INITIATE | Latest Updates
The INITIATE Horizon Europe project continued to make significant progress during the second quarter of 2026 through the successful 4th General Assembly in Belgrade and the ongoing implementation of the Knowledge Exchange Programme, both contributing to strengthening research and innovation (R&I) capacity across the consortium.
Held on 12–13 May 2026 and hosted by the Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences, the General Assembly brought together project partners to review progress and coordinate the next implementation phase. ESEIA Director Brigitte Hasewend and ESEIA Project Manager Sıla Çelebi represented the Alliance, leading discussions within Work Package 4 – Research & Innovation Laboratory (WP4).
During the meeting, ESEIA presented the evaluation of nine R&I Labs implemented at ISCTE (Portugal), UNIZAG (Croatia) and UKIM (North Macedonia). The results confirmed the effectiveness of the R&I and Policy Lab methodology in strengthening stakeholder engagement, fostering collaborative innovation and supporting policy dialogue within higher education institutions. The next phase will expand WP4 activities to Serbia, Cyprus, Romania and Ukraine.
Complementing these activities, the INITIATE Knowledge Exchange Programme continued to foster institutional collaboration through staff mobility. From 8–19 June 2026, Maria Covei from Transilvania University of Brașov (UTBV) completed a two-week study exchange at the ESEIA Office in Graz, AT. During her visit, she contributed to proposal development, dissemination activities, expert database updates and collaboration initiatives while gaining first-hand experience of ESEIA’s Working Groups, communication activities and stakeholder engagement. The exchange also identified new opportunities for future cooperation between ESEIA and UTBV.
A second study exchange hosted a researcher Ioanna Kyprianou, from The Cyprus Institute further strengthening collaboration within the consortium and promoting the exchange of expertise on research excellence, institutional transformation and sustainable energy innovation.
Together, these activities demonstrate ESEIA’s continued commitment to strengthening research excellence, institutional transformation and long-term collaboration across the European Research Area.
Project Coordinator: Ana Daria Bokan, UNIZAG FSB, HR
ESEIA Project Manager: Sila Celebi, AT
