The MiCo26 Observatory is part of an agreement between the Department of Design / DensityDesign Lab and PoliS Lombardia. The agreement focuses on conducting analysis and research activities using Digital Methods to monitor the emergence of themes or issues in public debate related to — though not limited to — the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.

Large-scale events with social and territorial impact, such as the Olympics, often generate debates and controversies. These can be analyzed through digital methods and brought to the attention of various stakeholders — including actors directly involved in the phenomenon — to support more informed and participatory decision-making processes, both current and future, and to foster a broader understanding of the event’s evolution.

In this context, the project involves continuous monitoring — over a two-year period — of online content related to the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics, collected across multiple platforms. The aim is to observe and explore the emerging elements of this tracking in order to provide interpretative tools that help understand the public debate, with a specific focus on the relationship between the ongoing discussion and the Lombardy Region.

The research is carried out in close collaboration with PoliS Lombardia, with whom the research topics, data sources, and modes of representation and communication are jointly defined.

To date, the project has achieved the following:

1. Definition of a data collection architecture, through the selection of queries aimed at identifying relevant content and the implementation of a scraping system from various social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X) and search engines (Google News, Google Search).
2. Implementation of a data analysis system, combining manual methods with automated processes using artificial intelligence models (OpenAI). The goal is to extract key elements from the collected content, such as mentioned entities and relevant topics related to the legacy of MiCo26 and the role of the Lombardy Region.
3. Reporting of findings, through the production of monthly reports that summarize the key points of the ongoing debate. These reports include thematic focuses on: content authors and discourse actors, the media success and dissemination of content, cited entities (people, places, events, Olympic infrastructures, organizations), and the evolving trajectories of the event’s legacy, with particular attention to the involvement and role of the Lombardy Region.