How important is technology to understand climate change and protect the environment? I-Seed project will combine bioinspired soft robotics, material science and artificial intelligence to develop new innovative robots mimicking plant seeds behaviour and able to monitor soil and climate parameters, like the presence of pollutants, humidity, CO2 levels, temperature and quality of waters. The project is coordinated by researcher Barbara Mazzolai (Italian Institute of Technology) and it involves The BioRobotics Institute of Sant'Anna School 

The main organizers of this Special Session + Extension Workshop (in alphabetic order) are Donato Romano, Assistant Professor of The BioRobotics Institute, and Thomas Schmickl, Full Professor and founder of the Artificial Life Lab, the University of Graz, Austria

The scientific collaboration between The BioRobotics Institute of Sant’Anna School and Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, has allowed the development of a bilayer hydrogel that imitates the characteristics of articular cartilage and restore its natural properties in the areas where the tissue has degenerated. The study was published in Advanced Healthcare Materials and is the result of the collaboration between the Institute of The BioRobotics Institute and Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli. "Once the hydrogel has passed all pre-clinical tests, it could be injected or implanted with a small surgery", says Diego Trucco, first author of the paper