The number of participants has doubled, with 86% being students, researchers, young cooperators, and entrepreneurs.
Over 12,500 participants took part in the 151 initiatives organized in person at MIND Milano and online.
86% of participants in the 2024 edition of the Social Innovation Campus are young people, an increase of almost 70% compared to the previous edition.
High school students from all over Italy participated in orientation, PCTO, and citizenship education activities.
Researchers, students, cooperators, and startups presented proposals for impactful services and technologies to support people and fragility, protect the environment, and create new forms of circular economy.
The community around Italy's first social innovation campus is growing, with 60 partners and around 300 speakers, jurors, discussants, and mentors from the worlds of business, finance, academia, research, the third sector, and institutions.
Participants from northern to southern Italy: high schools from 26 municipalities in Abruzzo, Basilicata, Emilia-Romagna, Lombardy, Sicily, and Veneto; startups and innovative social cooperatives from 10 regions.
Hackathon prizes awarded in person at the Veronica Gambara High School in Brescia (first prize and Microsoft special prize), the Preziosissimo Sangue Art School in Monza (second prize), and the Primo Levi Institute in Seregno, the Preziosissimo Sangue Institute in Milan, the ITET Bassi Institute in Lodi, and the Muratori San Carlo High School in Modena.
Online Hackathon awards at ITS Tito Acerbo in Pescara (first prize) and Liceo Scientifico D'Ascanio in Montesilvano (second prize).
Social Tech Contest awards to innovative startups CoffeeFrom in Milan (first prize) and Human Maple in Castelfranco Emilia (second prize) and to the CoosMarche cooperative in Fermo (third prize).
"Skills 4 Social Innovation. Everyone's talents to build the future" was the theme of the latest edition of the Fondazione Triulza Social Innovation Campus, an event open to all which, since its first edition, has had the main objective of involving the younger generation in issues of social and environmental innovation. The content and format of the 2024 edition—which took place at MIND Milano Innovation District on February 28 and 29—were extremely well received, confirming that the Social Innovation Campus is Italy's leading event for young people on social innovation: of the more than 12,500 participants in the 151 initiatives organized in person and online, 10,723 (86%) were young people, an increase of almost 70% compared to 2023, thanks to the rich offering of formats and activities dedicated to them. In fact, the number of participants and initiatives has doubled thanks to the involvement in the cultural program of a 'community' of partners and experts that grows every year and provides content and tools for young people. They are the protagonists of the Campus, experimenting with and experiencing first-hand technology and innovation, listening to and interacting with mentors and speakers and, above all, co-designing and proposing concrete solutions based on real challenges. Every year, Fondazione Triulza brings thousands of people, especially young people, to MIND Milano, turning it into a large laboratory for experimentation for a future focused on environmental impact and social inclusion.
Secondary school students from 26 municipalities in Abruzzo, Basilicata, Emilia-Romagna, Lombardy, Sicily, and Veneto were able to participate in thematic and career guidance workshops and two co-design courses (hackathons), both in person and online, through which they presented their visions, values, and technological and innovative proposals for improving the environment and the lives of people and communities.
There are also over 30 researchers, cooperators, and innovative startups from all over Italy, who during events and in the annual Social Tech Contest presented digital and technological projects and solutions with social and environmental impact to transform waste into new materials and forms of circular economy; to support people with cognitive frailty, dementia, or addictions; to help the inclusion of migrants or the mobility of people with disabilities, job placement, or training.
“After five editions of the Social Innovation Campus, we have seen how the quality of projects, attention, and awareness of young people regarding not only environmental but also social impact is growing. In fact, their proposals and projects are increasingly complex, concrete, and 'uncompromising' in terms of respect for the environment and social inclusion, two aspects that, according to young people, can no longer be ignored," says Massimo Minelli, President of Fondazione Triulza. "Technology plays a fundamental role in design, as it is a tool for achieving impactful goals. However, in all projects, physical places are at the center, indicating a desire to be together," adds Minelli.
Twenty innovative social cooperatives and startups from all over Italy competed in the Social Tech Contest with their innovative and impactful projects. These projects were evaluated by a qualified jury of 40 experts, who awarded the first prize (€5,000) to the innovative startup CoffeeFrom from Milan, which transforms used coffee grounds—normally disposed of in landfills—into new thermoplastic materials, reducing CO2 emissions and the use of virgin fossil-based plastics. The second and third prizes (participation in the next edition of the BEEurope Master's in Europlanning) were awarded, respectively, to: Human Maple, an innovative startup from Castelfranco Emilia that uses interactive ashtrays to promote the collection and recycling of cigarette butts to prevent environmental pollution and turn them into thermal insulation or padding material; and the Fermo CoosMarche Cooperative for Intellica, a digital cognitive stimulation web platform for people with cognitive disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, and dementia.
The students of the 20 hackathon teams came up with solutions and proposals to protect the environment through effective waste management, improve the use of public spaces, make the fashion world and mobility services more sustainable, and design the supermarket of the future and cooperative service platforms. All this was done using artificial intelligence and cloud computing in innovative ways and considering the impact. Fifteen teams worked for 36 consecutive hours in person at MIND, organizing themselves into collaborative design paths and meeting with experts and mentors from companies and partners who set them challenges. Five teams followed an online path that began in January with in-depth webinars on the challenges led by experts from partner companies. On the second day of the Campus, everyone presented their proposals to the juries.
First prize in the in-person Hackathon (€1,500) was won by the "Green Titans" (Liceo Veronica Gambara high school in Brescia), who proposed the redevelopment of bus stops into mini hubs rich in services connected to MaaS (Mobility as a Service) apps with their project "MAAAXI – Da fermata a mini hub" (MAAAXI – From bus stop to mini hub). The use of Artificial Intelligence in this revamped mobility system also earned the Green Titans the special Microsoft prize of €500. The second prize (€500) went to Lorem Ipsum (Preziosissimo Sangue Art School in Monza), whose "RePlace" project introduced a new concept of urban public space dedicated to young people and the community, built with waste materials and featuring an app for selling sustainable products and promoting businesses created by young people. The projects of the teams awarded third to sixth place won an Epson printer and were: Eco-laboriamo (ITCG Primo Levi in Seregno), Idrocacciuoli (Liceo delle Scienze Umane Preziosissimo Sangue in Milan), Zootropolis (ITET Bassi in Lodi), and The Crusoes (Liceo Muratori San Carlo in Modena).
First place in the online Hackathon (€1,500) went to the team "I Riciclanti" (Tito Acerbo Institute in Pescara) with ReGreen Hub, a platform cooperative created to tackle the problem of high waste production in the textile industry. Second place (€500) went to Liceo Scientifico D'Ascanio in Montesilvano for Reshame, an app for exchanging clothing in a physical location where users can access various social activities and free services.
The partners of Social Innovation Campus 2024 are putting together the cultural program. One of the strengths of Social Innovation Campus is its community of partners and experts, which grows every year and with which Fondazione Triulza collaborates to develop the cultural program and the program of activities dedicated to schools and young people. A vertical community focused on innovation, but extremely cross-cutting in terms of the content offered and the origin of the individuals and organizations involved: MIND stakeholders, tech companies, finance, impact startups, the third sector, cooperatives, philanthropic organizations, universities, research, and institutions.
Since its first edition, the Campus has been organized in collaboration with MIND Arexpo, Lendlease, Human Technopole, IRCCS Galeazzi – Sant’Ambrogio Hospital, the University of Milan, and the Polytechnic University of Milan. The 2024 edition is being held with the support of Microsoft and UnipolSai, in partnership with Coopfond, Fondo Sviluppo, General Fond, Umana, and UniCredit as main sponsors; and A2A Life Company, CMB Carpi, Gruppo CAP, CVING, UNES – il Viaggiator Goloso®, and Valore Italia as sponsors. It has received funding from the Lombardy Region and the patronage of ASviS – Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development, the Metropolitan City of Milan, and the Municipality of Milan. The cultural program is organized and promoted in collaboration with numerous content partners from the world of philanthropy, the third sector, civil economy, training, and innovation: AVIS Regionale Lombardia, BEEurope, Cariplo Factory, Cesvip Lombardia, Consorzio Nazionale CGM, CSVnet Lombardia, CSV Milano, Salone della CSR e dell’Innovazione Sociale, Drimlab, Enaip Lombardia, Europe Direct, European Commission's Joint Research Centre, Finlombarda, Fondazione Cariplo, Fratello Sole Scarl, Fondazione Social Venture GDA, ITS Angelo Rizzoli Academy, ITS Meccatronica Lombardia, ITS Move Academy, Legambiente Lombardia, Manageritalia Lombardia, Net, Rold Academy, Scuola di Restauro di Botticino, Università degli Studi di Milano Bicocca. The Campus is also made possible thanks to the technical support of Epson, Il Portico Cooperativa Sociale, Mimesi – Media Intelligence, Mondovisione Soc Coop Soc Onlus, Planeat.eco, Smacrent, Stripes Coop Sociale Onlus, and Zero Impack. Media partners are Askanews, Nòva-Il Sole 24 Ore, and Vita non profit.
