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Meet the team

Arturo Marzano

Arturo Marzano

Foundation Course Humanities Director

He is Associate Professor at the Department of Civilization and Forms of Knowledge, where he teaches History of the Middle East and History of the Arab-Israeli conflict. He has studied in Pisa, Paris, London, and Florence (at the Europeasn University Institute), and has lived and worked extensively in the Middle East, in particular in Jerusalem and Beirut. His research mainly deals with history of Judaism, Zionism, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the relationship between Italy and the Middle East in the XX century and he has published books and articles on several Italian and international journals. Among his hobbies, he loves movies, the sea and ice-skating, even though he is still working on that. And he loves quoting Scarlett in Gone with the wind: “After all, tomorrow is another day”.

Silvia Bruti

Silvia Bruti

Italian Language courses Director

Silvia Bruti, PhD in English from the University of Pisa, is Full Professor of English Language and Linguistics at the University of Pisa and Director of the University Language Centre. She has conducted research in the fields of text linguistics, (historical) pragmatics and applied linguistics, with a special focus on audiovisual translation, stylistics and the teaching of English. Apart from articles in national and international volumes, among her publications there are a monograph on the translation of politeness (2013) and a co-authored volume on interlingual subtitling (2017). In her little free time, she loves reading, gardening and walking in nature. Sounds a bit oldish, but she also loves shopping, travelling and partying with friends. She hates travelling by ship but would be happy to make an exception for a cruise on the Norwegian Fjords.

Marco Polini

Marco Polini

Foundation Course Science Director

He is Professor of Condensed Matter Physics at the Department of Physics of the University of Pisa. He is currently interested in electron hydrodynamics, cavity quantum electrodynamics of correlated electron systems, topological and quantum plasmonics, and quantum effects in energy storage. In his spare time, Marco is a Sommelier. He is particularly interested in the work of family-run wineries throughout the world and he visits, on a yearly basis, the Champagne wine region in the northeast of France. Marco has a beautiful daughter, he is passionate about amateur boxing, and his dream is to drive from Pisa to Ulaanbaatar (and back….!).

Paola Cappellini

Paola Cappellini

Foundation Course Administrative Coordinator

She is the Head of International Cooperation of the University of Pisa. She has a post graduate specialization in Public and Political Communication and studied in Pisa and London. She is in charge of promoting and strengthening the collaboration with international partners, Student’s Exchange Agreements, Joint, Double Degrees and PhD, Fulbright scholarships, Scolarships to do thesis/obtain ECTS credits abroad, Staff mobility for teaching/training in the framework of Erasmus +, Visiting Fellows Programme, Refugees, Summer/Winter Schools, Foundation Course Programme, Reception of foreign delegations and international partners. She loves walking before dawn, when the fog lifts, and seeing the sun rise from the mountain tops, taking the subway and getting lost downtown Beijing, enjoying sunsets on beaches at any longitude and sinking her feet into the warm sand, better with a mojito in her hands. Her soul place is somewhere south of the world.

Arianna Biancani

Arianna Biancani

Foundation Course Officer

She works at the International Cooperation Unit of the University of Pisa, in particular she is charged of the relationship with China and the other Asian Countries and the “Foundation Course” programme. She holds a degree in Political Science from the Univesrity of Florence and a master’s diploma in Management of Innovation from the Scuola Sant’Anna, Pisa. Arianna has been working in academic institutions since 2004, after some years spent in corporate communication and advertising. Out of the office she loves travelling, books, movies and exhibitions, but she is getting interested in basketball taking her son to training and matches.

Adio Terranova

Adio Terranova

Foundation Course Officer

He works at the International Cooperation Unit and he has been the Logistic Coordinator of the Foundation Course for 5 years. He has obtained a Master’s Degree in History and Civilisations and he has studied in Cardiff and Toronto. He also sometimes works for the British Council as a Supervisor/Invigilator for the IELTS sessions and he had an amazing experience as a team leader of a group of teenage students a few years ago in London. He loves animals and he would like to have a Basset Hound one day. Two of his dreams are taking a gap year to visit the whole Far East and having a dinner with Trent Reznor.

Pina Deffenu

Pina Deffenu

Italian Language Courses Administrator

She works at the Language Centre of the University of Pisa. She has been involved in the organization of the international exchange with the students of the University of Chicago, acting as a facilitator and helping them with accommodation and orientation during their stay in Pisa. Since 2007 she has been in charge of the planning and management of Italian language courses for foreign students in Pisa. As a member of the staff of the Language Centre, she has collaborated with the Foundation course from its very beginning, witnessing how it has contributed to the widening of the teaching offer of Italian courses at Language Centre. She is an avid reader, loves watching movies and taking long solitary walks in the Tuscan countryside at best while listening to a good audiobook.

Gaia Pegoraro

Gaia Pegoraro

Foundation Course Officer

She has been working at the International Cooperation Unit of the University of Pisa since December 2022, and she supports the staff in logistic, coordination and organisation of the Foundation Course. She holds a Master’s Degree in Phylosophy at the University of Pisa, and she is currently attending a bachelor’s degree in Psychological Sciences. Before getting hired at the University of Pisa, she worked in human resources and job training sector. Out of the office she is engaged in teaching artistic gymnastic, her greatest and timeless passion. In her free time she loves reading, travelling, studying cinema and attending cultural events of her beloved city.

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