Events and News

ISPRA makes the Geological Cartography of Italy available online at a scale of 1:100,000

The entire collection of 1:100,000-scale geological cartography is available for download in high resolution. The collection, which includes both first and second editions of the geological sheets, is accessible through the ISPRA Library's OPAC catalog.

Users can browse the OPAC catalog to search for and download individual sheets in raster format. Where available, the corresponding Explanatory Notes can also be downloaded.

Special reopening of the Salone delle Scienze

Participate in the final stages of the ongoing installation of the new ISPRA Collections itinerary.

Starting July 30, 2025, the Museum of Civilizations invites the public to a unique experience: crossing the threshold of a veritable construction site, witnessing firsthand and in real time the final stages of the ongoing installation of one of its most important scientific collections.

The exhibition currently taking shape in the Hall of Sciences of the Palazzo delle Scienze features ISPRA's Paleontological and Litho-mineralogical Collections. This exceptional collection, comprising over 150,000 specimens, including animal and plant fossils, rock and mineral samples, scientific instruments, geological surveys, busts, portraits, relics, and documents, is scheduled for inauguration on October 3rd.

ISPRA presents the fourth report on hydrogeological instability in Italy: danger and risk indicators. Understanding the territory to prevent risks

The area of Italy at risk for landslides, as defined in the Hydrogeological Planning (PAI), has increased by 15%, from 55,400 km² in 2021 to 69,500 km² in 2024, equal to 23% of the national territory. The most significant increases were recorded in the Autonomous Province of Bolzano (+61.2%), Tuscany (+52.8%), Sardinia (+29.4%), and Sicily (+20.2%) and are primarily due to more detailed studies conducted by the district basin authorities and the autonomous provinces. The areas classified as highly at risk (high P3 and very high P4) have increased from 8.7% to 9.5% of the national territory. In 2024, 94.5% of Italian municipalities are at risk of landslides, floods, coastal erosion, or avalanches.

The situation on Italian beaches is improving: in terms of coastal erosion, there are more advancing stretches (+30 km) than eroding ones.

This is the picture that emerges from the fourth ISPRA Report on "Hydrogeological Instability in Italy" - 2024 Edition - the Institute's three-year work presented this morning in Rome at the Multipurpose Hall of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers.

"A thorough understanding of landslide phenomena is the essential foundation for effective risk prevention and mitigation policies, but so is communication and information dissemination," stated ISPRA President Stefano Laporta. "Hydrogeological instability is not just a technical or structural issue; it affects the daily lives of each of us, the safety of our communities, and the prospect of a resilient environment. Active citizen involvement is essential; their contribution is invaluable on multiple fronts, from collecting timely reports from the local area to supporting the dissemination of information and participating in local emergency plans."

"The ISPRA report shows that 19.2% of the national territory is classified as being at greatest risk for landslides and floods, and Italy remains among the most exposed European countries in terms of landslides, with over 636,000 recorded landslides," stated ISPRA Director General Maria Siclari. "Indicators and maps on hydrogeological instability are taking on an increasingly important role also in the field of sustainable finance, assessment and management of physical and financial risks associated with the economic impact of extreme natural events," explained the Director General. "ISPRA data on hydrogeological instability are a fundamental tool to support public policies and strategic plannig".

Press release (ita)

Program

Hydrogeological instability in Italy: hazards and risk indicators. 2024 Edition

IdroGEO

Photo gallery

Sinkhole susceptibility map of Rome's neighborhoods updated

Many Italian cities contain "cities beneath cities," meaning tunnels, underground spaces, places of worship, and cemeteries that form an intricate network of conduits beneath the urban fabric.
These "voids" are primarily caused by the extraction of building materials and, to a lesser extent, the construction of hydraulic structures and places of worship.
When abandoned, underground spaces tend to sink, forming immense chasms.
The map, updated in July 2025, was created by ISPRA together with the CNR - IGAG Institute of Environmental Geology and Geoengineering.

Seminar "Water and Land Remediation"

The second meeting of the European project Water and Land Remediation took place today at Unem’s headquarters in Rome. The event is promoted by Unem in collaboration with IMPEL (European Network for the Implementation and Enforcement of Environmental Law), the EU-wide network of environmental authorities responsible for implementing environmental legislation. Since 2024, IMPEL has been under Italian leadership, with Marco Falconi from ISPRA serving as Chair.

Alternative energy and sustainable development: scenarios, challenges and the role of professions

Ongoing climate change and the growing need for energy transition are currently presenting Italy—and particularly southern regions—with crucial choices. Renewable energy—wind, solar, and geothermal—represent a fundamental pillar on which to build a new model of sustainable development. However, these sources are not static: they evolve, improve, and hybridize with new technologies, altering their economic, environmental, and landscape impacts.

"Land Consumption in Italy 2025" Photo Contest

A snapshot to tell the story of change

ISPRA and SNPA are renewing their photography contest initiative to engage professionals, amateurs of landscape and street photography, and anyone who wants to document the impact of land use on the landscape, how new construction sites, buildings, infrastructure, and industrial warehouses, logistics, and large-scale retail trade have profoundly altered and continue to alter the landscape.

The contest is open to all, and images can be taken anywhere in Italy with any digital or analog camera.

CARG Summer School of Geological Survey and Cartography

Monteponi (Municipality of Iglesias), September 29 and October 4-10, 2025

The Summer School aims to disseminate the methodologies and criteria of geological surveying and cartography, conceptual organization of data and digital archiving system in accordance with the criteria of the CARG Project.

The School includes: one day of distance learning, days of field surveying in small groups followed by experts, frontal lessons and practical exercises.

Campi Flegrei: Pozzuoli is one of the urban areas with the highest geological hazard index in Europe

This is confirmed by the analysis carried out thanks to the Urban Geo-climate Footprint - UGF, the tool created by ISPRA in collaboration with EuroGeoSurveys that classifies cities from a geological and climatic point of view to help them face the challenges of the future.
The Urban Geo-climate Footprint analyzed is the "geological-climatic" "footprint" that acts on a given urban area, understood as the result of the combined action of four factors: geological structure, "deep" geological processes, "superficial" geological processes and exogenous processes.

ISPRA, NGI and the GEOMME Partnership – Synergies and Opportunities for Sustainable Landslide Mitigation and Management

Presentation of Sheet 539 Mogoro of the Geological Map of Italy

On June 27, 2025, the official presentation of Sheet 539 Mogoro of the Geological Map of Italy will take place in Cagliari, curated by the Geological, Hydrogeological and Hydrographic Department of ARPAS.

Funded by ISPRA in 2020 and launched in the same year by ARPAS, the Mogoro Sheet represents an important milestone in the field of National Geological Cartography (CARG Project). It is a fundamental tool for territorial planning and an essential technical-scientific support for geologists, professionals and operators active in the territory, including in the tourism sector.

The event will begin with the official institutional greetings ceremony. Following this, an in-depth analysis of the CARG Project at a national level will be presented, with speeches by the General Director of ISPRA, Maria Siclari, Dr. Maria Teresa Lettieri, director in charge of the CAR Service, the Technical Scientific Director of ARPAS, Romano Ruggeri, and the Director of the Geological Department of ARPAS, Domenico Caracciolo.

XIX meeting of the National Network of Mining Parks and Museums - ReMi

As part of the GEOSCIENCES IR project, the 19th meeting of the National Network of Mining Parks and Museums ReMi-ISPRA will be held on 20, 21 and 22 June 2025 at the Sala Borsellino in San Cataldo (Caltanissetta), in collaboration with UNICT, UNIPA, the Gabara Park, the Municipality of San Cataldo and the patronage of the Regional Order of Geologists.

Communicating ecology with science: the Pescasseroli Charter journey at the Montefiascone Integral Ecology Festival

In view of the next edition of the European Night of Researchers, which will take place on September 26 and 27 in various Italian and foreign cities, NET - scieNcE together, in collaboration with Stampa Romana and the Rocca dei Papi Association, continues its commitment to training and dissemination on the crucial themes of Italian science and research. On June 19 and 20, as part of the Festival of Integral Ecology that will take place in Montefiascone (VT) from June 19 to 22, two training days dedicated to science will be held.

Summer School “Copernicus for Cultural Heritage"

The Department for the Geological Survey of Italy of ISPRA organizes the second edition of the Summer School “Copernicus for Cultural Heritage” – to be held in Rome, 18-20 June 2025
An international training event that combines earth observation technologies and cultural heritage protection

Geological Map of Italy: Presentation Sheets 245 “Albenga” and 213 “Genova” - Emerged and submerged areas

On June 17, 2025, the presentation of the Geological Map of Italy Sheets 245 “Albenga” and 213 “Genova” - Emerged and Submerged Areas will take place in Genoa. The presentation will be held at the “Liguri nel Mondo” Hall, Liguria Region, Via Fieschi 15 – Genoa.

The creation of Sheets 245 “Albenga” and 213 “Genoa” within the framework of an agreement between ISPRA, Liguria Region, University of Genoa and University of Pavia, represents a further important milestone of the CARG Project.

The geological cartography produced for the emerged and submerged areas and the related databases and explanatory notes contain a wealth of fundamental information, which, also through scientific innovations, constitute a new and updated framework of essential knowledge for all operators, professionals, technicians and politicians who deal with land management.

World Desertification and Drought Day 2025

This year’s World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought focuses on one of the most pressing global challenges: restoring 1.5 billion hectares of degraded land and building a $1 trillion land restoration economy by 2030.

With the theme “Restoring Land. Unlocking Opportunities,” the 2025 celebration highlights how land restoration can create jobs, increase food and water security, support climate action, and build economic resilience.

More than half of global GDP depends on healthy ecosystems. Yet every year, an area the size of Egypt degrades, causing biodiversity loss, increasing drought risk, and displacing entire communities. The ripple effects are global, from rising food prices to instability and migration.

But land restoration turns the tables. Every dollar invested in restoration generates an economic return of $7 to $30. Revitalizing land restores productivity, strengthens water cycles, and supports millions of rural livelihoods.

Annual Conference of the Section of History of Geosciences of the Italian Geological Society

From 17 to 19 June 2025, the Annual Conference of the Section of History of Geosciences of the Italian Geological Society will be held in Turin, at the Regional Museum of Natural Sciences.
The conference is organized by SGI, CNR-IGG, the Department of Earth Sciences of the University of Turin, the Regional Museum of Natural Sciences, ISPRA, SIGEA and the Sella Foundation.
The event will take place at the Regional Museum of Natural Sciences of Turin, via Accademia Albertina 15, Turin and will be followed by two days of scientific excursions.

Preview at Flowpath 2025: the new Hydrogeological Map of Italy at 1:500,000 scale

ISPRA will present the new Hydrogeological Map of Italy (CII500K), the cartography that maps the country's groundwater, during the scientific conference Flowpath 2025, scheduled in Turin from 11 to 13 June. This is an important milestone for the knowledge, management and protection of groundwater at a national level.

The CII500K was born from an intense collaboration between ISPRA and the University of Milan - Department of Earth Sciences "Ardito Desio", as part of a research agreement aimed at systematizing and harmonizing regional hydrogeological knowledge on a national scale, and was also achieved thanks to both the scientific and economic contribution of the CARG Project.

Restoration Nature between Sustainability and Economy

Is it enough to protect Nature or do we really need the Nature Restoration Law? Our species has caused enormous damage to Natural Capital, using it beyond its possibilities and significantly altering 75% of the land and 66% of the seas. According to the IUCN, in the next 30 years we could lose half a million to a million species, with catastrophic consequences at the ecosystem level. So how should we proceed?

Café Talk "Sustainable soil management practices and scientific gaps: Microbial based"

The first of the Café Talks that will be organized by the MONALISA Knowledge Community will take place on June 6th. This event will address the issues related to sustainable soil management practices and scientific gaps: microbial-based solutions and will start a discussion among participants on how the MONALISA project can facilitate the development of these practices.

European Parliament Environment Committee approves Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive

On 4 June, the European Parliament's Environment Committee voted on the provisional agreement reached between the Council and Parliament on the directive establishing a framework for monitoring soil health in Europe and for the definition in all Member States of a management system for monitoring, sampling, analysis and management of information and data flows. The aim is to improve soil resilience through sustainable soil management, combating land consumption and managing contaminated sites.

The proposal, which maintains the ambitious and non-binding objective of achieving healthy soils by 2050, will have to be voted on for final passage by the Parliament's Plenary.

Landslides: What we know and what we do to defend ourselves; what we should know and do to defend ourselves better

XLII Enivorment Day

On June 5, on the occasion of World Environment Day, the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei organizes the conference "Landslides: what we know and what we do to defend ourselves; what we should know and do to defend ourselves better". The aim of the meeting is to take stock of the knowledge and technological capabilities to recognize, map, monitor and predict landslides and their impacts; to evaluate the obstacles to a full application of the available knowledge and technologies; to identify and analyze the knowledge gaps and the technological and organizational needs; and to indicate possible research and technological development activities, as well as organizational and management ones, for a more effective risk reduction, in the context of ongoing and expected environmental, climatic, economic and social changes.

ISPRA participates in the Eighth Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GP2025) underway in Geneva

Taking place from 2 to 6 June 2025, in Geneva, Switzerland, the Eighth Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GP2025) is organized and convened by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). The theme of GP2025 is “Every day matters, acting for resilience today”. The United Nations General Assembly recognizes the Global Platform as a global multi-stakeholder forum to review progress in the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. At the Platform, Governments, the United Nations system and all relevant stakeholders come together to share knowledge and discuss the latest developments and trends in disaster risk reduction, identify gaps and make recommendations to further accelerate the implementation of the Sendai Framework.

The GP2025 agenda will be guided by the Sendai Framework, in particular its objective, the four priorities for action and the seven global targets, as well as the key priorities identified in the mid-term review of the Sendai Framework, the GP2022 Co-Chairs' Synthesis and the Regional Platforms meetings held in 2024.

Potentially contaminated sites: ISPRA launches Rocks, the first software on intervention priorities

The conference will present the “Operational manual of national intervention priority criteria for potentially contaminated sites” which describes the national risk-based screening model, with related ROCKS application software, developed by ISPRA, to identify intervention priorities in potentially contaminated sites, in compliance with the requirements of article 199, paragraph 6, letter a) of Legislative Decree 152/06.

Urbe, volcanoes and mammoths: the metamorphoses of the ancient Appian Way

The Appia Antica, one of the most fascinating archaeological parks in the world, will be the narrative center of a trek led by university professors and researchers from ISPRA. The change in the landscape will be investigated with the help of zoology, geology and urban planning to account for the multiple perspectives from which the history of the Regina Viarum can be read.

On July 21, 2024, after a process lasting about 3 years, the Regina Viarum will be included in the places protected by UNESCO as a world heritage site. It joins the other 67 places recognized in Italy.

To celebrate this important recognition, ISPRA, as part of the NET European Night of Researchers project, will organize three scientific excursions led by researchers.

XVII National Mining Day

National Mining Day, the annual event dedicated to the valorization and promotion of mining tourism as a cultural heritage, celebrates its XVII edition this year, testifying to an ever-growing interest throughout Italy.

The initiative is promoted by REMI, ISPRA, in cooperatio with AIPAI, ANIM, ASSORISORSE, G&T, MASE and with the sponsorship of prestigious istitutions such as European Route of Industrial Heritage ERIH, Consiglio Nazionale dei Geologi CNG, EuroGeoSurveys EGS, and AMODO Alleanza per la Mobilità dolce

Also for this edition, the Day will take the form of a rich program of events distributed throughout the country, culminating in the creation of a "National Calendar" that will collect all the initiatives proposed by participating Sites, Museums and Mining Parks.

With IdroGEO you can know if the area where you live is at risk of landslides and floods

The IdroGEO platform allows the consultation, download and sharing of data, maps, reports, documents of the Inventory of Landslide Phenomena in Italy - IFFI, of the national maps of danger for landslides and floods and of the risk indicators. In the "Pericolosità a rischio" section, it is possible to view the levels of danger for landslides and floods on a map. The user can search for an address, geolocate themselves, query the data, create a report and verify the danger at a point of interest by viewing the perimeter of the geographical areas that could be affected by the flooding of a watercourse.

XXXII National Congress INU

The XXXII National Congress is intended as a decisive moment of discussion for the future of urban planning in Italy. The key theme will be the “Useful Plan”, a concept that recalls the urgency of rethinking urban planning tools in light of the concrete needs of communities and emerging global challenges.

From residual risk to acceptable risk: new perspectives in landslide risk management

On May 16, 2025, ISPRA is organizing, together with CNR, ARPA Lombardia, the Autonomous Region of Valle d'Aosta, the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, the Autonomous Province of Trento, the University of Milan Bicocca and the National Council of Geologists and Engineers, a conference on hydrogeological instability entitled "From residual risk to acceptable risk: new perspectives in landslide risk management".

Soil: an invisible and precious resource

In order to offer a contemporary look at the relationship between Man and Nature, Prof. David Grohmann and Eng. Andrea Margaritelli curate a series of meetings at the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria, where researchers and professionals meet to analyze the problems and emergencies that concern the environment.