From 2 to 6 November 2026, the University of Turin hosted the VISION Staff Week – VIrtual Reality and AI for Staff InnovatiON – an international programme for technical and administrative staff focusing on digital transformation in higher education.
The initiative welcomed 17 participants from institutions in Italy, Romania, Spain and Ukraine. The Italian group included staff from the University of Turin, the Politecnico di Torino within the UNITE! Alliance, and the University of Catania within the EUNICE Alliance.
International participants came from several UNITA partner universities: Transilvania University of Brașov and the West University of Timișoara in Romania, the University of Zaragoza in Spain, and Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University in Ukraine.
The programme combined seminars, workshops and hands-on activities on artificial intelligence, virtual reality and 3D modelling. Participants experimented with immersive three-dimensional environments and AI-powered interactions, while examining how these technologies can support teaching, learning, university services and administrative processes.
The interdisciplinary approach was central to the Staff Week. Academics, researchers and technical specialists connected technological experimentation with perspectives from educational sciences, philosophy, linguistics and law. Discussions addressed AI ethics, the evolving regulatory framework and the organisational choices required to integrate new tools responsibly into university practices.
Multilingual communication and intercomprehension were also explored as essential competences for professionals working across institutions and countries.
The programme also connected professional development with the host city. Visits to the Egyptian Museum, the Cesare Lombroso Museum and the Museum of Human Anatomy, together with a tour in the University of Turin Rectorate, created informal opportunities for discussion while introducing participants to Turin’s cultural and scientific heritage.
VISION demonstrated the practical value of European university cooperation: sharing expertise, building professional networks and developing common responses to challenges affecting higher education. By investing in staff development, the initiative supported the professionals who enable universities to fulfil their core missions in education, research and engagement with society.
The Staff Week was organised by the Department of Philosophy and Educational Sciences, the LIFE Laboratory, the Teaching and Learning Center, the Master’s Programme in Ethics and Artificial Intelligence, the UNITA Office and the University of Turin’s Staff Training Office.
