20 years of L'ideatorio and plenty of new offers

The school year 2024-2025 marks a significant milestone for L'ideatorio. Founded in 2005, the service is celebrating its 20th year of activity. Set up as a regional antenna of the Science et Cité Foundation (a centre of competence of the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences) and in close contact with the Lugano City School District, since 2011, it has also become the service for the promotion of scientific culture at Università della Svizzera italiana (USI). Since its birth, it has been dedicated to fostering a critical and conscious dialogue between science and society.

The figures for this first twenty years are significant: L'Ideatorio has welcomed 225,000 visitors, focusing on young people. More than 6,000 school classes have explored topics such as stars, planets, neurons, and robots. The work has been continuous and not based on the urgency of scientific or technological controversies. Instead, it aimed to show how science can enrich our understanding of ourselves and the world around us, while also encouraging visitors to develop a curious yet critical view of scientific progress. This is what the Science et Cité Foundation invites visitors to do by creating opportunities for debate on all scientific topics, encouraging dialogue and understanding on the part of the public. Every year, L'ideatorio proposes countless activities ranging from visits, interactive exhibitions, planetarium shows, lectures, courses, scientific aperitifs, educational workshops to participatory projects. This year will be no different, in line with USI's strategic priorities, which - in addition to research and education - place increasing emphasis on its ties with the region, contributing to the transfer of knowledge, innovation, entrepreneurship and cultural and scientific debate in its fields of expertise. Once again, the public at L'ideatorio will be invited to discover the role of science in our lives, and schools will be offered knowledge that opens their eyes to wonder. For the past 20 years, the work carried out has been nationally recognised by the Swiss Academy of Sciences. L'ideatorio is now acknowledged as one of the four primary centres promoting STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) alongside Technorama, the Museum of Transport, and the Espace des Inventions.

Science for all: Sun, water and sustainability

In the new year, L'ideatorio will offer numerous activities in Cadro, Villa Saroli (Lugano), and USI House of Sustainability in Airolo. In Cadro, it will be possible to visit the interactive exhibition on the Sun, realised in collaboration with Istituto ricerche solari Aldo e Cele Daccò (IRSOL). The peak of solar activity taking place in recent months is certainly an excellent opportunity to talk about our star. During the afternoon of Sunday, 15 September, it will already be possible to take part in a live observation of the Sun guided by a team member of L'ideatorio. In addition, the public will have the chance to travel through the cosmos thanks to the astronomical planetarium, where new shows will be presented. Among the workshops offered to schools this year, the little ones will enjoy hands-on activities such as exploring the properties of water and engaging their senses in the refined setting of Villa Saroli. The "Astro hours" events will be combining stars and cocktails, and courses for adults and teachers, and cultural evenings dedicated to the brain (in collaboration with the Settimana del Cervello della Svizzera italiana) and sustainability (in collaboration with the USI House of Sustainability). The latter hosts a new L'ideatorio planetarium that will be able to welcome the public and schools. And while the new year has just begun, the work of L'ideatorio is already planning for the future: behind the scenes, work is already underway on proposals for 2026: an exhibition on robots and artificial intelligence and new shows in the planetarium. As of Monday, 9 September 2024, the doors of L'ideatorio will reopen to schools. As far as the public is concerned, the opening is scheduled for Saturday, 14 September. The exhibition venue in Cadro will be open on weekends from 2 pm to 6 pm.

The programme with all the activities for the year 2024-2025 is available on the website: www.ideatorio.usi.ch.