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BREAKOUT SESSIONS

14 - 18 September

# Breakout Sessions: where NanoInnovation gets personal

Some of the most memorable moments at NanoInnovation don't happen on the main stage. They happen in the *Breakout Sessions* — the agile, focused format that has become one of the most distinctive features of the conference, and that will once again enrich the programme of *NanoInnovation 2026* (Rome, 14–18 September).

A Breakout Session is a compact thematic session running in parallel with the main programme, curated by experts, institutional partners, research projects or companies. Each one zooms in on a single topic, project or community — a format deliberately designed to break out of the classic conference schedule and create a more direct, interactive setting. Typical formats include showcases of national and European projects (Horizon Europe, COST Actions, PNRR partnerships and research infrastructures), focused technical presentations, meetings of scientific networks and clusters, and pitches from young researchers, laboratories and start-ups.

For participants, this is where the conference becomes personal. In a small-room setting you can talk directly with project coordinators, discover results before they reach the journals, and explore collaboration and funding opportunities with the people actually driving the work. For young researchers in particular, Breakout Sessions are one of the easiest ways into the NanoInnovation community.

For organisers, a Breakout Session offers a dedicated slot fully integrated into the official programme, in front of a broad, multidisciplinary audience of researchers, technologists, entrepreneurs and investors — an ideal instrument for the dissemination and exploitation activities required by European and national projects. In 2026, with special emphasis on the post-PNRR landscape and on the role of Artificial Intelligence in deep-tech development, these sessions will be a key space to discuss how our community sustains innovation in the years ahead.

Proposals can be submitted through your personal account on the conference website. Participation, as always, is free upon online registration.

*Break out of the box — join us in Rome, 14–18 September 2026.*

You will survive the talks, but now you deserve a drink.
But before you raise that glass, a question: do you actually know where your Spritz has been? The prosecco grapes sweating under the Veneto sun, the Aperol traveling halfway across Italy, the ice cubes silently guzzling electricity, the plastic straw you grabbed without thinking — every sip has a story, and not all of it is pretty.
Welcome to the most delicious LCA case study ever attempted.
Life Cycle Assessment (ISO 14040/44) is the tool engineers and scientists use to measure the true environmental cost of a product — from cradle to grave, or in this case, from vineyard to recycling bin. It is rigorous, it is quantitative, and — we promise — it can be genuinely fun when the functional unit is something you can drink.
In this informal evening session, we will walk you through the core concepts of LCA using a Spritz as our guinea pig: system boundaries, impact categories, carbon footprint, data gaps, and the uncomfortable truth that "natural" does not always mean "sustainable."
No slides you won't understand. No equations you didn't ask for. Just good science, honest numbers, and an aperitivo well deserved.
Bring curiosity. We'll bring the Spritz. 

An evocative journey through some of cinema’s most memorable melodies, where strings, piano and voice bring iconic stories and emotions beyond the screen. From intimate contemporary soundscapes to timeless songs and sweeping film scores, each piece invites the audience to relive the magic of cinema through live music.

CALEDONIA

Alessandro MINGRONE, VIOLIN I
Irene DI DOMENICANTONIO, VIOLIN II
Gianmarco PIEMARI, VIOLA
Alice MICHAHELLES, PIANO
Carlotta SEGONI, VOICE

The programme brings together celebrated works that have become inseparable from iconic moments in cinema. Performed by strings, piano and voice, these pieces span different musical traditions while sharing the ability to evoke unforgettable stories and emotions through the memories they awaken.