Terra Incognita
The festival that weaves science, culture, music, and community in Fidenza
About Terra Incognita
A festival to truly think again
In the heart of the Bassa Parmense, Terra Incognita is the cultural and scientific event that has enlivened Fidenza, a city in the province of Parma in Emilia-Romagna, since 2019. The idea behind it is both simple and ambitious: to bring together writers, scientists, journalists, musicians, and artists to engage in dialogue, build relationships, and imagine scenarios, in the spirit of renewed responsibility towards the Planet. The festival's subtitle makes it clear: science, culture, music, and community to break free from noise and truly think again.
A different theme each edition
The strength of Terra Incognita lies in its annual guiding thread, a compass-theme that directs all the meetings. Previous themes have included dreaming of the earth and imagining bridges, and for 2026 the festival chooses the title NutriMenti (Nutri-Minds/Nutri-Foods): a reflection on the nourishment we truly need, as individuals and as a community, to face tomorrow. Food and power, ultra-processed foods, transformations of digital work, the patient's role in future medicine, the bioluminescence of plankton, Italy's energy scenarios: the topics range from science to society without ever losing the thread of critical thinking.
An entire city becomes a stage
The events are spread across Fidenza's most beautiful locations. The Teatro Magnani hosts the main evenings and openings; the Ridotto del Teatro hosts more intimate meetings; Piazza Garibaldi, with its tent, becomes the festival's agora. Over the years, the program has also involved the Museo del Risorgimento and the MuMAB, the Museum of Ancient Seas and Biodiversity, with citizen science workshops for schools.
Science, community, and zero-km products
- Meetings with prominent national authors, researchers, and communicators
- Workshops, including those dedicated to artificial intelligence
- Original exhibitions set up for the occasion
- Musical moments, from classical music to dialogues between art and science
- The zero-km market Solidalia, in a special edition for the festival
Promoted by the Municipality of Fidenza with the support of local partners, Terra Incognita is a free admission event that has carved out a specific niche in the cultural festival scene of Emilia-Romagna: a place where quality dissemination meets the pleasure of community.
Terra Incognita — edition 2026
NutriMenti: what truly nourishes us
The 2026 edition of Terra Incognita brings the theme NutriMenti to Fidenza and attempts to answer an essential question: what nourishment do we truly need, as individuals and as a community, to face tomorrow? Nineteen meetings weave together science, culture, music, and community, addressing the relationship between food and power, ultra-processed foods, the transformations of digital work, the patient's role in future medicine, the bioluminescence of plankton, and Italy's energy scenarios. Among the special initiatives are an artificial intelligence workshop doubled compared to 2025, two original exhibitions, and a special edition of the zero-km market Solidalia.
Programme Terra Incognita 2026
Tuesday, April 14 — Opening
- 8:45 PM, Teatro Magnani — The Four Seasons between Vivaldi and COP30 in Belém: opening evening weaving classical music and environmental reflection. Free admission until seats are full.
Thursday, April 16
- Teatro Magnani — meeting with Massimo Polidoro on psychology, critical thinking, and conscious decisions in a complex world.
Friday, April 17
- Ridotto del Teatro Magnani — The Thinking Skin, with Marta Paterlini, neurobiologist and science journalist: touch as a universal language between philosophy, neuroscience, and social taboos.
Sunday, April 19
- Piazza Garibaldi (tent) — meeting with Cristina Nadotti, journalist, on social and environmental transformations and the impacts of tourism on territories.
Among other announced guests are the narrator Diego Sorba and the insect photographer Sergio Picollo. The complete program of the nineteen meetings, with all times and venues, is published on the Municipality of Fidenza website.
Highlights Terra Incognita 2026
- Opening evening at the Teatro Magnani with Vivaldi's Four Seasons and a look at COP30 in Belém
- Massimo Polidoro on critical thinking and conscious decisions
- Marta Paterlini and The Thinking Skin, between neuroscience and touch
- Artificial intelligence workshop doubled compared to 2025
- Two original exhibitions and the special edition of the zero-km market Solidalia
Prices Terra Incognita 2026
Practical information — Terra Incognita
Where
Events take place in Fidenza (PR), in venues in the city center: Teatro Magnani and its Ridotto, Piazza Garibaldi (under the tent), and other city spaces.
How to get here
By train: Fidenza station is on the Milan-Bologna line, a few minutes' walk from the historic center. By car: take the Fidenza exit from the A1 motorway, then follow signs for the center.
Admission
The event is free and open to all; for some events at the Teatro Magnani, access is allowed until seats are full.
Information
Municipality of Fidenza, Tourism Department, tel. +39 0524 517111. Full program on the Municipality's website.
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Where does it take place — Terra Incognita
Teatro Magnani