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17 June
14:30 - 16:00
Innovation with impact:
Engaging society to accelerate market readiness
This workshop will combine sharp insights with practical tools on how to engage citizens in knowledge valorisation processes. Powered by the CO-VALUE programme, you’ll discover how early citizen involvement can strengthen innovation pathways, reduce uncertainty, and improve real-world adoption.
Marzia Mazzonetto
Stickydot
16:30 -18:30
EU|BIC Impact Management Workshop
This highly interactive session will help participants understand and apply impact measurement in practice. The first hour builds a shared foundation on why impact matters and how to approach it strategically. The second hour will be hands-on group work using practical tools to map impact pathways, select meaningful KPIs, and identify concrete improvements for real programmes. Combining peer learning, facilitation, and applied exercises, the workshop ensures participants leave with clear, actionable steps to strengthen their impact management.
Florian Sora
EBN
Chiara Davalli
EBN
18 June
10:30 - 11:00
Meet the host
An informal and lively conversation offering a behind-the-scenes look at Trentino Sviluppo and the Trentino territorial ecosystem. Discover how the organisation drives innovation, supports startups and SMEs, and shapes its ecosystem through a strong focus on human-centric innovation—putting people, communities, and sustainable impact at the heart of development. Get to know the stories and vision that make this year’s host truly unique.
Luca Capra
Trentino Sviluppo
Laura Lecci
EBN
11:00 - 11:30
Keynote: Human Digitalism
This keynote introduces Human Digitalism, a people-first approach to innovation that reframes how we engage with technology. Nina Del Marr explores how entrepreneurs and ecosystem builders can balance digital progress with human values, offering insights on fostering innovation that is both technologically advanced and deeply human-centred.
Nina del Marr
Founder & Speaker
11:40 - 12:25 - Parallel session
Places in transition: Reinventing the innovation hubs
How can EU|BICs meaningfully evolve in response to a rapidly shifting social, environmental, economic, and technological landscape? As the value of innovation is increasingly beyond growth, this session focuses on the kind of innovation EU|BICs should pursue to remain relevant. Through this discussion, we will unpack what human-centric innovation means for EU|BICs, focusing both on selecting and addressing real societal needs with intention, and on strengthening territorial ecosystems by fostering inclusive, sustainable local development.
Davide Dal Maso
AVANZI
Maja Cergol Lipnik
Inkubator Sezana
Francisco Pizarro
FUNDECYT PCTEX
Mary Ryan
WestBIC
11:40 - 12:25 - Parallel session
Industry 5.0 in Action: Artifacts that work for people
This session will consider latest trends for innovation intermediaries, using the lens of Industry 5.0 as a framework based on human-centricity, sustainability and resilience, with insights to the work done at the Joint Research Centre on this topic. Expect to learn about current practices, advantages, tools, and potential roles for innovation intermediaries.
Guia Bianchi
Joint Research Centre
European Commission
12:30 - 13:00
Tech for Good: Startup pitch #1
The Italian EU|BIC Community presents 3 startups that have placed human-centric approaches and strategies at the core of their business strategies and services.
This session is delivered in collaboration with InnovUp, the association that, since 2012, has represented and united the entire Italian innovation chain.
Ecosystem partner
14:10 - 14:55 - Parallel session
Designing Trust: Co-creation and human-centric design applied to the circular economy
Achieving a circular economy requires more than technology; it relies on trust, collaboration, and active stakeholder engagement. This session explores how co-creation, public involvement, and human-centred design can drive more inclusive and effective circular initiatives, sharing practical examples, lessons learned, and real-world challenges in putting people at the heart of systemic change.
Francesca Monaco
CSIL
Davide Delaiti
European Research Executive Agency (REA)
Valentina Jacquier-Nardi
ESTIA
Olesia Drobotenko
Poltava Regional Council
14:10 - 14:55 - Parallel session
Green, Fair & Profitable: ESG as an innovation driver
ESG as the Next Competitive Frontier shifts the narrative from compliance to opportunity, highlighting how sustainability can drive Europe’s competitiveness. This session explores how SMEs and innovation ecosystems can use ESG to unlock new markets, attract sustainable finance, accelerate innovation, build resilience, and enable fair transitions—showing that ESG is not a cost, but a powerful engine for growth and leadership.
Denis Ranogajec
Entrepreneurial Centre of Krapina Zagorje County
Reginald Vossen
Business Angels Europe BAN Flanders
Maria Giovanna Sandrini
Aquafil
15:05 – 15:35
Keynote: New Services & Tools to Foster Human–Innovation Balance
This keynote by Fraunhofer Italia explores how collaborative robotics can enhance everyday life through a human-centred approach. Framed by Industry 5.0, it highlights how robots can support, not replace, people. How robots can foster inclusion, accessibility, and wellbeing, while showcasing real-world applications of user-focused, co-created technologies that bring innovation closer to human needs.
Ilaria Marcolini
Fraunhofer Italia
15:45 - 16:15
EU|BIC Excellence Award 2026
Meet the finalists of the EU|BIC Excellence Award 2026, showcasing leading examples of human-centric innovation. This session highlights standout EU|BICs embedding approaches that support entrepreneurs’ skills, diversity, inclusion, and wellbeing, sharing inspiring practices and impactful incubation models. Join the session—and cast your vote to help select this year’s winner.
Juan Carlos Martínez
CEEI Burgos
Adéla Hradilová
MSIC
Ilaria Pais
a|cube
Carla Duarte
IPN
Dirk Schaefer
University of Warwick Science Park
19 June
10:00 - 10:30
Keynote: Human-centric AI. AI We Trust. Building Responsible & Transparent Tech
As AI becomes part of everyday life, trust is a defining challenge. In this keynote, Paolo Traverso explores how to build transparent, responsible, and human-centric AI, sharing practical examples and inviting participants to rethink their role in shaping an AI future where trust drives innovation.
Paolo Traverso
Fondazione Bruno Kessler
10:45 -11:30 - Parallel session
Train the Change: Empowering people through skills & learning
Upskilling isn’t just a labour market issue: it’s an innovation imperative. This session explores how EU|BICs and other actors are rethinking training and capability-building to meet the needs of founders, teams, and regions in transition.
Caitlin McDonough
Prepr
Roberta Cuel
University of Trento
Anna Padewska-Organ
Samuel Bachelot
Atlanpole
Poznan Science and Technology Park
10:45 -11:30 - Parallel session
Measuring What Matters: Incentives for human-centric impact
This session explores how innovation ecosystems can move beyond counting activities to measuring real, human-centric impact—such as wellbeing, inclusion, and regional transformation—bringing together policy, funding, and practice to better align metrics with meaningful outcomes for people and communities.
Zuzana Zavarska
OECD
Andreea Leru
EURADA \
ADR North East RO
Antonio Lateana
Department for Cohesion Policies, Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Italy
Mate Kovač
HAMAG-BICRO
11:45 - 12:00
Tech for Good: Startup pitch #2
The Italian EU|BIC Community presents 2 startups that have placed human-centric approaches and strategies at the core of their business strategies and services.
This session is delivered in collaboration with InnovUp, the association that, since 2012, has represented and united the entire Italian innovation chain.
Ecosystem partner
12:00 - 12:30
The Empathy Dividend: Why soft skills drive hard innovation
The Empathy Dividend highlights how empathy and human connection are becoming key drivers of value in entrepreneurship support. As AI standardises tools and methods, the human factor—trust, relationships, and emotional intelligence—emerges as the true differentiator. Through a conversation between an investor and an incubator leader, the session explores how empathy generates tangible impact for founders, organisations, and society.
Cintia Mano
Angel Investor
Christian Travier
Laval Mayenne Technopole
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