On the opening day of the 2025 Genoa Science Festival, the RAISE Village welcomed the public with a rich program of educational workshops – the true protagonists of a hands-on, engaging exploration of technological innovation. Despite challenging weather conditions, students, researchers, and visitors animated the spaces of the Genoa Blue District, transforming them into a meeting place where research, curiosity, and the future converge.
In the Spoke 2 – IIT HealthTech Lab workshop, students experimented with non-invasive patient monitoring devices such as smart glasses and sensor-equipped chairs, developed within RAISE research activities. Building on these tools, participants designed new applications, defined potential use cases, and imagined solutions to improve clinical practice and rehabilitation. Working in small groups, they created short presentations and practical demos, exploring how sensors and artificial intelligence algorithms can support more effective and personalized medicine.
“It was exciting to see students take on the challenge of designing new case studies for patient monitoring,” says Giulia Bodo from the IIT – HealthTech Lab. “We worked with a sports science high school, so we focused the activities on athletes’ rehabilitation after injury. The students proposed different pathologies and sports, designing sensors and algorithms to analyze them. Their creativity and scientific curiosity were remarkable.”
This approach highlights how RAISE technologies serve not only as research tools but also as opportunities to educate a new generation of conscious citizens capable of connecting innovation, health, and social responsibility.
The workshop “A New Ally for Marine Ecosystems”, led by CNR-IAS for Spoke 3, took participants on a journey through the world of Ligurian marine biology. The Ligurian Sea, rich in biodiversity yet fragile, became the focal point of an educational path showing how artificial intelligence can become a valuable ally in research and environmental protection. Through interactive systems powered by AI algorithms, students and visitors observed in real time the movements of tiny marine inhabitants – larvae and small invertebrates – understanding how these analyses help assess water quality and the health of marine ecosystems.
“We aimed to create an educational experience that intertwines future technologies with fundamental societal themes such as environmental sustainability,” explains Professor Paola Guado from the Liceo Galileo Galilei in Voghera, who accompanied class 2B (Scientific-IT specialization). “Environmental monitoring, scientific citizenship, and personal care are complementary aspects of a single vision: the growth of a society that uses technology to improve itself and build a sustainable future.”
The RAISE Village is a true innovation hub where visitors can experience firsthand the RAISE ecosystem and discover how scientific research enhances people’s lives, work quality, and territorial sustainability. Funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) under the PNRR, RAISE brings together Ligurian universities, research centers, and companies developing robotic and AI-based solutions for the future of healthcare, smart cities, and environmental protection.
Within the Village, visitors can explore different application scenarios through interactive workshops, robotic demonstrations, and scientific aperitifs, engaging in continuous dialogue with the project’s researchers and innovators. Inside the Blue District, an immersive room allows guests to virtually experience RAISE projects, offering a preview of what happens in real laboratories.
All RAISE Village events are free and open to the public, with no Science Festival subscription required.
The full program of upcoming workshops and activities is available at this link.
