Seasonal School, the new programme for winter 2026. From corporate sustainability communication to the ethics of climate change, all topics covered by intensive courses for talented students

The various topics covered by the five Seasonal Schools that will take place in January and February 2026 include: the protection of biodiversity, the relationship between innovation management and data science, the design of both wearable and non-wearable robotic solutions, and much more. Applications are already open on the Seasonal Schools' website, where you can also consult the description of each Seasonal School: BEGREEN - Beyond Greenwashing (on site classes from January 19th to 23rd), BRI - Biodiversity and Business: from Research to Impact (on site classes from January 26th to 30th); DS Inno - Data Science driven INNOvation in business and society (on site classes from February 2nd to 6th); RoboTXpower - Textile robotics for human empowerment (on site classes from February 16th to 20th); ECLIRE - The Ethics of Climate Change: Reshaping Responsibilities for Present and Future Generations (on site classes from February 23rd to 27th).

A reduction in the enrolment fee is available based on the applicant’s income certification. A 450€ scholarship provided by Il Talento all’Opera Foundation will be assigned to the three best performing participants of each course. Students coming from universities or institutions with specific agreements with Sant’Anna School are entitled to reserved places and to a 10% reduction in the enrolment costs. The partner Institutions are: Università di Catania; Università della Tuscia; Università di Trento; Fondazione Onaosi; Università di Messina; Università di Camerino; Università della Calabria; Conferenza dei Collegi Universitari di Merito; Università di Palermo; Università Della Valle D'Aosta; Università Politecnica delle Marche, Università di Siena; e Università degli Studi di Firenze. Students enrolled in Università di Pisa who do not require accommodation will be granted a 40% discount on the tuition fee.

The new Seasonal School catalogue is funded by the PNRR through the MERITA project, a network comprising the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, the Scuola Normale Superiore, the Collegio Superiore of Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, the Galilean School of Advanced Studies of the University of Padua and the School of Advanced Studies - SSAS University of Rome.

BEGREEN - Beyond Greenwashing 

Application open until December 7th and classes will take place in presence from January 19th to 23rd, 2026.

The Seasonal School equips students from diverse backgrounds with the critical skills to dissect the complexities of corporate sustainability communication and the risks of misleading environmental claims. The course takes a holistic and interdisciplinary approach, integrating managerial, legal, technical, and psychological perspectives to examine how businesses communicate their environmental commitments—and how their marketing can sometimes be deceptive. The program covers key topics such as environmental impact measurement, regulatory frameworks on green claims, corporate strategies for responsible communication, and consumer behavior in response to sustainability messaging. Through a mix of lectures, case studies, and interactive workshops, participants will critically analyze real-world examples of greenwashing, learning to distinguish between authentic sustainability efforts and eco-fraud. By the end of the course, participants will be equipped with the skills to bust greenwashing myths, hold businesses accountable, and contribute to a more transparent and ethical business environment.

BRI - Biodiversity and Business: from Research to Impact 

Application open until December 7th and classes will take place in presence from February 26th to 30th, 2026.

In the last centuries, humanity has fully explored and mapped the emerged fraction of Earth surface; today it has growing interest in exploring and exploiting the submerged fraction of the Earth as well as the nearby space regions, intensively. To this aim, engineers provide new powerful means (robots, underwater and space communication systems, new nano-satellite solutions); the exploration and exploitation of resources also pose problems relating to the biology of living beings. Moreover, a wide range of new issues arise, about the economic implications and legal implications. The Seasonal School aims to provide a concise overview of the relevant scientific challenges and development prospects in a unitary framework where issues of economic and environmental impact, potential conflicts and regulatory assessments are also addressed.

DS Inno - Data Science driven INNOvation in business and society 

Application open until December 7th and classes will take place in presence from February 2nd to 6th, 2026.

Due to technological advancements, increasing digitization, and the development of social media, as well as the widespread use of mobile devices with sensors and apps, the phenomenon of big data is becoming crucial not only for businesses but also for many sectors and society as a whole. Consequently, acquiring specific skills to effectively leverage the abundance of data in business innovation environments is particularly important. 
Although the importance of this topic in the global economy is becoming clear, the university educational offerings in the fields of innovation management and data science are still limited. To address these aspects comprehensively, it is necessary to develop skills with an interdisciplinary approach, involving scholars in management, economics, as well as computer scientists and statisticians. 
This Seasonal School aims to examine the relationship between innovation management and data science through a multi-level approach. First, this relationship will be explored at the company level through not only theoretical knowledge but especially through firsthand testimonials and site visits to large and small enterprises. Second, this relationship will be addressed at the sector level (e.g., healthcare and pharmaceuticals) and finally at the social level by presenting some direct experiences of computer scientists. To conclude, participants will also be provided with stimuli and tools of data science to understand and measure the complexity of this relationship.

RoboTXpower - Textile robotics for human empowerment 

Application open until December 7th and classes will take place in presence from February 16th to 20th, 2026.

The Seasonal School will introduce participants to the urgent topic of textile-based robotics, providing them with interdisciplinary tools to design robots based on textiles, how to leverage the unique properties of these materials to devise wearable and non-wearable robotic tools, and for the understanding of their role in human empowerment, combining engineering, biomechanical, clinical, and regulatory aspects. This objective will be pursued through a mix of theoretical lessons accompanied by hands-on laboratory activities, fulfilling the gap between theoretical and practical aspects.

ECLIRE - The Ethics of Climate Change: Reshaping Responsibilities for Present and Future Generations 

Application open until January 15th and classes will take place in presence from February 23rd to 27th, 2026.

The main objective of the Seasonal School ECLIRE is to provide compact and focused training on the social, political economic and legal aspects of climate change, analysed from a different profiles perspective according to the ethical categories, both individual and collective. 
The three training pillars of ECLIRE are individual climate ethics, global climate justice, and intergenerational responsibility. These ethical issues will be addressed in a transdisciplinary way, first through the participation of moral and political philosophers, then social scientists, economists, geographers, lawyers, social psychologists, physicists and mathematicians, policy-makers, and even climate activists. 
The climate issue will be addressed in many of its specific and most relevant topical derivations (in the form of specific focuses, providing for modes of high interaction between participants and lecturers): from the issue of energy to that of climate finance, from the declination of sustainability for citizens and businesses to biodiversity and its ethical, social and economic implications, and passing through the participation and political representation of the new generations.