Grado Looks to the Future of the Northern Adriatic
A marine drone glides across the harbour and turns heads. On 15 June 2026, the BRIGANTINE–UNIUD team brings its autonomous surface vehicle to Porto Mandracchio in Grado, Italy, for a live demonstration as part of the Goletta Verde 2026 campaign.
The demonstration offers visitors a first-hand look at how autonomous vessels can collect real-time environmental data to support biodiversity monitoring in the Adriatic Sea. The goal is to bring innovation out of the lab and into the public eye — connecting cutting-edge marine technology with the real-world challenges facing one of Europe's most ecologically sensitive coastal areas.
The event takes place in the framework of a two-day programme organised by Legambiente, dedicated to raising awareness of the environmental pressures threatening the Northern Adriatic. Alongside the drone demonstration, the programme includes educational workshops for young people and a public conference on the evening of 15 June at the National Museum of Underwater Archaeology of the Upper Adriatic, entitled "The fate of the sea in the Northern Adriatic: an ecosystem and an economy at risk".
The Grado demonstration is part of a series of public outreach activities through which the BRIGANTINE project showcases its marine monitoring technologies to stakeholders, authorities, and the wider public — building bridges between scientific research and the communities that depend on a healthy sea.
