Il Litorale: an outpost of USI in the heart of Lugano
Institutional Communication Service
26 November 2018
On November 27, at the Quartiere Maghetti in Lugano, in front of a numerous and varied audience of USI stakeholders, Rector Boas Erez presented "Il Litorale", a pilot project that the University intends to develop at the heart of the City of Lugano. The spaces that USI will set up are suitable for "co-working" and "makerspace" activities, as well as for meetings between a variety of actors: startuppers, students, faculty, businesses, investors, or more generally citizens interested in interacting with USI. In addition to the 'tenants', from April 2019 activities will be organized on a regular basis, proposed both by USI and by the community of practice that will be developed at the premises.
"Il Litorale" (seaboard) is a term that evokes the concept of the joining of land and sea, therefore of permeability, but also of a landing place - for the traveler seeking to settle down - and of new beginnings - for the pioneer seeking to explore new horizons. The project at the Quartiere Maghetti is part of the future collaboration with the City of Lugano for the requalification project of the former "Macello" area (the city abatoir), and heeds to the vision of USI as a 'Way to the Future' and its mission to return a service to the region through the transfer of knowledge, which can be implemented in at least three ways: by fostering social interaction and integration among USI students, by providing greater permeability between academia and civil society, and by supporting entrepreneurship.
