Prof. Carlo Rizzuto is awarded the 14th century seal of the city of Trieste (Press review)
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“For leading Sincrotrone with great skill and intelligence, overcoming major hurdles and achieving important milestones”. With these words, the Mayor of Trieste Roberto Cosolini conferred the 14th century seal of the city to Prof. Carlo Rizzuto, president of Sincrotrone Trieste. |
During the brief but important ceremony that took place today (Wednesday, 18 July) in the salotto azzurro of Town Hall, with many of Prof. Rizzuto’s friends and colleagues in attendance -including Sincrotrone CEO Alfonso Franciosi-, the Mayor reminisced about his longstanding friendship with Prof. Rizzuto, and was particularly pleased to bestow the city’s appropriate recognition upon “a scientist who combined characteristics that are often rare in the world of research: a business mentality and the drive to obtain results”. Mayor Cosolini also reiterated the strong links between the city and scientific research, a link that Trieste needs to appreciate even more, in order to take full advantage of this aspect of research. “This recognition –concluded Cosolini- seals your acquired Triestine citizenship”, and testifies to “your close relationship with the city, and for this Trieste is grateful”.
On his part, Prof. Rizzuto recalled his transition “from an introverted Genoese to an extroverted Triestine”, and stressed that “in pushing for scientific research, we must pay more attention to social interaction”. While reiterating that “saying that we’ll make technology transfers is one thing, but actually doing it is another” and confirming Trieste’s commitment to being the headquarters for an European research agency, Sincrotrone’s president stressed once again the great successes obtained in building and launching “Fermi”, the new, one-of-a-kind free electron laser. Finally, Prof. Carlo Rizzuto wrote some meaningful words in the city’s Golden Book: “ I would like to thank Trieste for its open-mindedness and its attitude towards science”.
Carlo Rizzuto has been president of Sincrotrone Trieste since 1999, member of the Experts’ Committee for Research Policy (Comitato di Esperti per la Politica della Ricerca - CEPR), and president of the Technical and Scientific Committee for the Dissemination of Scientific Culture of the Ministry for Research and Universities. His activities on Trieste’s behalf include the establishment of Sincrotrone and the TASC laboratory of the National Institute for Condensed Matter Physics (now part of the National Research Council), which were the two major driving engines behind Trieste’s current position on the national and international scientific scene. This was achieved by Carlo Rizzuto in the 1980s and ‘90s, as the president of various national bodies involved in physics, such as the National Group on the Structure of Matter, the National University Committee’s Physics Committee, and the National Consortium for Condensed Matter Physics (INFM). Since 1987 (when Sincrotrone and TASC were built), Trieste has attracted over 500 million euros’ worth of investments. All of the activities carried out by Rizzuto have always had a strong European and international scope, thanks in part to his presidency of the Science and Technology Group of the Central European Initiative (CEI), based in Trieste, and of the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructure (ESFRI), both intergovernmental bodies.
COMTS - Giovanni Cernoia