BRIGHT NIGHT 2026 – Florence, 25-26/09/2026
From 3:00 PM on September 25, 2026, to 8:00 PM on September 26, 2026, “Bright Night“—the European Researchers’ Night in Tuscany—returns to Piazza Santissima Annunziata in Florence (Stand No. 26). This initiative, promoted by the European Commission, brings research out of the laboratories and into public squares, museums, schools, and everyday settings each year. Thanks to a collaboration with the University of Florence, the CNR Research Area will be present in Piazza Santissima Annunziata with various activities proposed by the area’s many institutes. These will be hosted at a single stand open to the public on Friday, September 25, and Saturday, September 26, from 3:00 PM until the evening.
Researchers from the CNR-ICCOM Sesto Fiorentino will present technologies for environmental care, featuring examples of transparent and colored solar cells:
- The Colors of Energy — Friday, Sept. 25, 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
- Unchained Plastics — Friday, Sept. 25, 8:30 PM – 11:00 PM
- Energy Carriers and Where to Find Them — Saturday, Sept. 26, 3:00 PM – 5:30 PM
Additionally, the exhibition “Illustrating Science: A Journey through Images, Science, and Publishing” will be part of Bright Night. The exhibition showcases drawings created by students from the “Porta Romana” and Sesto Fiorentino State Art High Schools, offering a journey that blends art and research. Working alongside researchers from the CNR and the University of Florence (Unifi), the students interpreted scientific themes and created original cover art for the journals that will publish the research findings. The exhibition will be open to visitors from Wednesday, September 23 to Friday, September 25, 2026, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM and from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Palazzo Bastogi, Via Camillo Cavour 18, Florence.
Guided tours are available (until 6:00 PM) by emailing andrea.ienco@cnr.it
Organized by:
CNR Research Area of Florence
Institutes of the CNR Research Area of Florence and LaMMA Consortium
Organizer contact:
Dr. Andrea Ienco, CNR-ICCOM (andrea.ienco@cnr.it)
Further information at: https://www.cnr.it/it/evento/20726/bright-night-2026-a-firenze-in-piazza-con-la-ricerca-e-la-mostra-illustra-la-scienza