The 10th edition of the Italian Business Forum, which was held in Ljubljana on 18 April 2023 in the Aula Magna of the Jožef Stefan Research Institute, received very positive echoes in the local press. The traditional appointment between entrepreneurs and researchers from the two countries was organized by the Italijansko-Slovenski Forum, a non-profit association that connects and develops bilateral relations between Italy and the Slovenia in the fields of culture, science, economy and tourism. At the center of the conference – with the title Accelerating Good Innovation - economic growth, productivity through innovation and robotics within the context of the European Green Deal, and a space dedicated to startups. As part of its activities, last autumn the Italian-Slovenian Forum organized a conference in Nova Gorica to promote dialogue on the economic implications of the European Capital of Culture 2025, a prestigious nomination that Nova Gorica will share with Gorizia.
Even on that occasion, which was attended by Ambassador Carlo Campanile, the Forum aimed to promote cross-border dialogue, with particular attention to the economic involvement of the Gorizia area in both countries. The Italian Business Forum is traditionally organized under the patronage of the Embassy of Italy in Slovenia and in collaboration with the Italian Trade Agency in Ljubljana.
In the framework of an ever so positive economic cooperation between the two countries, ample space of the event was dedicated to sustainable growth. The conference was opened by the President of the Italijansko-Slovenski Forum Jurij Giacomelli and introduced by Ivo Michele Polacco, Chargé d’Affairs of the Italian Embassy. The important bilateral scientific and technological cooperation agreement that the Jožef Stefan Institute, recently signed with the Italian CNR, was also mentioned.
Among the important topics covered by the Forum, a special attention was given to the Hydrogen Valley in the Northern Adriatic - a cross-border project involving Slovenia, Croatia and the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region that is going to receive a significant contribution by EU funds. In her speech, the Director of the Italian Trade Agency in Ljubljana underlined the significant trade data between Slovenia and Italy, that in 2022 exceeded 13 billion euros - and the growth rate of the Slovenian GDP: both data point to further growth opportunities for the economic and commercial cooperation between the two Countries. On the research side, great interest was raised by Professor Antonio Bicchi, one of the best-known Italian scientists at an international level in robotics and intelligent machines.
