Highlights from the EU-CONEXUS Research for Society Closing Event
Taking place online, the farewell event concluded the EU-CONEXUS Research for Society project by highlighting the impact and achievements that resulted from three years of collaborative effort. It gathered more than a hundred attendees, including EU-CONEXUS colleagues, EC members, stakeholders and other like-minded individuals.
Jean-Marc Ogier, Chair of the Governing Board of the EU-CONEXUS Alliance, set the stage for an engaging and insightful discussion with an opening speech. Afterwards, leaders of the work package teams took the centre stage for a presentation of key topics and their experiences of driving institutional transformation throughout the project duration.
From exploring the challenges and creativity within participatory sciences to discussing the Innovation Hub’s role in showcasing EU-CONEXUS innovations, the presentations revealed a multitude of valuable insights. Speakers such as Zdenko Dundović, Florin Băltărețu, Swann Péré, Evanthia Chatzoglou, Drahomira Cupar, Aurelia Kuga, Eleni Miliou, Pablo Vidal, and Virginia Kolb delved into topics ranging from community actions to research infrastructure access policies, highlighting the project’s commitment to fostering collaboration and promoting responsible research. The event was moderated by Edita Lenkauskaitė, RFS project coordinator.
A highlight of the event was a discussion led by Fidel Echevarria and Isabella Baer-Eiselt, heads of the EU-CONEXUS and SEA-EU sister alliances, respectively. Their insights into the design, development, and sustainability aspects of SwafS projects featured invaluable lessons on the journey of building new structures and teams of researchers to tackle challenges.
Fidel Echevarria also highlighted the intention behind the research EU project, emphasizing its effect in the domains of research, entrepreneurship and innovation within the SEA-EU Alliance. Isabella Baer-Eiselt noted that the project work and outcomes show a strong commitment of all EU-CONEXUS Research for Society contributors to fostering a culture of knowledge sharing and collaboration in research. The three-year lifespan of this project might not suffice in terms of complete implementation of a full-fledged joint research area, but seeds of a research community have been planted. They will serve as a reference point for building excellence in smart urban coastal sustainability research.
