On Friday 22 May 2026, starting from 9.00 am, the UniMe Sustainability Day will be held at the central building of the University, an annual event promoted by the University of Messina, a member of the Network of Universities for Sustainable Development (RUS), dedicated to the valorisation of the numerous teaching activities, research and third mission attributable to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations 2030 Agenda.
The initiative is part of the national calendar of events promoted by ASviS – Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development, within the framework of the Sustainable Development Festival, the most important Italian event dedicated to these themes and official contribution to the European Sustainable Development Week (ESDW).
UniMe Sustainability Day 2026 aims to strengthen critical awareness of the challenges posed by the current development model, fostering opportunities for information, dialogue, and interdisciplinary discussion. Throughout the day, professionals, university students, and secondary school students will be involved in seminars, workshops, and outreach activities organized by the University's Departments, Centers, and offices, structured around five strategic thematic areas: Resources and Environment, Mobility, Energy, Inclusion, and Health.
«UniMe Sustainability Day – declared the Rector, Professor Giovanna Spatari – represents a now structural moment in the University's programming and an important opportunity for dialogue with the local community. The University is called upon to train aware and responsible citizens: through initiatives like this, our University confirms itself as an active laboratory of good practices, in which research, training and civic commitment contribute to the construction of a more sustainable future».
«Sustainability Day – added Professor Roberta Salomone, University Delegate for Sustainability – offers a significant overview of the research and teaching activities on sustainability developed within the University of Messina. Over sixty interventions will be organized around the five main thematic areas, including expert contributions, dissemination focuses, and opportunities for discussion open to students, schools, institutions, and professionals, with the aim of stimulating the necessary cultural change underlying the ecological transition».
For the participation of university students in general dissemination events, the recognition of 0.50 CFU will be required, after registration at the entrance (starting at 9.30 am) and at the exit (starting at 1 pm).
UniMe Sustainability Day is part of a broader series of initiatives dedicated to sustainability, which will begin on Friday 16 May 2026 with the event “Go Green Go Bike – Your style, Your bike, Your way to be sustainable”: a ride from the Rectorate to Villa Pace, accompanied by a contest aimed at rewarding participants who will be able to more effectively promote sustainable mobility, through the personalization of their clothing and bicycle with green messages.
The program will then continue on May 22 and 23, 2026 with the event “Carnivorous Plants”, hosted at the Botanical Garden “Pietro Castelli” of the University of Messina, an event now in its fourteenth edition. As part of the initiative, events are planned in the Cavea dell'Orto, while illustrative panels and collections of carnivorous plants will be set up along the avenues. For both days, the Botanical Garden will be open to the public from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm, with free admission.