EU-CONEXUS conference 2025

Transformative Research for Urban Coastal Sustainability

📅  21-23 October 2025

📍 Catholic University of Valencia (Campus Trinitarios), Valencia (Spain).

UCV will host the third edition of EU-CONEXUS Conference, titled ‘Transformative Research for Urban Coastal Sustainability’, focuses on reimagining how coastal cities tackle their challenges. By integrating social, environmental, and economic dimensions, the conference aims to foster innovative, collaborative solutions that transcend conventional approaches.

The conference centres on long-term strategies and technologies that radically reshape urban systems making them more resilient, sustainable, and adaptable to threats such as climate change, population growth, and environmental degradation. At the same time, it aims to prepare cities for a more sustainable and equitable future. Through cross-disciplinary collaboration and active engagement with communities and stakeholders, this research paves the way for more liveable and resilient coastal cities.

EU-CONEXUS conference 2025

Ways of participating:

  • Participating in round table as speakers or moderators on a specific topic and interrelated subtopics.
  • Presenting posters.
  • Participating in workshops to discuss future project applications to European calls, preferably those identified in advance.
  • Actively engaging in Conference discussions on the latest research trends and results and interacting with experts and stakeholders.

Conference topics

Data-Driven Decision Making

Transformative research often relies on innovative technologies and data analytics to provide real-time information that supports better decision-making. Using satellite data, sensors, and artificial intelligence (AI) can help cities respond more quickly to emerging challenges. Moreover, effective data management ensures quality and reliability, leading to better analyses and strategies for sustainability. In a cooperative setting, interoperability and data sharing foster cross-disciplinary collaboration, integrating diverse perspectives to drive innovation in
addressing complex environmental issues.

Sustainable Health and Disease Management

This concept considers the health of people, animals, and ecosystems as interconnected, ensuring that urban coastal sustainability efforts protect both human well-being and the health of natural environments, while also promoting biodiversity.

Adaptive and Resilient Urban Systems. Smart Infrastructures

Transformative research prioritizes building adaptive capacity in coastal cities to climate change by developing flexible infrastructure, policies, and technologies. Cities must not only mitigate impacts but also build resilience to rising sea levels and extreme weather. Smart infrastructure improves urban services like water, electricity, and transport, reducing ecological footprints and enhancing sustainability.

Community and Stakeholder Engagement

A key component of transformative research is the emphasis on inclusive, participatory
processes. For a transformation to be sustainable, it must involve local communities, decisionmakers, scientists, and businesses. This collaborative approach ensures that the solutions are tailored to local contexts and have the support and buy-in of those affected by them. It also considers social equity, ensuring that vulnerable populations (e.g., low-income communities, marginalized groups) are not left behind in the transition to a more sustainable future.

Sustainable Economic Models

Transformative research explores new economic models that promote sustainability while fostering economic growth. This could involve developing business models for the blue economy (economies that rely on ocean resources), transitioning industries to low-carbon practices, or creating financial incentives for sustainable practices. The goal is to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation and foster a circular economy.

Call for posters

EU-CONEXUS researchers, postdocs and PhD students are invited to present their research results or showcase the latest research projects through posters, which will be presented during the Conference on 22-23 October 2025.

The posters will assist in matchmaking and networking for future international collaboration in research projects, while the most voted poster and the most active voter will receive a prize.

We invite you to submit the poster abstracts by 30 April 2025.

The access the platform will be ready soon.

Abstracts will be evaluated by our Scientific Committee and selected poster abstracts will be announced on 15 June 2025.

For detailed guidelines on poster abstract submission, please refer to the ‘Instructions for Abstract and Posters Submission’.

Participation in conference

The (co)authors of selected posters will be invited to participate in the conference. Participation is free of charge for EU-CONEXUS universities’ researchers and PhD students. The travel cost can be co-financed by EU-CONXUS member university (please get in contact with EU-CONEXUS Institutional Coordinator at your university for more details).

The posters will be published by UCV in Valencia. High-resolution images (300 dpi or higher) shall be submitted through abstracts submission platform by 15 September 2025. Further guidelines will be provided.

Publishing of full papers

We call all poster presenters to consider publishing their full papers based on a poster presentation in EU-CONEXUS newly established open access journal Coastal Resilience and Sustainability. It is an interdisciplinary, international, peer-reviewed diamond open access scientific journal. Call for submissions of the full papers will be available on the conference website and more details will be announced during the month of March/April 2025.

Workshops

The Conference will hold workshops to discuss future project applications for European calls,
focusing on EU-CONEXUS Joint Research Institute challenges and Conference topics.

These sessions will help researchers refine their project proposals and foster collaboration in
transdisciplinary areas of their interest.

More information will be announced in June-July 2025.

Agenda

Monday 20 October

From 10-20 14:00h to 10-21 15:00h

Research Council meeting

Tuesday 21 October

15:00

Optional

Guided tour of Valencia

Optional

Bilateral meetings

16:00

Registration

17:00

Opening of the conference

18:00

Round table 1:

Data Driven Decision Making (Smart cities, Environmental data and monitoring and AI)

20:00

Welcome Networking dinner

Wednesday 22 October

9:00

Round table 2

Sustainable Health and Disease Management

10:30

Coffee Break

11:00

Round table 3

Adaptive and Resilient Urban Systems. Smart Infrastructures.

12:30

Lunch

14:00

Round table 4

Community and Stakeholder Engagement

15:30

Break

16:00

Workshops EU calls

4 rooms

18:00

Poster session and coctail

Thursday 23 October

9:00

Round table 5

Sustainable Economic Models

10:30

Coffee Break

11:00

Closing ceremony

How we manage current sustainability issues and prepare coastal cities to thrive in the face of future uncertainties. Overcoming conflicts through challenge-based research.

12:30

Poster awwards

13:30

Farewell lunch

Tasting of a Valencian paella

15:00

Optional

Guided tour of Valencia

Optional

Bilateral meetings