At the beginning of this Business Year, we realised our beloved AS Forlì-Bologna was about to turn 5 years-old. Even though the first idea of founding the Local Group dates to 2017, due to bureaucratical problems it was officially founded only on January 16th, 2019. Celebrating this important achievement was a must, and thus, the Lustrum was organised on April 13th, 2024.
The Lustrum had the scope to strengthen our bonds with many institutions and associations in Forlì, as well as companies. It also gave the opportunity to old members to catch up with the association’s activities and interact with the current members by sharing their experience. The event started early in the morning at the Teaching Hub, a building of the University of Bologna in Forlì. After a warm welcome from the organisers and volunteers to all the guests, our president Francesco Cuttitta, gave the welcoming speech to the audience along with the authorities from the Emilia-Romagna region, the city of Forlì, and the University of Bologna.
Following the welcoming speech, a presentation from EUROAVIA on both an international and local level was performed. On the international side, we had the honour to host Leo Buchner and Amanda Román Navarro, the current International Board President and Treasurer, who gave an overview of EUROAVIA’s activities and its network. On the local level, former Local Board Presidents presented the history of our association, along with the EUROAVIA Forlì-Bologna History Book prepared for the occasion.
At this point, the event was divided into two parallel activities. In the conference room, three discussions related to the aerospace field were held with three different panels, while in the corridors of the Teaching Hub, the participants had the chance to join a company fair where they could interact with different companies and associations to get introduced to their activities and the opportunities they offer. EUROAVIA International, Novac, Nanoprom, Cshark, Zephir, NPC Spacemind, Associazione Arma Aeronautica, AIDAA, and ITAER participated with a stand at the fair.
The first panel of the day was about “Orbiting Opportunities”, focused on space economy. The speakers included: Lorenzo Ciapetti, director of Antares, research centre for industrial policies who focused on the decrease of costs to launch satellites; Fabrizio Ponti, ordinary professor of aerospace propulsion at the University of Bologna, who focused on the European Project BOOST for orbiting satellites refuelling; and Damiano Accurso, director of NPC Spacemind, who focused on the dimension reduction of satellites over the years. The discussion was mediated by Giulia Bubbolini from the MAE Project.
Following a buffet lunch at the “Volume” café, the event continued with the second panel of the day, about “AI Horizons”. The speakers included: Vincezo Basco, chief technology associate at Thales-Alenia who highlighted the pivotal role AI will play in new technological endeavours and shorter times on redesign of aerospace modules; Dario Modenini, associate professor of aerospace systems at the University of Bologna, argued that AI systems require regulations and expertise to be properly employed. The discussion was mediated by Martina Cavallucci, data scientist at Istituto Tumori della Romagna (IRST), who highlighted that it is imperative to use AI and similar tools for the analysis of macro data within the medical field.
The third panel was called “Women looking for Space”. The speakers included: Maria Pia Falaschetti, researcher at the University of Bologna; Elisabetta Perrotta, flight instructor at Leonardo Elicotteri; Alessandro Curti, CEO of Curti S.p.a; and Nicole Ticchi, president and founder of the association “She is a Scientist”. This panel was mediated by Maura Bernabei from ITAER. The discussion revolved around women’s roles in different technical fields and the need to dismantle stereotypes imposed by society in the past. This topic particularly created a lively and heartfelt debate, with many questions and contributions also coming from the audience.
After the closing ceremony of the event, we finally headed again to Volume café for an aperitif with live music from the local band “Over the Pops”. A lot of fun, singing, and dancing topped of the evening for both participants and organisers.
During these five years, AS Forlì-Bologna has demonstrated its resilience, determination, and commitment to EUROAVIA. An example of this was winning the EUROAVIA Cup for the Business Year 2022-2023, thanks to the participation of many members in international activities, with many Working Groups Coordinators including the Affiliated Societies, Communication, Design, and European Grants WGs, as well as an International Board officer. AS Forlì-Bologna also hosted the first edition of InSpace in October 2023. We hope that this celebration is only the first of many Lustrums for EUROAVIA Forlì-Bologna, and that the collaborations just initiated will continue in the future. We want to express our deepest gratitude for every participant, guest, and volunteer of the Lustrum, to make this celebration possible and a success. Finally, we wish future generations were inspired by our history and will continue the legacy of our association, with countless new successes to come.
AS Forlì-Bologna