The Data Research Camp 2026 of the Department of Statistics, Computer Science, Applications and the Florence Center for Data Science of the University of Florence was held on July 20-24, 2026, at the Centro Studi Ricerca e Formazione (CISL) in Florence.
It was an exciting free 5-day meeting where young scholars were prompted to explore statistics and data science and their application to extract new knowledge from complex data. During the camp, the participants worked in teams under the supervision of seven senior researchers Leopoldo Catania, Andreas Groll, Mohammad Jafari Jozani, Omiros Papaspiliopoulos, Davide Risso, Laura M. Sangalli and Veronica Vinciotti with extensive experience in various areas of statistics.
Each team will be challenged to develop innovative methods and models to analyze a common dataset, with the objective of addressing scientific questions motivated by an applied research problem. The program aims to foster collaboration, methodological development, and the exchange of ideas in a stimulating research-oriented environment.
In the current era of big data and data science, data are generated at an unprecedented pace, offering vast opportunities for discovery while simultaneously posing new scientific and methodological challenges. The new generation of researchers in Statistics will be called upon to address these challenges by contributing to the advancement of modern statistics and data science through the development of novel tools and methodologies capable of fully harnessing the potential of data.
The objective of the Data Research Camp is to bring together researchers in statistics and data science in an intellectually stimulating setting that encourages the exchange of ideas, promotes discussion, and fosters new scientific connections and interdisciplinary collaborations.
The Camp is expected to have both short- and long-term impacts, laying the groundwork for new interdisciplinary research directions and leading to cutting-edge contributions to modern statistics from both methodological and applied perspectives.
The Research Camp is supported by the excellence program “Rethinking Data Science (ReDS): advances in causal inference and statistical learning across domains” and it is endorsed by the PhD programs in Statistics of the University of Florence , Bocconi University, University of Bologna, University of Padova and Politecnico di Milano.
The Data Research Camp 2026 builds on the success of three previous editions. The 2024 edition was organized by the Department of Statistics, Computer Science, Applications and the Florence Center for Data Science at the University of Florence, while the earlier 2019 and 2022 editions were organized by the Department of Statistical Sciences of the University of Padua (see the websites of the 2019 and 2022 editions).
Senior Group Leaders
Leopoldo Catania
Aarhus University, Denmark
Andreas Groll
Dortmund University, Germany
Mohammad Jafari Jozani
University of Manitoba, Canada
Omiros Papaspiliopoulos
Bocconi University, Italy
Davide Risso
University of Padova, Italy
Laura M. Sangalli
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Veronica Vinciotti
University of Trento, Italy
Dataset expert
Francesco Denti – University of Padova
Organizing Committee
Alberto Cassese (University of Florence – Florence Center for Data Science)
Daniele Castellana (University of Florence – Florence Center for Data Science)
Anna Gottard (University of Florence, Director of the Florence Center for Data Science)
Alessandra Mattei (University of Florence – Florence Center for Data Science)
Fabrizia Mealli (European University Institute – Florence Center for Data Science)
Carla Rampichini (University of Florence – Florence Center for Data Science)
Francesco Sera (University of Florence – Florence Center for Data Science)
Organizing Secretariat
Marta Mascalchi
University of Florence
marta.mascalchi@unifi.it
Scientific Committee
Antonio Canale – University of Padova
Alberto Cassese – University of Florence
Daniele Castellana – University of Florence
Anna Gottard – University of Florence
Alessandra Luati – Imperial College London and University of Bologna
Alessandra Mattei – University of Florence
Fabrizia Mealli – European University Institute
Raffaella Piccarreta – Bocconi University
Carla Rampichini – University of Florence
Nicola Sartori – University of Padova
Piercesare Secchi – Politecnico di Milano
Francesco Sera – University of Florence