Biodiversity and the Future of Science: The Case of the Italian National Biodiversity Future Center:

Emanuela Dal Zotto; Flavio Antonio Ceravolo; Michele Rostan

doi:10.21240/zfhe/20-4/06

This article explores the creation and operation of the Italian National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), a research infrastructure established under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). It analyses the governance, multidisciplinary collaborations, and third mission activities within the NBFC, using an ethnographic case study focused on Spoke 6. The analysis highlights the strengths and weaknesses of the Center, offering scenarios for its future sustainability after PNRR funding ends.

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

As universities worldwide face unprecedented challenges and changes – from technological upheavals to shifting societal expectations and the role of internationalisation – it is important to critically evaluate the role, structure and purpose of higher education institutions. This issue of ZFHE presents contributions that address the evolving models of higher education institutions and the various ways in which they are changing and/or adapting to a rapidly changing environment. The concept of universities as social institutions has long been the subject of scholarly inquiry, from the classical theories of Humboldt and Newman, which emphasise the role of the university in promoting intellectual growth, to more modern perspectives that view universities as dynamic actors in global knowledge economies (Gumport, Slaughter, etc.). More recent theoretical frameworks have shifted the focus to the university's ability to adapt and transform in response to external pressures, including global competition and internationalisation, digitalisation, and changes in public policy and funding models. This issue of ZFHE examines these issues from a variety of perspectives.

Authors

Emanuela Dal Zotto WWW
Università degli Studi di Pavia
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4367-8594
Flavio Antonio Ceravolo WWW
Università degli Studi di Pavia
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8143-1886
Michele Rostan
Università degli Studi di Pavia
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9030-6481

How to Cite

Dal Zotto, E., Ceravolo, F. A., & Rostan, M. (2025). Biodiversity and the Future of Science: The Case of the Italian National Biodiversity Future Center: . Zeitschrift für Hochschulentwicklung (Journal for Higher Education Development), 20(4), 133–152. https://doi.org/10.21240/zfhe/20-4/06

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