ESU Conference 2009 on Entrepreneurship
University of Sannio of Benevento
8th to 13th September 2009, Benevento, Italy

The sixth ESU Conference is organized for the first time in Italy at the University of Sannio of Benevento, from September 8th to 13th, 2009. This year, a special focus is given on Entrepreneurship and Local Development. A faculty consisting of established, well-known and international researchers will give lectures in plenary sessions and assist the students in paper sessions. In the paper sessions, the participants will get an opportunity to present and discuss their own research projects and the submitted papers.

Conference Location

The ESU Conference 2009 takes place in Benevento, the capital of the Sannio Province. The city has lots of cultural and natural resources and its origins go back to mythology. Its central position in the South Apennine mountains between the Tyrrhenian and the Adriatic seas, has stimulated thirty centuries of human history, culture and art. The historical events which took place here and deeply affected Italian history are still remembered: the humiliation of the Roman Legions caused by Samnite soldiers at Forche Caudine in 321 B.C.; the Romans' victory on Pirro in 275 B.C. and their subsequent political growth; the battle reported by Dante Alighieri between Carlo D'Angiò and Manfredi di Svevia in 1266 which marked the end of a new imperial attempt of Restoration. The monumental, pictorial and artistic treasures, the Magna Grecia, the Samnite and Roman archaeological finds, the Iside Temple archaeological finds which are the only finds of a neo-Egyptian cult outside Egypt, the gold coins of Benevento Mint, Benevento Writing and Music of the Longobard period, everything is a precious proof of a cultural tradition born here which now, thanks to the ESU Conference, finds its deeper links with European and international cultures.
Benevento and the Sannio Province are also the ideal starting point to discover the beauty and the charm of some of the worldwide known attractions of Campania Region.

To get more information, to see some pictures and to get useful vacation tips in the Sannio Province, please look at EPT Benevento. To get more information and possibilities of entertainment and vacation in the Campania Region, please look at In Campania.

Conference Venue

The Conference is arranged at the University of Sannio, Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences (SEA). The University of Sannio is young but in a few years it has reached important goals. Since its birth the University has considered internationalization as a strategic point and it sustains firmly the exchanges of students and researchers with other European Universities. The University of Sannio is organized in four Faculties: Faculty of Economics; Faculty of Engineering; Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences; Faculty of Sciences.

All the activities of the ESU Conference 2009 – including: registration, plenary sessions, panel discussions, parallel sessions, coffee-breaks, lunches – will take place at the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences (SEA). In the same building the participants will have the opportunity to access the Computer Laboratory for Internet connection. The Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences (SEA) is located in the heart of the city centre, within walking distance from the Conference Hotels (Hotel Villa Traiano, Hotel President, Grand Hotel Italiano). The address of the Conference Venue is: Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences, Via delle Puglie 82, 82100 Benevento. For more information, click here.

Social Program

The Conference will have an extensive social program including: dinners, excursions, visits to famous attractions and cultural events. The program is aimed to let the participants know the beauty of the Benevento Province and, moreover, of the Campania Region. Besides the visits to the historical town centre of Benevento, with its monuments and cultural heritage, excursions and visits are planned to some of the worldwide known attractions of the Region. For example, the Royal Palace of Caserta . A full day visit to the Sorrento Peninsula and the Amalfi Coast, the "Divine Coast", is planned for the final day of the Conference. A taste of the local food and traditional gastronomy will also assured with dinners and a visit to a Wine Factory.

Pictures from Benevento and Campania Region

Santa Sofia's church façade, considered one of the most interesting early medieval buildings in Europe, has a remarkable portal dating from the second half of the twelfth century. Arechi II had the church built in 762 A.D.

"La Rocca dei Rettori" (called "the Castle") in the city centre of Benevento is the site of the Province Government. It was built in 1321 A.D.

The Royal Palace of Caserta (called the "Little Versailles") was commissioned by Charles of Bourbon, King of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, to the architect Luigi Vanvitelli as a tangible sign of the magnificence magnitude of the Kingdom.

The Amalfi Coast is a stretch of coastline on the southern side of the Sorrentine Peninsula, extending from Positano in the west to Vietri sul Mare in the east. Renowned for its rugged terrain, scenic beauty, picturesque towns and diversity, the Amalfi Coast is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.