UNIDO ITPO Italy joined, in collaboration with its partners Apulia Region and Acquedotto Pugliese, the contest “SETE: 100 ideas to save the world” organized by Startup Italia within the context of Accadueo, the international reference event for the water sector supply chain.

In the weeks before the award ceremony — held on 27th November 2024 in Bari, Apulia, when the winning startup Blue Eco Line was announced — UNIDO ITPO Italy supported in the evaluation of all candidatures from innovators including startups, SMEs, research centers, university spinoffs, and other stakeholders committed to advancing a sustainable management of water resources.

"Water is the central theme: just think of drought, which will be increasingly felt not only in the Mediterranean area" commented Dino Fortunato, Chief Technical Advisor of UNIDO ITPO Italy, during his institutional remarks at the award ceremony. "The skills of the Apulian territory and the specific know-how of the Region (which led us, for example, to work together on a project to safeguard aquifers in Cuba), together with the ideas that come from the young people who took part in the SETE project, can therefore provide solutions to improve irrigation efficiency, exploit AI and algorithms for agriculture 4.0 projects, reuse wastewater in crops or recover sources in the most vulnerable areas."