Darwin Day 2025 is coming back!

The history of life on Earth has been marked by five major extinctions that profoundly altered the course of evolution. The disappearance of entire plant and animal groups made way for new species.

Before Darwin, it was believed that life had been created once and for all or after rare catastrophic events. In On the Origin of Species, the natural cycles of extinction and speciation were correctly integrated into the modern understanding of evolution. Past extinctions were caused by natural events, followed by millions of years of biodiversity recovery.

Today, we are in the midst of a sixth mass extinction, driven by the impacts of human societies on the natural world. The destruction of nature is happening at an unprecedented speed. Biological evolution and the fate of the biosphere have entered a phase of uncertainty. In light of evolutionary theory and conservation science, we can counteract the extinction crisis by protecting species and restoring ecosystem functions to safeguard biodiversity—and our own survival.

To explore extinctions, conservation strategies, and rewilding perspectives, the Darwin Day 2025 program in Bologna offers students, researchers, naturalists, and the general public a series of free events open to all.