Our story.
Where we come from, what we do, and what we stand for.
RURINNOVA was founded in 2023 as a benefit corporation and an official spin-off of the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna in Pisa, at the intersection of scientific research and field-based application. We bring academic knowledge and sound methodologies beyond academia, making them usable for farms and agri-food businesses, public bodies, and local communities.
We are an accredited agricultural advisory organisation and a recognised training provider. We operate within European and international knowledge and innovation networks and are part of the European Forum for Agricultural and Rural Advisory Services (EUFRAS).
We turn research and experimentation into practical tools that support more robust decision-making. Our goal is to enable more sustainable and resilient production and organisational models, delivering results that can be monitored and verified over time.
Being a
Benefit Corporation.
RURINNOVA is a Benefit Corporation: under our bylaws, we pursue public benefit purposes alongside our economic objectives.
This means we design our projects and services to create measurable social value in the public interest without separating it from long-term economic sustainability.
We do this by supporting the transition of rural businesses and territories, building knowledge networks across public and private actors, promoting skills transfer and the adoption of technological solutions, and investing in the organisational well-being of the people who work with us.
Public Benefit Commitments:
RESILIENCE & SUSTAINABILITY
We support businesses and territories through the transition, safeguarding ecosystems and biodiversity.TERRITORIAL NETWORKS
We collaborate with public and private actors to build shared knowledge and accessible information.SKILLS & TECHNOLOGY
We promote knowledge transfer and the adoption of advanced solutions for the sustainable and digital transition.ORGANISATIONAL WELL-BEING
We invest in well-being and strong relationships with employees, staff, and collaborators.ALLIANCES FOR IMPACT
We work in synergy with non-profit organisations to strengthen their development and amplify their impact.Spin-off of the
Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies (Pisa).
RURINNOVA was established as an official spin-off of the Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa.
This connection links us to a research and knowledge-transfer ecosystem that, over the years, has fostered collaborations with businesses and public bodies, generated numerous spin-off companies, and built a significant patent portfolio.
For us, this means taking methods, evidence, and innovation beyond academia, translating them into operational tools, field-based experimentation, and adoption pathways within local and rural contexts.
RURINNOVA operates as an independent company: spin-off status reflects our origins and our ongoing connection to this heritage of expertise and networks.
The school:
- Times Higher Education Young University Rankings 2024: 1ª in Italia, 7ª in Europa, 13ª nel mondo
- Interdisciplinary Science Ranking 2025: 3ª in Italia, 49ª nel mondo.
Our team.
RURINNOVA brings together technical, scientific, and managerial expertise working in an integrated way-from problem definition through to implementation. We ensure continuity and accountability: those who design a project also support its delivery, using indicators and monitoring frameworks to make results and impacts measurable and verifiable. Connected to international research, we adapt methods and innovations to local contexts.
Marco Pilloni
Andrea Saba
Andrea Sanna
Federica Mura
Andrea Carolina Zuniga
Scientific and Strategic Advisory Board.
The Technical-Scientific and Strategic Advisory Board is a consultative body that supports our team on methodology, priorities, and the assessment of results and impacts, ensuring a strong link between operational work, research, and innovation networks.