On September 15, 2026, The Smuggle, a charity surfski canoe crossing to Tunis, set off from the port of Marsala. The initiative was promoted by Andrea Menga and Giovanni De Carlo, students in the international MEDTEC degree programme offered by Humanitas University and Politecnico di Milano.
The 273-kilometre journey supported fundraising for the development and validation of Safer, a neonatal respiratory support device conceived by Prof. Raffaele Dellacà of the Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering at Politecnico di Milano. Designed for resource-limited settings, the system combines a mechanical ventilator and an oxygen concentrator in a single portable, battery-powered device.
The funds raised will contribute to a clinical study in Uganda, carried out with Doctors with Africa CUAMM, with the aim of providing five Safer prototypes for the transport and care of newborns with respiratory difficulties.