The project CoTalent (Working in Europe to Connect Talent development in higher education) addresses the problem that talented students in European higher education are not sufficiently challenged. As a consequence, young people do not fully develop their talents and the skills they need to have an excellent start in society. They might even drop out of education. Europe cannot afford to lose these talents.The overall aim of this project is therefore to help talented young people reach their full potential so they can positively contribute to solutions of societal problems and challenges. We therefore need to systemize the way in which we challenge students to develop their talent while in higher education. The best way to handle this problem is to better equip teachers. Teachers need to develop specific skills and need to experience how other colleagues in other cultures and educational circumstances intervene in the process of talent development.Nine organisations strongly committed to talent development have therefore developed tools that can help teachers in higher education spot and stimulate talents. The CoTalent team has created an e-learning environment, which consists of three main elements (Intellectual Outputs):1. The MeTalent Mirror. This is a set of tools to help teachers to self-evaluate and develop their views towards talent development. The three main tools are the Roadmap tool (a broad self-evaluation tool), Characteristics tool (a teaching-specific self-evaluation tool), and Stereotype tool (a classroom assignment with students). All tools are published in English, with the Roadmap and Stereotype Tool also available in German, Danish, Dutch and Romanian.2. The YouTalent Spotter. This is a set of tools to help teachers spot talented students. The four main tools are Talent Spotting list, Entrepreneurial Talent Toolkit, Poster Tool and Writing Tool. The first two are for use by teachers; while the latter two allow students to show their skills. They are all available in English, German, Danish, Dutch and Romanian.3. The CoTalent e-Library. This is an e-learning environment, offering teachers information about didactics and pedagogical methods as well as practice-based tools to let their talented students flourish. The e-library’s main element is a series of 35 short instructive and inspirational co-created videos related to talent development and honors education. All videos are accompanied by background information, reflective questions and references (available in English).All tools were developed in co-creation, with teachers and students working together on an equal basis, guided by researchers. A core group of around 50 teachers and students worked on the tools in three task groups. Two week-long CoTalent Workshops were milestone events in the co-creation process. A dedicated Quality Assurance task group focused on evaluations, progress reporting and impact measurements, all aiming to bring the best possible products to a targeted audience of teachers.Over a thousand people directly benefited from or were targeted by the CoTalent activities, which included nine Multiplier Events. Thousands more were reached through the project website. In disseminating the tools, we have directly reached (in meetings) an audience from at least 22 countries. Through the website we reached over 100 countries in total.The project has put the subject of talent development firmly on the internal agenda of the partner institutions, with some of them starting or developing new programs. Also, other institutions informed us they were inspired by the project to develop a new focus on talent development and start programs.The CoTalent website www.cotalent.eu integrates all tools and serves as a living e-library which can be further developed. It will continue to be hosted by lead partner Hanze UAS. Further development will be coordinated by associate partner European Honors Council, which will encourage teachers, students and all others interested in talent development to keep on meeting, researching, exchanging and adding, in order for Europe to develop its talents to the max.

SPIRIT is a Dutch collaboration between universities of applied sciences, healthcare institutions, businesses and patients to ensure sustainable, staffable healthcare through technological and social innovation. By working together nationwide, we develop and implement smart solutions such as AI, sensor technology, and remote monitoring. These innovations help reduce workload, optimize workforce deployment, and enhance patients’ self-sufficiency. SPIRIT builds on existing knowledge and creates a unified approach to accelerate and improve the implementation of innovations in practice.

ExpACT focuses on tackling the health impacts of air pollution, a key factor in the exposome. Moreover, air pollution levels and composition are changing, now and in the future, due to several societal transitions. Therefore, we need new technologies and methods for improved air quality monitoring to make interventions more effective, identify sources of pollution, enforce regulations, and involve the community. ExpACT involves collaboration among scientists, businesses, government bodies, and the public to co-create and use these technologies. ExpACTs approach is to make these methods and data widely accessible for making informed decisions on air quality, contributing to healthier societies.

BACKGROUND AND NEEDS: The European CAse Study Alliance (ECASA) project is initiated by a consortium of four European HEIs (all of them focusing on applied sciences and management studies) and their relevant ecosystem partners dedicated to the vision of an innovative case-based approach in business education. ECASA recognises the challenges of the “innovation gap” identified in the renewed EU Agenda for the Modernisation of Higher Education, ECASA intends to become a strategic alliance between economic faculties, business and management schools as well as research centres of European universities. All of which share the philosophy of interactive, practice-oriented and problem-solving teaching in applied management education. Modern teaching in that domain requires a focus on innovation-driven SMEs following a growth strategy with a strong international orientation. The project specifically addresses the challenges and opportunities of these companies (representing the backbone of economic growth) while they are exposed to future challenges in business and society such as artificial intelligence, modern growth strategies, industry 4.0, sustainability, and digitisation and its managerial implications.The project aims to develop HEIs quality and authenticity of teaching, reducing educational costs for universities and fostering the knowledge transfer between universities and companies. Currently, there is a significant lack of authentic high-quality European business case studies (identified in the survey of ECASA members, ‘ECASA Survey Report 2019’, as well as sufficient understanding about the potential of case-based education in the renewal of business and management education. As a result, US-American and UK-based business cases are widely used in European business study programmes. The application of the case method in teaching has not been professionalised so far and universities hardly have case-based curricula.OBJECTIVE: ECASA is strongly committed to develop the case method as a – regional-based but international-oriented – integrated approach in research, teaching, and practice and to promote a systematic, professional and guided approach for case lecturers in European HEIs. TARGET GROUPS: The main target groups are students and staff members of partner universities and other European HEIs, particularly business and management related studies that are interested in the Integrated Case Method and their relevant stakeholders in their respective local context esp. SMEs and business development agencies.IMPACT: At local, regional and national level, the project will have an impact on renewing business education curricula with the Integrated Case Method (ICM), professionalising their teaching force, strengthening their international collaborations with other European HEIs. By applying ICM an intensive cooperation between HEIs and companies in their region are stimulated, this in turn will enhance their regional social / economic development by co-creating innovation-driven growth strategies, developing international network for business expansion. At European level, the project will contribute to the learning and networking process between important European economic regions, particularly improving SMEs market responsiveness and competitiveness through innovations and internationalisation. RESULTS: In addition, this project develops an online “European Case Library” on its ECASA Online Platform for both teaching and business practices that truly reflect the European business style and culture. Through this Platform, ECASA will enable more HEIs to adopt up-to-date cases in their teaching, to design case-based curricula based on true European business case studies, and to equip our students with creative and innovative thinking, strategic thinking, problem solving skills. Eventually, students, HEIs and companies can better cope with the challenges of increasingly digitalised, globalised and interlinked world.

The Dutch agricultural sector searches for new ways to profitably utilize residual/side flows in sustainable development towards a Circular Economy. In the medical sector new therapeutic approaches are greatly needed, especially for diseases with an unmet medical need like infectious diseases with antibiotic resistance and bone metastatic cancer. Solutions may come from plant-derived compounds as potential therapeutics. In this research project the Dutch Extract Library will therefore be screened for plant compounds with antimicrobial- and/or anticancer properties in model systems developed for these diseases. Goal is to develop knowledge and innovative technology to provide Biobased products and new revenue models.