Tor Vergata University (UNITOV), established in 1981, is located in the south-eastern part of Rome in a 600 hectare campus far from the hectic city centre, which has allowed the university to expand and develop over the years. As one of the largest research based institutions in Italy, Tor Vergata University is an international centre for research and education and it is well known for scientific studies. In recent years, it has played an increasingly important role in the activity of technology transfer and cooperation with public and private organisations in various fields.

The University of Rome “Tor Vergata” offers six degree courses in Humanities, Medicine, Engineering, Sciences, Economics and Law. A good balance between the scientific and the humanistic faculties makes academic relations extremely fruitful and stimulating. The University of Tor Vergata wishes to be distinguished from other Roman and Italian universities as a residential university in which professors and students alike live in close contact in an environment that is stimulating for all. Thanks to its several international relations all over the world, the University of Rome “Tor Vergata” receives many foreign students and researchers every year.

Sustainability is the subject of different activities in the Campus. Besides the research and teaching activities available in the different Departments, UNITOV is a member of the UNICA Green Academic Footprint initiative which comprises a number of projects on the Sustainability going on in the Universities of the European Capitals as well as different lighthouse project in cooperation with the National Government. UNITOV is also participating the Erasmus Mundus project Networking on Environmental Safety & Sustainability Initiative for Engineering (NESSIE) aiming to training high-qualified researchers and engineers by fostering cutting-edge scientific research for identifying, evaluating and monitoring the interface between anthropic activities and their impacts on natural resources.

UNITOV also develops several initiatives focusing the biodiversity conservation. UNITOV is one of the Italian partners who contributed to the creation of Life Watch: the E-Science and Technology European Research Infrastructure Consortium for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research "LifeWatch ERIC", which involves several European countries. UNITOV also leads a Joint Research Unit for a specific cooperative initiative with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in the frame of the project “Cold Code”, aimed at the DNA barcoding of amphibians and reptiles from Italy, China and rest of the world and it is base for an International project for the evolutionary genetics and conservation of the land iguanas from Galápagos Island, in tight partnership with the Galápagos National Park (Ecuador).

Role of UNITOV in the project:

• Contribute to the mapping exercise in Italy.
• Assist in the development of an online platform of resources as well as get familiarised and review the online tool.
• Contribute to the bi-annual newsletters.
• Provide feedback to the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) framework.
• Contribute to the dissemination and exploitation of the project outputs, outcomes and future network activities.
• Participate and actively contribute to the discussions generated in regional and annual meetings, seminars and conference.

Operational and financial management:

• The project team will coordinate the above administrative and academic project activities.
• Financial administration will be handled by the project team who will liaise internally with the institution’s finance department.