion people living without access to clean water, action is essential to address the global water crisis. A key goal of World Water Day is to support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6: Water, sanitation and hygiene for all by 2030.

ISPRA researchers selected to draft the 2027 Methodological Report on Short-Lived Climate Forcers (SLCF)

ISPRA researchers Daniela Romano and Marina Vitullo have been selected to draft the 2027 Methodological Report on Short-Lived Climate Forcers (SLCF). The structure of the report was agreed during the 61st session of the IPCC in Sofia, Bulgaria, in August 2024. The selected lead authors will be responsible for drafting and revising the chapters of the report, taking into account feedback from experts and governments, and will be called to participate in meetings in the period 2025-2027.

Management of drought risk and water crises

The webinar "Management of drought risk and water crises" is the third meeting organized by the Italian Hydrological Society as part of the «Lino Versace» Webinar Cycle on applied hydrology.
An ISPRA researcher will participate in the meeting.

CIRO Roadshow 2025

Data, strategies and good practices to guide the transition of the Italian regions

CIRO is the database that collects data on the climate performance of the Italian regions.
The Italian Regions, key players in the climate and energy transition, will be protagonists of the CIRO Roadshow 2025, an event organized on 6 March by Italy for Climate within Key - The Energy Transition Expo.
During the event, the new edition of the CIRO 2025 database will be presented, developed by Italy for Climate in collaboration with ISPRA, launched for the first time last year and part of the SISTAN (National Statistical System

“Green wire for a sustainable Jubilee” the SNPA events to reflect on ecology, science and faith

In March, on the occasion of World Water Day will start the initative “Green wire for a sustainable Jubilee"  with the first three regional events organized by Arpa Friuli Venezia Giulia, Arpa Liguria and Arpa Umbria (which will start as early as March 20th). This is a series of events which, involving the entire Italian territory at a regional level and, finally, at a national level, with  meetings, seminars, nature trails and city celebrations.

Presentation of the volume "Drought, scarcity and water crises - The contribution of research to support the definition of the water balance"

The volume is a collective work written by the “Drought, scarcity and water crises” working group of the Department of Earth System Sciences and Environmental Technologies of the Cnr, with the contribution of around 100 authors from various Cnr Institutes and the support from ISPRA, the Civil Protection Department and the commissioner structure for water scarcity.
The objective of this presentation is to open a dialogue between the main national bodies and institutions involved in the topics of drought, management and governance of water resources.

New web site Copernicus-Italia.it

The new web site www.copernicus-italia.it dedicated to national activities in the context of the developments of the European Copernicus Earth Observation Program is online, providing complete, free and open access to data and information deriving from the integration of satellite data with in situ data and forecast models.

PCTO "Climate change: understand to act"

The students of the 5 BIO of the “Carducci-Volta-Pacinotti” Higher Institute of Piombino took part in the path for transversal skills and orientation (PCTO), organized by two ISPRA researchers, committed to understanding the main causes climate change, the impacts on avifauna and migratory species and the study of marine alien species that are colonizing the Mediterranean Sea.

Current and future impacts of climate change: new assessment and forecasting tools thanks to the EU Copernicus programme

Estimate the future availability of water resources and develop future projections of heat waves based on greenhouse gas emission scenarios, evaluate the risks of forest fires, predict the possible frequency of drought events and temperature and precipitation anomalies based on seasonal forecast. These are the objectives of the cooperation between national and regional bodies within the framework of the National Collaboration Program (NCP) with the European Center for Medium-Term Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) promoted by the European Union for the use of the tools of the Copernicus Service dedicated to climate change (C3S).

New update of the ISPRA indicators database

More than 200 indicators from the ISPRA environmental indicators database have been updated, the objective is to promote greater environmental awareness and involve the scientific community, in particular that of environmental statistics and information, in the crucial environmental issues of our time.

The database of environmental indicators, organized into 39 environmental themes, with over 300 indicators (ISPRA core set), is the most complete collection of statistical data and information on the state of the environment in Italy created and managed by the Institute for the Protection and Environmental Research (ISPRA) in collaboration with regional agencies and autonomous provinces within the National System for Environmental Protection (SNPA).

The indicators, classified under Environmental Themes, are structured in sheets containing descriptive information (metadata) such as, for example, the objectives to be achieved, the assessment of the state, the trend and data represented with graphs, tables and maps.

Presentation of the book "Drought, scarcity and water crises - The contribution of research to support the definition of the water balance"

On 6 December, as part of the "Più Libri Più Liberi" event, at the CNR editions stand, there will be the presentation of the volume "Drought, scarcity and water crises - The contribution of research to support the definition of the water balance", published by CNR edizioni, to which ISPRA also contributed by drafting Chapter 1 "The hydrological balance, the availability of water resources and the water balance", the paragraph dedicated to the "Water balance and water stress" and the part relating to state of the climate.
The preface of the book is signed by ISPRA President Stefano Laporta.

From land to Earth. The soil between climate changes and new lifestyles

The event will be an opportunity to start a debate between representatives of the sector and reflect on the importance of soil, its role in combating ongoing climate change and the objectives to be achieved to protect and preserve it.

The other side of the moon: climate change adaptation in multilevel governance

The seminar "The other side of the moon: adaptation to climate change in multilevel governance" is scheduled for Thursday 5 December at 2.00 pm, at the headquarters of the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna.

Strategies for the Climate Transition: cities and territories as protagonists

The conference, organized by the Cariplo Foundation, will explore concrete actions to combat climate change and strategies for communicating it, with interventions by experts and national and international case studies. The day includes insights into local projects, technical sessions and debates with journalists, researchers and activists. An ISPRA expert will also participate in the conference.

The sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)

On 2 December  the biennial meeting of the delegations of 197 signatory countries of of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) has started and it will last until 13 December 2024. Italy has been a signatory to the UNCCD since 1994.

This year the theme of COP 16 is “Our Land. Our Future” and, coinciding with the 30th anniversary of the UNCCD, will represent a key moment in the process of combating desertification, land degradation and drought, marking a renewed global commitment to accelerate investments and actions

Climate Change and Cetaceans in the Mediterranean: a strong reduction in the conditions suitable for the survival of some species is estimated in 25 years

The warming of the Mediterranean Sea is proceeding at a faster rate than the global average, putting all the species that live there at serious risk. Cetaceans are no exception, present with 11 regular species in the Mediterranean, which can respond to variations in climatic conditions by moving, but also conditioned by the distribution of their prey.

The Nature Restoration Regulation: recovering river connectivity to improve land quality and adapt to climate change

The Po river basin district authority in collaboration with the CIRF is organizing the conference in Turin entitled "The Regulation on nature restoration: recovering river connectivity to improve the quality of the territory and adapt to climate change." During the meeting, the implementation process of the Nature Restoration Law will be discussed in depth, both in Europe and in Italy, with special attention to its river component. Emblematic examples of connectivity restoration from various European countries will be presented.

COP29 in Baku: A step forward in global climate transparency

ISPRA participates in the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), COP29, which is held this year in Baku, Azerbaijan, from 11 to 22 November 2024. ISPRA experts bring their contribution to the negotiations , offering technical-scientific support to the delegation of the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security (MASE) on a series of crucial topics in compliance with the commitments of the Paris Agreement and the prerogatives of the Institute which is the theme of Transparency. In particular, the definition of the new reporting for national greenhouse gas inventories, the information to be reported on policies and measures, and the expert review processes of the information transmitted, to be sent by 31 December 2024.

COP 29

The 29th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan, from 11 to 22 November.

The Baku COP 29 Presidency Plan is based on two parallel, mutually reinforcing pillars:

• the first, "enhancing ambition", combines key elements to ensure that all Parties are committed to ambitious national plans and transparency;
• the second, "enabling action", reflects the fundamental role of finance, a key tool for transforming ambition into action and reducing emissions, adapting to climate change and addressing loss and damage.

Antarctica, ISPRA participates in the 40th Italian research expedition

Among the over 140 researchers who have arrived on the most extreme continent, there is also the geologist Saverio Romeo of ISPRA, working until mid-December at the "Mario Zucchelli" Station. This is one of the two Italian research bases present in the area which, together with the Italian-French Concordia base, have been operating within the National Antarctic Research Program (Pnra) since 1985.

Kick off meeting of the MONALISA project

The Kick off meeting of the MONALISA project against land degradation and desertification will be held on 1 October in Sassari, led by the Desertification Research Unit of the University of Sassari.
The project MONALISA - MONitoring and Assessing prevention and restoration soLutIons to combat deSertificAtion s financed by the Horizon Europe program (MISS-2023-SOIL-01-04) with approximately 7.4 million euros and involves a large international consortium made up of 20 partners, 2 associated partners and 1 affiliated entity, coming from 9 EU and non-EU countries: Italy, Spain, France, Denmark, Greece, Romania, Switzerland, Tunisia and Palestine.

ISPRA joins WaterWiseEU

Communication campaign launched by the European Commission to spread awareness of water-related problems and possible solutions
According to ISPRA studies, a negative trend in the natural availability of water resources is observed in Italy.
Future scenarios outline a reduction in the volume of annual precipitation and an increase in average temperature. In 2022, our country reached an all-time low in annual water resource availability with 67 billion cubic meters of water, 50% less than the annual average for the period 1951-2023.
In 2023, the reduction in annual water resources compared to the same historical average was 18.4%. The deficit was more contained also due to the intense rainfall in May 2023 which caused the flood events in Emilia-Romagna.

The European Night of Researchers returns on 27 and 28 September: the edition 2024 of NET - scieNcE Together

The edition 2024 of the European Night of Researchers is dedicated to Maria Skłodowska Curie, a pioneer in the field of radioactivity.

A journey into science that celebrates the first person in history to win two Nobel Prizes through workshops, events and shows organized in Italy and abroad by twelve national research bodies and universities with the NET - scieNcE Together project.
The researchers from the main public research bodies and universities in our country that make up the NET network will conduct workshops, in-person and virtual tours, games and experiments, interactive conferences to bring adults and children closer to science. During the appointments, in fact, participants will have the opportunity to interact directly with male and female scientists, participate in interactive experiments and attend live scientific demonstrations, making science a fun and engaging experience for everyone, from children to adults.

Further information; https://www.scienzainsieme.it/

Press release NET – scieNcE Together

Photo gallery

Water Festival 2024

Utilitalia, the Federation of water, environment and energy companies, will organize the 2024 edition of the Water Festival in Florence from 24 to 26 September. The event will offer three days of reflections with political representatives, national and international sector experts, as well as events and demonstrations that will involve the city of Florence to reflect on the importance of this resource.

Second SNPA Conference. Dealing with water

Managing water in a changing climate

In conjunction with the anniversary of the 30 years of activity of the Environmental Protection Agencies, completing the path begun with the two preparatory conferences (Rimini November 2022 and Rome April 2023), the SNPA National Council has decided to hold the Second Conference National System for Environmental Protection (SNPA). The theme is that of water resources also seen from the perspective of climate change, in the framework of the ETE Expo (Earth Technology Expo) event which sees the Water Festival taking place within it.

Extreme events map in Italy by ISPRA

Floods, heat waves, droughts: the ISPRA extreme events map in Italy updated with information on 2023.

Presentation of the SNPA Report "The climate in Italy in 2023"

The presentation of the SNPA Report "The climate in Italy in 2023" will be held on July 11th. The Report illustrates the main elements that characterized the climate in 2023 and the variations in the climate in Italy in recent decades, also in the global and European climate context, and analyzes the average values ​​and trends of the main hydro-meteo-climatic variables and their values extremes. Furthermore, it provides insights into the climate at a national, regional and local scale, and into the most relevant and critical hydro-meteorological and meteo-marine aspects and events that occurred during the year.
The event also aims to underline the fruitful collaboration between the SNPA System and the other institutional, national and local subjects, who participated in the Report through the provision of their data and information.

Green economy finance 2024

Finance and insurance in the green transition

What will be the priorities in light of the new balance in the European Parliament? What role will banks and insurance companies play? Representatives of EU and national institutions will meet with experts, trade organizations and operators from the financial and insurance sector in the two scheduled panels. The first dedicated to "Capital Market Union and Sustainable Finance Framework: a new push to finance the ecological and digital transitions", the second on how to "Cope with climate risks: the role of insurance".

The ISPRA DG Maria Siclari will participate in the session "Dealing with climate risks: the role of insurance".

Program