U*Night - The UNITA Researchers' Night

The key of U*Night is inclusiveness. The project is designed to expand the outreach action of the European Researchers’ Night and maximize its impact, bringing the event to new cities and to rural, semi-rural and mountain areas that are usually less involved in this kind of event. This is possible thanks to the participation in U*Night of the members of UNITA, one of the European University Alliance, strongly committed to the valorisation of rural and mountain areas.The activities are conceived to increase the public recognition of R&D in terms of impact on citizens and communities’ daily lives: to this aim, the project will embrace the approach of Horizon Europe Missions, framing the communication in a challenge-based narrative, that translate critical issues into concrete objectives and make the researchers’ work tangible and linked to real life. U*Night will also enhance the direct participation of people to the research process, by launching a transnational citizen science project to highlight the contribution that citizens can bring to science and the benefit they can get in terms of personal development.U*Night will also promote the role of citizens as key stakeholders in the debate on societal challenges and will activate a constructive interaction with policy makers and scientists. To this aim U*Night will create concrete opportunities for opening this dialogue, by launching co-creation processes that lead to more inclusive decision policy-making. U*Night will also develop innovative training resources to support researchers in becoming better listeners to citizens’ needs and concerns and to build a stronger relationship with society.U*Night intends finally to become an open laboratory for communication and outreach practices, where the partners can pioneer innovative actions but also nurture a stronger culture of public engagement within the European academia through the direct connection of UNITA with all the other European university Alliances