From 28 to 30 September 2026, the University of Calabria (UNICAL) hosted the third annual EUPeace Conference, “Global warming and its impact: Connections with emerging conflicts, migrations, and health issues”. At the Beniamino Andreatta Congress Centre, researchers, experts and institutional representatives from across the Alliance and beyond came together to examine the far-reaching consequences of the climate crisis.
Opening the conference, UNICAL Rector Professor Gianluigi Greco reaffirmed the University’s commitment to the EUPeace Alliance as a space for collaborative dialogue on pressing societal issues. “Addressing a challenge as multifaceted as climate change requires a dedicated platform; EUPeace offers precisely the space needed to tackle such structural complexities,” he said.
A shared effort
Scientific Coordinator Professor Cesare Indiveri expressed his great satisfaction at hosting the international conference in Calabria and thanked Professor Alfonso Senatore, who organised and promoted the initiative at UNICAL.
Climate change as a driver of social inequality
In her keynote lecture on the first day, Pooja Jha, Editor-in-Chief of The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, highlighted the dramatic consequences of climate change and its connections with wider social phenomena. She showed how climate impacts intersect with issues that may at first appear unrelated, such as gender disparities and global health inequities. “Connecting climate change with social issues like gender disparity highlights the profound nature of the challenge and the imperative for immediate intervention,” Jha emphasised, underlining the need for interdisciplinary approaches to public health and social justice.
Contact
The first day also featured keynotes by Carlo Buontempo (Copernicus Climate Change Service, ECMWF) on how real-time climate data is changing what society knows and expects, and by Anna Pinnarelli (University of Calabria) on driving the green transition through EU recovery funds and the “Tech4You” innovation ecosystem.
Interdisciplinary perspectives
On 29 September, keynotes by Harald Kunstmann (KIT Campus Alpin), Eva Østergaard-Nielsen (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona) and Stefano Clò (University of Florence) broadened the dialogue across environmental, social and economic dimensions, from the regional water cycle and malaria transmission to migrant agency and the role of institutions in managing disasters.
From dialogue to co-created solutions
On the final day, three Creative Spaces invited participants to work together with civil-society partners on concrete challenges: health and peace in times of polycrisis, migrant labour exploitation and regional depopulation in Calabria, and climate communication for just and inclusive futures.
By bringing together diverse disciplines within the EUPeace Alliance, the conference opened new pathways for joint research, policy-relevant dialogue and regional engagement in responding to climate-driven disruption.
