Ogni anno unibz invita ricercatori e ricercatrici a presentare idee di progetti che affrontino il tema della sostenibilità e degli obiettivi di sviluppo sostenibile delle Nazioni Unite (SDGs). L'invito a presentare progetti di ricerca interdisciplinari promuove la collaborazione tra Facoltà e Centri di Competenza e il collegamento tra scienze sociali, umanistiche, tecniche e naturali per affrontare le sfide più urgenti in materia di sostenibilità.
Progetti finanziati nel 2025:
Progetti finanziati nel 2024:
The carbon footprint of the digital sector accounts for more than 3% of the entire equivalent CO2 emissions and is rapidly growing. Currently, web applications waste resources by providing functionalities and operating with higher-quality attributes that certain users do not need. On the other hand, the users do not have any decision power over the resources that are used by the application. Facing this context, this research project proposes a solution to empower web application users to make eco-friendly and sustainable choices. By proposing that users can reduce energy consumption by turning off functionalities and making trade-offs related to quality attribute parameters, we explore a new dimension not yet considered in the current literature for the development of sustainable web applications. To enable this solution's implementation, this project focuses on two challenges: to make it easily pluggable into existing applications and to provide a user interface accessible to non-technical users. The activities are structured following the Design Science Research framework, and the implementation will use metadata-based framework patterns and participatory design principles.
"This project explores a new perspective in the sustentability of web applications, allowing the users to make decisions that impact in their energy consumption. Besides that, the solutions developed as part of the project will be easier to plug-in into applications, reducing the impact of its adoption."
The solution will be evaluated in actual applications from a local software startup and from Open Data Hub in a study that will perform assessments to evaluate user experience, modularity, and energy consumption. The primary result of this project is a framework model based on software engineering and interaction design best practices that will easily enable web applications to empower users to make eco-friendly choices. Additionally, during the project, it will also be created a reference implementation for the model, which will be available as an open-source project for being directly used or extended by applications. Based on these results, the adoption of user customization can be made possible as an alternative to improve web application sustainability, reducing their energy consumption and potentially having a high impact on the carbon footprint of the digital sector.
This research explores Human-centred Design with students and researchers, from heterogeneous backgrounds: humanities/arts and technology. Working in heterogeneous teams, they are challenged to overcome disciplinary borders and design human-centred technology-enhanced prototypes together. The focus of the research is not in so much how to support the production of quality products, but how to best support the quality of inter- and trans-disciplinary processes and the experience for its participants.
"As a researcher in Human-Centred Design (HCD), working in academia and hence with a focus on the public good, I try to understand not only how to create quality products, but above all how to sustain a quality HCD process as a form of continuous learning between participants. Dialogue between different disciplines and emerging technologies thus become tools for continuous mutual learning."
Regarding the achievement of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a sobering picture and powerful call for action emerges. Aligning with SDG4’s role as a key enabler for the other SDGs, this project focuses on primary school children's perceptions, experiences, values and attitudes, thus enabling an approach to their perspectives and worldview(s) on sustainability. The proposed research combinesChildhood Studies and a bodily phenomenological perspective,recognizing children as skilful experts and right-holders, while emphasizing their social-embeddedness and responsive relationship to the world.
“What excites us most about this project is the opportunity to recognize children as learners, active thinkers, actors, and rights holders within the context of sustainability. Motivated by the challenge of developing child-appropriate methods that allow their embodied experiences, values, and perspectives to truly come through, we aim to engage with children on their terms to jointly create grounded and transformative understandings of sustainability that reflect their lived realities and shape the future.”
With this theoretical framework, the research project aims to close the attitude-behavior-gap and limited impact of the various sustainable development initiatives like Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) by starting from and assessing children’s perceptions, experiences and values. It does so employing a mixed-methods participatory and social justice design whereby the Mosaic Approach builds the larger qualitative part (quan + QUAL). This multi-methodological and participatory approach allows focusing on learners’individual transformation processes, which is in line with the idea of transformative action as introduced by UNESCO in 2019. This paves the way for a future vision of sustainability from the children’s view.
GrapesTalk is an interdisciplinary research project aimed at defining sustainable, food-grade, scalable, zero-waste strategies for the recovery of bio-active compounds from grape stalks, investigating their potential applications, and testing the biomass residues after extraction as sustainable energy source. Grape stalks are an inevitable product of the winemaking process, with present-day limited direct application in the wine industry. This material is just a major waste for the wineries to be disposed of, with related costs and environmental issues. In reality, grape stalks and their extracts have a rich composition in bio-active compounds, that might be applied in many different fields, such as phenolic-rich additives, adjuvants, cellulosic materials, hemicellulose, and even as bio-sorbent. Beside unbound phenolic components, lignin is one of the most abundant components in stalks, consisting of a rich network of polymerized phenolic compounds. Several strategies have been investigated to yield a partial or even total breakdown of the lignocellulosic fraction, with subsequent extraction of the depolymerization products, potentially providing an inexhaustible source of phenolic compounds from a practically inexpensive source material. Furthermore, the wet residues coming from the extraction process could be considered as suitable substrates for further hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) to be converted into hydrochar, a carbonaceous material with fuel characteristics. In this project, the aim is to develop a low-impact strategy for phenolic extraction from grape stalks, for example by combining low energy-high throughput extraction strategies (e.g., application of ultrasounds, deep eutectic solvents) with the application of minimally, partially, or totally depolymerizing conditions. On the one hand, the extracted phenolic fraction will be characterized analytically, and it will be tested in different ways, e.g., as an oenological additive to reduce or replace certain additives currently used in the winemaking (e.g., sulfites), and in evaluating its impact on wine quality (e.g., color and aroma profile), thus enabling potentially a more efficient re-use of this winemaking waste directly into the winemaking process.
"A very interesting application of the project will be the testing of the efficacy of the extracts in reducing or even replacing the use of chemicals in winemaking, traditionally added as preservatives into wine (e.g. sulphites); things would get even more challenging if some of the extracted compounds can have a good impact on the chemical stability, while others do not, because this would also require a fractionation of the extracts. Last but surely not least, there is one more thing driving the development of the study in this project: the scalability of the final process; in the future, the results obtained from Grapestalk may be brought up to pilot scale, and possibly tested directly in the reality of wineries."
The residues collected after extraction will not be treated as a waste, but converted into hydrochar via HTC. The process will be tuned to obtain a material suitable for energy purposes and the products (i.e., hydrochar and aqueous phase) will be characterized in detail.
The research project “HERE - Heritage Education: enhancing citizenship in a shaped-by-diversity region” - initiated by the Competence Centre for Inclusion in Education and the Faculty of Art and Design - aims to gain more precise knowledge about primary-school-aged children’s concepts of heritage. We consider heritage as a unity of natural, tangible and intangible cultural elements and the valorisation of heritage as one of the objectives of citizenship education (educazione civica). To reconstruct children’s orientations on Heritage, under the shared methodological approach of Design Based Research and Design Thinking “Real World Labs” with children are designed, with participative observations and group discussions embedded.
“What I find really cool about our interdisciplinary research project is the creative and playful approach to reconstruct children's perspectives on a socially very relevant topic, one on which children have hardly been heard before!“
The research contributes to filling a meaningful research gap, namely the lack of a thick theoretical foundation and consequent practices of Heritage Education with primary school aged children in both formal and non-formal educational context.
Bread is a global dietary staple, and its impact on human health is largely determined by how it is digested, particularly in terms of protein availability and glycemic response. Indeed, during digestion, a large portfolio of bioactive compounds and peptides with nutraceutical properties is released, as well as compounds that may have adverse effects on human health (i.e., allergies, and intolerances), or nutrients that impact gastrointestinal health, and have physiological glycemic postprandial effects. Therefore, within a global perspective, the possibility to predict the digestibility of these nutrients at the gastrointestinal level becomes attractive for the functional and health-promoting implications. However, the determination of bread digestibility is a complex process that relies on different mechanical, chemical, and biochemical events, while the study of starch and protein digestibility and nutrients absorption are complex and relies on different approaches (both in vivo and in vitro) and analytical methods that have difficult feasibility or are time-consuming and impractical for high-throughput screening of diverse bread formulations. Consequently, investigations on bread digestibility are still not uniform, too limited and partial, while univocal, fast and effective screening methods to get preliminary insights on its digestibility are still missing. In this scenario, Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies can facilitate the digestibility prediction, by reducing and narrowing the screening of diverse bread formulations. Indeed, these technologies have the potential to significantly enhance the overall capability to monitor and to automate processes, acquire and elaborate large volumes of data from different sources and identify data correlation.
Food digestibility is one of the main topics fascinating industries and consumers. Collecting experimental data and elaborating them through ID, we would give a manageable contribution to industries and consumers for predicting bread digestibility in the easiest and fastest way.
Facing this background, the project aims to create tailored data pipelines with the final goal to develop AI-powered insights into sourdough bread digestibility. The purpose is to implement AI technologies within standardized data analysis procedures, automating digestibility assessment and digestibility prediction, and promoting also data-sharing ecosystems to the final goal to develop effective and representative models for bread digestibility. The training and testing of the learned models will be a key step. To this purpose, the project assembled an interdisciplinary partnership involving food scientists and production systems engineers, aiming to: a) generate big data sets to develop a robust and sustainable prediction model for automating the bread digestibility operations, facilitating the adoption of the investigated method at industrial scale, and b) implement a reliable AI pipeline capable of accurately predicting in vitro protein digestibility (IVPD) and predicted glycemic index (PGI) of breads using compositional, structural, and biochemical features, with the final goal to support decision-making in bread formulation, producers and consumers. Overall, the project structure will include experimental data collection (WP1), data quality assessment (WP2), AI pipeline implementation, and experimental additions to improve functionalities and accuracy (WP3), consumer-based validation of digestibility for commercial sourdough breads (WP4) and project management, communication, and dissemination (WP5).
The transition towards a more sustainable future requires interdisciplinary approaches capable of integrating advanced scientific knowledge with emerging technologies. Artificial intelligence, as a key general purpose technology, will be a crucial input in advancing sustainability. Sustainability involves, among other aspects, reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, improvement in labor productivity and in job satisfaction, promotion of a healthier life style. This project analyzes the potential effects of AI on sustainability in four different fields:
As a general-purpose technology, it is important to analyze AI from a multi-disciplinary perspective. This project represents a first step in that direction, focusing on how it contributes to sustainability, according to its different definitions
The project aims to study the traditional festivals in Alto Adige Südtirol, (Krampus/ San Nicola, Transhumance festival/ S. Bartolomeo, Summer solstice/ Fuochi del Sacro Cuore di Gesù and S. Giovanni, among others), thorough a one-year framework; and their spatial expressions (bonfires, floral decorations, costumes, human choreographies) in relation to territorial awareness, proposing an interpretation that goes beyond their definition as "intangible" cultural heritage, by UNESCO. These practices are interpreted here as "tangible", forms of temporary architectures, capable of constantly renewing the link between man and the landscape, actively contributing to the cultural sustainability of territories. It fits within the framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly points 4 (inclusive and equitable quality education), 8 (decent work and economic growth), 11 (sustainable cities and communities) and 16 (peace, justice, and strong institutions). The reason is that there’s a need to return to rediscover the local landscape, harmed by infrastructure construction and overtourism, which has led to both the abandonment of the use of the agrarian sector and the wild construction of new structures at the bottom of the valley as noted in the 2015 State of the Landscape Report (2015). As stated by UNESCO, social practices, rituals and festive events are activities that structure the lives of communities and groups. They are significant because they reaffirm the identity of those who practice them as a group or society. Together with their strong sociocultural charge, rituals have an inseparable and profound relationship with the natural context in which they are practiced. As V. Propp (1993) observes in his book Russian Agrarian Festivals. A Historical-Ethnographic Research, religious rituals and feasts have an agrarian origin that is connected to ancient forms of development and organization of agricultural work; they celebrate the passage of the seasons, and all the natural resources of a place, marking the needs and requirements of peasant societies, a concept also emphasized by UNESCO: “social, ritual and festive practices celebrate the passage of the seasons and other events related to the agricultural calendar.” In the last century, these rituals are losing their cultural value due to an increasingly evident estrangement between humans and nature. In fact, our model of civilization has stopped caring for the natural, building an artificial second nature comprised by technological and extractive practices. A new relationship between human settlement and the environment is needed, through acts that bring back awareness and knowledge of the land, topic launched by the exhibition Countryside: The Future opened at the Guggenheim in New York in 2020 by Rem Koolhaas. At a delicate time, there is a need for a rapprochement with the natural territory through “territorializing acts,” that is, new alliances between nature and culture with the rediscovery of locality to achieve “eco-sustainable local development” (Magnaghi, 2010).
I’m, excited to embark in this research, rural rituals are to be considered has part of our tangible cultural heritage, they’re monuments for sustainability
One of the valid means of restoring a balanced relationship between man and nature at the local level is surely the rediscovery of traditional festivals and rituals, cultural acts of agrarian vernacular tradition, devoted to the potential of the land and its resources, a sustainable example of territorial awareness. Indulging the need for in-depth knowledge of the territory, we propose research aimed at:
he Mobility Lab South Tyrol (MLST) is an inter- and transdisciplinary initiative that combines (behavioural) economics, data science, design and participatory methods to co-create and evaluate sustainable mobility solutions in urban and rural contexts. Responding to the unique challenges of South Tyrol marked by tourism pressures, geographical constraints, and multimodal transport infrastructure, MLST integrates high-resolution ticketing and other big data with field and street experiments to generate policy insights. The lab will conduct causal evaluations of public transport policies (e.g., guest cards, new mobility passes) and prototype behavioural, spatial and service innovations (e.g., digital nudges, temporary pedestrian zones, smart call shuttles). Through a mixed-methods approach and stakeholder collaboration, MLST advances user-centred, participatory and evidence-based mobility innovation aligned with SDGs on sustainable cities, climate action, and public health.
It is a great honour being involved in this highly intersting mobility project working with an outstanding group of scientists engaged in transformative mobility research
South Tyrol’s apple industry is facing a growing threat from Colletotrichum species particularly C. godetiae, C. fioriniae, C. chrysophilum and C. salicis of the C. acutatum complex which are responsible for significant pre- and postharvest losses of up to 30%. These pathogens are spreading silently and remain largely undetected until symptoms are advanced, by which time economic losses are unavoidable. If proactive detection strategies are not developed, this disease complex could escalate into a major crisis, severely affecting fruit quality, market value, and long-term orchard sustainability. Current disease detection methods—remote sensing (RS), visual inspections, and molecular diagnostics—are often used in isolation, resulting in incomplete or delayed insights. This project addresses this critical gap by integrating these approaches to develop a robust, data-driven detection and prediction system. Leveraging existing spore traps and species-specific LAMP primers, we will quantify pathogen load in the field and correlate it with RS-derived vegetation indices and visual disease incidence records. The collected data will be used to train a machine learning model that predicts postharvest disease incidence based on preharvest pathogen pressure, enabling proactive management decisions.
In this work, we aim to make early disease detection not just possible but practical - giving growers the foresight they need to safeguard fruit quality and ensure the long-term sustainability of their orchards
By validating RS against molecular ground-truth data and providing growers with a predictive tool, this project offers a transformative solution to reduce losses and optimize resource use. With a clear focus on scalability and practical application, this research aligns with EU sustainability goals and supports the agricultural sector’s need for precision disease management. By identifying the most effective early detection strategy, this project will offer critical insights for growers, researchers, and policymakers. Without such advancements, South Tyrol’s apple industry remains vulnerable to unpredictable outbreaks with potentially devastating economic consequences.
The project investigates playful teaching and learning strategies aimed at fostering ecological awareness in primary schools. The concept of ecology, drawn from Bateson, refers to the development of relational thinking. This necessarily entails an epistemological reflection in terms of "learning to learn" (deuterolearning, Bateson 1972, 1979). Such competence—embedded in the goals of the 2030 Agenda—concerns both the relationship between human action and the environment and the three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, social, and economic. The ecological perspective adopted in the research project therefore focuses on the science curriculum, which inherently highlights numerous interconnections, such as those between living species and the environment, human actions and biodiversity, everyday behaviours and global phenomena, and the exploitation of natural resources and inequalities/migration. The aim is to work with teachers to reflect on how to translate the principles of the 2030 Agenda and the sustainability framework into everyday school practice. Exploration of the local territory is thus linked to the complexity of the global challenges outlined in the 2030 Agenda. The interdisciplinary nature of the project lies at the intersection of general didactics, ecology, and education for sustainable development, offering teachers a space to reflect on their teaching practices and to explore the implementation of a research-based playful approach that seeks to meaningfully engage both teachers and children. The chosen playful teaching and learning strategy is Imaginative Ecological Education, an approach that emphasises children’s emotions and imaginations in learning and, crucially, draws attention to the embodied nature of their engagement with the world (Judson 2015, 2024). The project is structured as a research-based professional development initiative known as Ricerca-formazione (CRESPI), a form of research that integrates scientific inquiry with teachers’ ongoing training in a dynamic and interactive process, in which teachers are regarded as “internal researchers” working alongside academic researchers (Asquini 2018; Dodman et al. 2025).
It’s truly exciting to engage with colleagues from the natural sciences on a research project for teachers and children that focuses on ecology. I wonder: what new epistemological perspectives might the opportunity open up, and how much the joint effort—since working across disciplines is no small feat—will help all of us (researchers, teachers, and children) feel more as active agents of change on the path towards sustainability?
The aim is to contribute to a deeper understanding of Education for Sustainable Development in primary schools, its practical implementation, and its implications for teacher professionalisation. The overarching goal is to support a future generation that is well prepared for sustainability and aware of its role as engaged citizenship (Mortari 2020; Lamanauskas & Malinauskienė 2024).
Current sustainability assessments in agri-food systems prioritize environmental metrics, often neglecting the nutritional consequences of food processing. This imbalance may lead to ultra-processed foods being classified as sustainable, despite nutritional degradation, whereas milder technologies may appear less sustainable. Antioxidant retention is proposed as a process-sensitive indicator to integrate nutritional quality into sustainability evaluation. Analytical tools combined with kinetic modelling enable quantification of micronutrient degradation, although these indicators are currently excluded from certification and legal frameworks. While recent European regulations demand verifiable sustainability claims, enforceable thresholds for functional food quality remain undefined.
The sustainability of food systems cannot be reliably assessed without taking in consideration the effects of processing on antioxidants. ANTIOX-LAW promotes antioxidant retention as a scientifically robust, legally enforceable indicator that could align environmental performance with the quality of functional foods
The ANTIOX-LAW project aims to operationalize antioxidant retention as a legal and contractual sustainability benchmark by defining thresholds, modeling resource-efficient processing, and developing integrated co-certification schemes. This framework seeks to enhance the credibility and governance of sustainability claims in food systems.