Transcript
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The host greets attendees, explains the webinar format, and outlines how questions will be handled through the Q&A box and follow-up FAQ document.
Good afternoon everyone.
We'll give this a couple of minutes to let everybody join.
Hello.I can see people in the chat already.Hi Julia.Good afternoon.Hello Nicholas.Hello.I won't say hi to all of you.We can spend 90 minutes doing that.
All right, we already have 270 participants.Exciting.Uh, someone has their hand up already.I didn't think it would be possible.We have a question already.Uh, let me use that to remind you all this is a webinar um a webinar format today.So, you won't have your cameras and your microphones on, but you do have a Q&A box um in the bottom uh horizontal bar.Um so, if my colleagues could confirm that you can see the Q&A box in the bottom uh horizontal bar, that would be great.
Yes, I see a thumbs up.
Lovely.Okay.So, we have um wonderful team members here from the higher education initiative uh management team who will be keeping on top of questions uh submitted in the Q&A box uh as much as they can as quickly as theycan.Um but hopefully we have some time at the end for to pick up some of those questions.So when I see ones when we see ones that have been repeated so I'll ask my colleagues um who are looking after the Q&A box during the presentations uh maybe to open their mics and and share some ofthose questions.Um otherwise uh we will collect the Q&A um transcript and we will incorporate all of those questions into our FAQ's document which is a dynamic document.We'll be updating it throughout the course of the call.
Rosanna introduces the Higher Education Initiative, its purpose, and the structure of the session. She explains the initiative’s mission to connect education, research, and business to build innovation capacity.
Okay, we have already 315 participants.Nice.Okay.Uh let's kick this off.Uh for those of you that uh don't know me, my name is Rosanna West.I'm the senior program manager for the EIT higher education initiative.It's my great pleasure to run the first of seven info series info sessions uh for this info session series for our sixth call for proposals call for proposals 2026.Um it's been uh it's been a journey reaching this stage and uh we're really excited that we we managed to get the call out um on the 20th of October and we've seen loads of engagement and um interestfrom people already.Um so we're looking forward to seeing what you all submit.Uh and I'll remind you of all the deadlines and the dates uh during the presentation.Hi Joe, nice to see you.If you don't mind just turning your camera off for the the first part of the session, we'll bring you in later on.
Thank you.Okay.Um so today uh the session is split somewhat into two parts.The first part is the um maybe less exciting section.It's my section where I basically do an overview of the call for proposals.Um the kind of general requirements and key requirements that you need to know.Um the scope and why this call exists and why it looks like it does.Um and then the later call the later info sessions go um more into depth.So they're kind of a deep dive into specific areas of the call.I would just like to start by reminding you that we have a um an inbox a dedicated inbox for the hi where you can send your more uh specific uh particular questions if they're not answered during this infosession series.However, however, I would also ask you to please pause before you decide to send the email um and make sure that you've looked through all of the supporting documentation that we've we've prepared for you.
It's not just the cool text.We also have a um project um design and implementation guide.We have seven info sessions as I said.Um we have kick briefing documents.We have a bunch of resources for you to look through to help you understand what's expected for this call.If you still don't have your answer your question answered, then of course please use the um use the inbox.We also have a dedicated Q&A session, the last session of the info session series happening uh in December.So you can also save uh those questions till the end um for that Q&A session.All right, without further ado, I'm going to get started with the presentation.Uh sorry, the second part of this uh of this session.We're going to hear from voices from across the ecosystem.So from uh people who've participated in previous HI projects um and they're here to tell you and potential and any potential applicants why you should um participate in an application to the call what benefits it brings for that
specific organization type and what you can also um contribute uh in the context of an HI project.Okay, let's get started.So a very brief introduction to the higher education initiative if you are not familiar with it.The overall aim of the initiative is to empower higher education higher education institutions to drive innovation.Um so this is done through um a very strong fifth framework that's been running from the beginning of the initiative.Um and some of those key points I would raise here is uh really it's about bringing together organizations from across what the EIT called the knowledge triangle from higher education business and research to work together on innovation umprojects to strengthen the capacity of the HIS as institutions to uh become active drivers of innovation and entrepreneurship to support institutional transformation stronger partnerships and the development of entrepreneurial talent and to connect education and research with business and
the wider innovation ecosystem.So, it's really about connecting the dots.And I think you for those of you that have uh been familiar with previous calls, you'll see that there's a real emphasis on this connecting the dots um need.So, connecting the uh the three let's say corners of the triangle um and filling those gaps that we know that exist today.The overarching ambition is to move beyond individual activities, the silos that we know exist in in institutions to build uh lasting institutional capacity for innovation.
The presentation shifts to the sixth call for proposals, including its focus on STEM talent, deep tech, and manufacturing innovation. Rosanna explains the three policy objectives and the STEM education strategic plan targets.
All right, very briefly, uh the EIT kicks these are the knowledge and innovation communities uh that participate in the initiative.We are seven uh coordinated the initiative is coordinated by EIT raw materials but it's very much a an EIT community activity and you can see all of the lovely logos on the screen uh of those kicks that participateum and we work together as a consortium across the kicks as a higher education initiative consortium uh made up of uh team members from across all of these kicks.
We run uh annual calls for proposals.This is the sixth one as you know.Um and really this is an opportunity for higher education institutions but also for other other innovation actors in the ecosystem as I said to design and collaborate on these um on these needs-based innovation action plans uh with thisoverarching goal of transforming HIS in the long term.So very briefly success so far in numbers.I want to emphasize that this is not uh this is a non-extensive list of successes.Uh these are the very high numbers.They look very impressive.They sound very impressive.But there's so much going on behind these numbers.Uh so many things that can't necessarily be captured uh in numbers uh that our projects and the initiative uh portfolio uh produces.But overall we have funded so far 147 projects supporting over 700 higher education institutions and 400 non-academic organizations over 60 countries.
So you can see the the scope is um and the uh the scale is wide and we really have been building momentum over the the the recent years.We have trained over 100 I say we the projects have trained over 150,000 people.So students, academic staff, non-academic staff um in innovation and entrepreneurship skills and competences and uh there's been a significant amount of startup support uh and creation as well coming out of these projects uh more than 2,400 and moreto come through this call.Okay, I think that's enough uh as a kind of bird's eye view.Let's dive into the call for proposals itself, which is why you're all here today.So, the aim of this specific call is to turn uh STEM talent uh knowledge and research into innovation and impact.So this is really about as I said before the same underlying um ambition of the initiative strengthening the cap capacity of HIS to really drive uh innovation and entrepreneurship uh in these fields translating knowledge into practical applications and
to contribute to Europe's competitiveness and industrial transformation and this is where the strategic focus of this particular call comes in.So this this call really focuses on building uh deep tech innovation and how it translates that translates into manufacturing and industrial applications.So um in terms of the uh the strategic focus I would really recommend that you you take a look through the the first sections of the of the core text where I think this is quite neatly uh explainedum and you'll understand how um how that strategic focus has been applied to the overall framework of the initiative.Okay, I'm going to start by highlighting the three policy objectives.These are the kind of high level objectives that you are looking to uh support through your projects.The first one is about developing STEM talent for uh deep tech and manufacturing innovation.Um so I will go in in a bit later I will explain the um the union of EU union of skills and the STEM education strategic plan target that we are actually delivering on as an initiative and this
cohort will also deliver on um and this ties closely to the the talent uh development policy objective.So um this is about strengthening IE and IP management skills in uh relevant STEM talent uh that is needed for the STEM talent needed for deep tech and manufacturing innovation.Um so this is of course um stuff trainings, student trainings uh trainings for researchers.It's really about connecting um the the learning and education that your in the HIS are offering with real industrial challenges.So challenge-based um and interdicciplinary experiences are central uh to this particular objective.Um and as always this is something that runs through all of our calls embedding INE education uh across other discipline like all disciplines but in this case uh STEM disciplines.The second objective um is about strengthening HIS as institutional drivers of innovation from lab to market.This is really about the um the institutional level transformation.
So it's about building the um the structures, the processes, the mechanisms, the leadership engagement um and commitment to uh innovation strategies long term.So some of the things on the screen here you can see that might mean improving or or even um establishing institutional structures and processes for knowledge valorization and tech transfer.We have had TTO's for example established in previous projects um strengthening KTO and TTO capacity and support for researchers uh and embedding innovation and entrepreneurship within institutional strategies, leadership and governance.And this is why we um actually require uh written formal uh commitment from the top management of all of the HIS that participate as a funded partner in our projects.And the third policy uh is really around the policy objective sorry is about connecting the HIS to the wider ecosystem to the wider local regional European um innovation ecosystems and in the case of this call this naturally has
um particular relevance for the deep tech and manufacturing innovation ecosystems.Um this might be through establishing partnerships, access to partnership building, um training in in in how to build effective partnerships, um strengthening access to expertise needed, um resources, uh how to really advance um deep tech and manufacturing innovationfrom the point of um the the the stage of the HI um and on the screen here you can see some of those activities.So um again I mentioned strategic partnerships with industry and innovation act as you'll see we have um a minimum of two industry partners required for this call and it's really encouraged that they come from um deep tech manufacturingareas um improving access to facilities infrastructure investment and markets um out in the wider ecosystem I mean and uh also strengthening participation of his in their regional and European innovation networks and value chains.
So those are the three overarching policy objectives.You then have um in the call text uh you have the the HI impact domains and and funded actions available under each there'll be a dedicated info session on that next uh Wednesday if I'm not wrong or nextThursday maybe um called uh monitoring evaluation and learning impact domains and actions.I really recommend you to attend that session and you can understand what this kind of these objectives really look like when it comes to them being translated into specific activities.Um, okay.I mentioned this before, but I thought we should flag it.We should highlight this that this call is supporting uh the EU STEM education strategic plan the same way that our cohort 5 projects uh topic one projects are doing.Um we have a mandate in this uh strategic plan to uh deliver on 200,000 STEM students and staff to be trained in innovation, entrepreneurship and IP management by 2028.
This relates to um the EU's union of skills um and their their overarching strategy around um STEM skills development as well.Um and this call is set to deliver on at least 70,000 of those learners.So you can see that that's uh a sizable contribution.It's really important very important to note that there is a specific STEM definition for this call.It's written into the call text.Um and it follows um the codes 5, 6, and 7.You can see them on the screen.natural science, sciences, maths and statistics, information and communication technologies, engineering, manufacturing and construction.So if you want to have a look at what the kind of subd disciplines are um related to those three um those three areas, those three codes uh the document itself is linked in the cortex and you canread through that and check that out.
This section explains the needs-based approach, including the H Innovate self-assessment and the Innovation Vision Action Plan. It also introduces the impact domains and the requirement to design activities that deliver measurable change.
Okay.Generally the HI initi well the higher education initiative takes a needs-based approach to institutional transformation.If you're familiar with the initiative, you'll know this.um you have to start your proposal preparing process with um a needs um analysis exercise and you use the H innovate um self- assessment tool European Commission tool um which was designed for higher education institutions to do thatto assess their their current innovation um let's say map um where the gaps are and once you have the results of the self assessment you then use those results to define the priorities for project and see where thosewhere which gaps you need to fill um what the institutional strengths and weaknesses are and obviously naturally uh look at how you might be able to um work on those weaknesses and just generally uh where are the opportunitiesuh for the institution to um move into new ground and and uh create new value.
This defines essentially the IVAP which is called it's the innovation vision action plan.That's essentially your proposal that you submit and it becomes your road map for the funding period and beyond.Um so you translate those findings from the H innovate uh into uh the the action plan that you and your consortium decides to to take.You have to select funded actions.I've mentioned these before.So these are specific funded actions organized by impact domains.And this framework is common across all of the higher education initiative calls and also allows us to uh perform portfolio level level analysis and learning which we then share back with the projects and we get kind of aportfolio level um understanding of of you know what the landscape looks like when it comes to uh the innovation capacity of the organizations involved.Um but of course you need to design your activities in a way that address the needs and also contribute to the call's uh policy objectives.
The actions are kind of the intervention areas but the overall object they don't compete with the overall objectives uh of the call which are those three uh policy objectives and then the broken down specific objectives and subobjectives youcan find uh in the call text in a very detailed way.And then finally deliver and measure change.Um this is where you uh demonstrate outputs, results and progress.So we obviously if you are funded we then monitor the projects and there's um a reporting and um yeah a general um monitoring evaluation and learning uh methodology implemented for all of our projects.Okay, these are the five impact delays.If you are not aware of them, don't worry.There's a whole session as I said before dedicated to this um next week.They are in a nutshell um focused on fostering institutional GA uh engagement and change.
This is really where the hi leadership and the governance changes are tracked.The second is around strengthening partnerships.The third is contributing to developing innovations and businesses.The fourth enhancing the quality and innovation of innovation and entrepreneurreneurial education and fifth is knowledge sharing which is super important.It's really about how you then go on to um share the knowledge and good practices and all of these things that you develop um with the wider higher education initiative community um but also the wider higher education ecosystemum at large.Okay.So call for proposals general requirements.Um, I think these cover things that I've already said, but just to to kind of summarize, we want to see a clear institutional vision and a commitment to long-term change.This can't be a vision of two years and or 18 months and that's it.We need really want to see the integration of the EIT's knowledge triangle uh model where you integrate these these three kind of areas of education, research and business and that needs to be demonstrated in the consortium and the
approach to your uh innovation action plan.A needs-based IVAP I've already mentioned before.Um we really want to see meaningful engagement from the leadership because we know that we need the leadership's buyin for these this this long-term real change to happen.Um we ask you to connect with at least two and up to three EIT kicks in terms of their kind of strategic agendas and different activities they have going on and there are briefing documents available for you toum peruse.They have been custom they've been built written for you from uh from each of the kicks um in terms of what's relevant for the uh the call and the initiative.And then we expect to see the integration of diversity, equity and inclusion through project design and implementation.you actually have to submit a DEI action plan um by month three of your projects and overall we need to see how your results will then be embedded and sustained beyond the funding period which I know is the
tricky bit um but we really need to see that um vision in the and plan in the IVAP
Rosanna covers the project duration, funding level, and overall budget, then walks through the basic application workflow. She also explains the matchmaking platform and the online application portal.
okay the parameters so the duration of the project is 18 months we start on the 1st of May 2027 and it would finish on the 31st of October 2028.So an 18-month duration.The maximum funding per project is up to 1.25 million uh with an available funding rate of 100% eligible cost.So you don't need to bring co-unding um to this project.And the overall available budget is estimated to be 40 million euros for this cohort.briefly on the full life cycle um for the application and the implementation.So we start with the application of course we then will go to evaluation and selection period then you'll have the 18-month implement implementation period and after that it's the long-term impact um postf funding period in terms of howyou are going to prepare your proposal.First thing to do, you will know this is to prepare, is to put together an effective consortium for this project.
We have a dedicated matchmaking platform.It's been available for some time now and there's lots of people on there.I can see loads of people setting up meetings and discussions directly in the platform which is fantastic to see.The statistics I was shared this morning are really promising.We can see there's lots of interest.So really uh get on that platform, create your profile and start meeting people and connecting.I can see that we have um quite a few people coming into the hi inbox asking you know I'm I'm from this organization I like the look of the call how do I find partners we make it veryeasy for you we have this dedicated matchmaking platform so please uh get yourself a profile on there and start um perusing and and connecting and and having those meetings you then need to uh if you are an HI
um and you are a funded partner you need to perform the H innovate uh self assessment If you are not an HI, naturally you do not need to do this.If you are an associated partner not receiving EIT funding, you also do not need to do this.And uh then you need to start developing the IVAP naturally the proposal.Uh if there's any confusion, I'm going to repeat again.The proposal is the innovation vision action plan.Okay.Uh just a brief word.We do have an application um planning and budget info session.I think uh also next week if I'm not wrong or maybe the week after I'll show you at the end we have the dates.Um this will take you through the different parts of the application and how it works.Um but just to say there's one part a which is submitted online in an application portal.
So in fields on um in tabs on the uh the form and then you upload the narrative content as a word document to the same um the same platform.
The call’s eligibility requirements are explained, including participant registration, consortium composition, and the need for at least three higher education institutions and two industry partners. She also warns about the one-application limit for funded beneficiaries.
Okay, I'm going to dive into specific requirements right here.These are the list of eligible participating organizations.The main thing is you need to make sure you have registered your organization and the EU's participant register and that you have a uh pick a registered pick number by the time that you apply.If you do not, you immediately and make it the the proposal and eligible.So really important that you do this.It sometimes takes some time.So I would suggest if you're interested in um in applying and you haven't yet got a pick number, this is the first thing to do.One thing I would say there's encouragement of um vocational education and training providers to participate in this call.Um they do not substitute the higher education institutions requirement but they are encouraged to participate in this call.the rest businesses, industry investors, that can be uh small to large corporations, um startups, um investor networks, what have you, research organizations, um TTO's, KTO's, public bodies.
We've seen really effective um inclusion of public bodies um in previous projects, intermediary organizations, networks, and associations.For example, you may be a network, an industrial network um representing industry partners.you can participate and social entrepreneur enterprises and NOS.The consortium composition criteria is fairly simple compared to previous years.Um you have to have at least five partner organizations.This is standard for HI projects.They all need to be based in Horizon Europe eligible countries.We've had quite a lot of questions coming in already about is my country eligible.Um we have a document uh linked in the call text where you can read through it, the formal document.We also have an interactive guide on the website on the web page for the call where you can basically check how you're fulfilling requirements and one of the questions on there is around um whether you're you're based in
a Horizon Europe eligible country.So you can use that as well and it will tell you um so at least three HIS uh need to participate as funded partners.The one of them needs to be the project lead, the project coordinator, the lead partner.has to be an HI.Um, and at least one of them has to be from EU member state.Uh, then beyond the HIS, you need to include at least two businesses or industry partners.And this can include industry networks and associations.There is no maximum number of organizations within an HI project consortium.We've had 15 before.Um, that's very much up to you to design.You obviously then need to justify your consortium uh in part three of your application where you talk about the role of each partner and why this this consortium is right for this uh project.Really really important thing.
It's underlined and in bold um and we tried to make it clear in the call text but it's by far um the most common see uh thing we see reason we see for ineligibility.Your organization cannot participate in more than one proposal as a funded partner.I say as a funded partner as a beneficiary.You can participate in as many associate in as many proposals as you like as an associated nonIT funded partner.As a funded beneficiary, you can only participate in one application, not one project, one application.So you need to decide as an institution and bear in mind you have to get a written letter of commitment from your uh your leadership which project you are which proposal you're going to participate in.Okay.If we see uh that we have the same organization uh as a a funded beneficiary in more than one the uh in one more than one application the the application that was submitted later is automatically ineligible and ultimately
that makes the whole proposal for the whole consortium ineligible.This is really important.It's your responsibility as institutions to make sure that you do these um these checks.Just briefly on the roles in the consortium, you have the coordinator as I said that needs to be an HI.Beneficiaries are the the funded partners and then associated partners.They can uh contribute in kind um to the project.Um they have to sign a letter of commitment explaining also describing what their contribution to the project will be.Um but they do not receive any EIT funding.Um and they don't uh sign into the formal project agreement.
This part clarifies rules for previous HI participants, including additionality and restrictions for active cohort projects. Rosanna then introduces the KPI expectations, including startup, training, and core KPI targets.
For those of you who have previously participated, um, what you need to know for this call, you need to demonstrate clear addition additionality.You cannot just continue or replicate activities that have already been funded through previous HI projects.I think that's kind of a given.Um, the big one for uh, previous partners here is related to any active uh, EATI cohort 4 project.If you your organization is an active funded beneficiary in a cohort 5 project, you are not eligible to apply to this call as a funded beneficiary.You can apply as an associated partner but not as a beneficiary.And finally, the role that you have uh if you are joining say from a cohort 4 project um if you are joining as a full partner in an application for this call 2026, you have this innovation and entrepreneurshippioneer role.And really what we're looking for is you to um contribute your experience and your expertise built through your previous projects and experience uh to help um new institutions to the community um benefit from it to create these kind
of peer learning and knowledge sharing mentorship um dynamics in the in the consortium and to really help uh scale let's say successful approaches that you've seen work in the past um to support and support less experienced partners.is okay.Um there's an important emphasis in the call text on this call and it's really about uh this the HI projects um are not left to work alone uh in silos.Of course you implement your IVAP as a project as a consortium but we really expect you to engage with and contribute to the wider portfolio EIThi portfolio.You've seen already that we 147 projects so far, you'll be an additional 30 uh two um and if if we fund all of them of course um and you then become part of that network, you become part ofthat community and you become a part of that portfolio.
And one of the things we have incorporated into this call um is a much stronger kind of community engagement um requirement and you actually will need to develop um and submit a community engagement plan as a mandatory deliverableby month three of your project.You'll have to have a community officer and uh you you will be expected to participate in the relevant portfolio level activities throughout the project.Um there's loads of information about this in the project design and implementation guide.So I really recommend you check that out and we also require you to submit at least two good uh success stories and two good practices during the funding period.We have already collected that from previous projects and current and we have a great um a great let's say uh repository uh of these documents that we can then share with the wider community and learn together.
Okay, KPI criteria at a glance we have a KPI session.Um but you have these kind of four uh you have four EIT KPIs that are required.Um you need to you have a kind of combined startup KPI.Uh 3.1 is startups supported by the project.4.1 is startups created by the project.In total you need to um have a target of at least four.But you decide how that spread.Uh you'll see the big one here.Uh this is the training.This is the contribution to the uh STEM education strategic plan.You'll be required to train at least 2,200 people in INE and IP management from those relevant STEM disciplines and uh innovation uh structures and mechanisms.It's a KPI we also have throughout our um our projects.You need to deliver on uh four of those.Uh and finally uh new partnerships established.
These are all um standard KPIs for the initiative.Um and you can find more information in the call text and in the session next week on I think on the 17th that one.You then have to deliver on one core KPI.Uh you choose one of these three and you put a minimum target.These are the generally slightly harder ones to reach.Um but our projects do manage it.We know you can do it.Um think carefully about what you select.Think carefully about when you plan uh to achieve it as well.We would recommend the second year of implementation in 2028 here.
The evaluation criteria are summarized, with impact highlighted as the most heavily weighted category. Rosanna then reviews the available support materials, including guides, FAQs, the portal, newsletter, and inbox.
Okay.There are three criteria, general criteria for the evaluation which you will be very familiar with.Excellence, impact, quality and efficiency of implementation.I'm not going through it today, but you have very detailed uh criteria and subriteria for each of these three um areas in the call text.So you can familiarize familiarize yourselves with that and know that that will be what the evaluators are using.Excuse me, I have picked up the seasonal code um what the evaluators will be using um when they evaluate the proposal.So you can really see what it is they're going to be looking at and what they're going to be evaluating you on.Um and obviously based on that um those scores uh this creates the award criteria.Just a note here.Um the heaviest uh waiting let's say of this of the score is impact.So it has 50% of the waiting.
Okay, we're nearly there.Application uh application and support.I I mentioned it at the beginning, but we have all of these different resources um available for you on the 2026 web page.Um you have the core text, naturally it's the bible here.You have the pro project design and implementation guide which is a supporting document to understand better certain aspects and for of the requirements.You have the matchmaking platform that I've mentioned to find your partners.We're running seven of these info sessions.Uh there's the interactive guide I mentioned already to check your application readiness.Please please understand that this is not a validation of your eligibility.There is a formal eligibility check that happens uh following the submission of the proposals in the end of the uh call window.This is just a tool to guide you but please don't take it as um any sort of validated uh confirmation of eligibility.
There's an FAQ's document which is already there um that we'll keep updating that it's dynamic.And then there is the application portal uh seedbook for those of you who've participated before in an application.Uh I can say that the portal has been uh significantly improved and is really really looking great and user friendly.So we hope you enjoy those improvements this time round.And then we have the hi newsletter.You will have seen probably if you subscribe things going out around the call and these info sessions, but you can keep on top of news there.And the inbox if we haven't answered any of your questions.This is the email address.It's on my screen.Uh and you can contact us at any time.We'll do our best to get back to you as soon as possible.Just bear in mind the volume of emails tends to be high.
So please be patient.
The timeline for submission, evaluation, and project start is outlined, with a strong warning not to miss the deadline. Rosanna closes the first section by listing the remaining info sessions and their topics.
Okay.Okay, finally the key dates and application timeline.So, we opened on the 20th of October.We will close uh formally on the 13th of January at 5:00 p.m.Central Eastern time.This is a very, very strict deadline.I really, really, really advise you not to wait until the last day to submit your application.This is a technical platform.Technical issues can occur.You really don't want months of work to go down the drain because of a lastm minute technical issue.And this is a very very very strict cutoff.So we cannot accept any proposals beyond 5:00 p.m.uh on the 13th of January.Uh so at least 48 hours before uh but if you can even earlier.Okay.Uh the evaluation period then takes place across January and March and then we expect to be able to uh share the results with the uh applicants the week beginning 22nd of March.
If you are selected, your uh project agreement preparation would happen in April and uh sometimes into May.The the finalization of the signature, but your official start date will be the 1st of May 2027.And as I said, it's an 18-month call, so you will finish end of October 2028.Okay, finally, we got there.These are the info sessions.I can check the dates now.I wasn't just making them up.So the next one we have is Friday's introduction to H innovate.This is uh run by the H innovate team.Um so they will run that.Um and if you haven't used a self- assessment tool or you're confused about how to use it as a consortium, please join on Friday and you will um you'll be able to understand more about that.There's also some information on how to do the H innovate in the guide.
Then we have on the 11th of November uh the MEL framework and impact domains and actions session followed by the KPI expectations session.Um and then we have application and budget planning.So this is about how to use the portal as well the application portal.Um followed by uh our kick discovery day which is where we really um dive into what each of the kicks do and and different activities that they run.Um it's that's a an event that colleagues across the HIC team will be running and then finally the open Q&A.
Natalyia introduces the panel discussion and frames the call around collective capacity building and ecosystem cooperation. She presents the four speakers and invites them to share their experiences and advice.
So lots of chances to ask your questions.I'm going to hand over to my colleague Natalyia who's going to take us into the second section.Hi Natalia.I survived it with my cold just so um Natalyia is going to introduce um our very kind speakers today.if we could ask our four speakers to open their cameras.Uh our panelists so we can see you make sure you're all here.Uh I can see Rita, Marian, do we have Nicole and J?We have J.Okay.So
I'm here but it's not possible for me to to open the video.I don't know why but I'm here.
Okay.Let me look at that in the meantime.Uh first of all, let's um Natalia, you introduce us to what this is all about.And thank you everyone for for joining and participating today.
Yes, thank you Rosanna and good afternoon to everybody.Happy to be here.And for those that don't know, I'm an I'm Natalyia Stoke, an innovation manager at the higher education initiative.So some of you already know me.Um and today's uh the next session right now is not going to be much about the HI are going to be about uh the speakers that we have here about Rita about Marian about Nicole and about y'all.Um they have experience and they have been already funded partners and are coming from the business triangle.They have experience cooperating with cross- sector at pan European level.uh also experience uh in the HI projects and we want to hear more about uh their experience uh their perspectives and their tips and suggestions for uh connecting for this um call six with their specific profiles.Uh but before that I just wanted to say Rosanna mentioned something about connecting the dots.
This call six is a lot about not only building individual capacity but rather the collective one and we asked ourselves and so within the hi ecosystem what is it that we have right now and the past calls uhwe have definitely strengthened institutional and project level capacity however the question is how much do we continue to uh build capacity individually and now it's more about okay how do we actually create stem talent pipelines which is relatedto the first policy objective.How do we create actually innovation and technology pipelines and moving innovations from one stage to another?And how do we integrate uh better HIS and overall uh the HI network into regional ecosystems and uh this is why we are pushing very strongly as well for cooperation across knowledge triangle and um also more than umsetting the tone through the call hearing than the experts.
So Rosanna can you please click to the next slide?Perfect.today.Who do we have on board?We have an HR representative Y Cortez from uh the Catholic University of Portugal.We have uh from industry and innovation u sector Nicole and Marian um each one being part of Alakuba and the new way in the new way school.And then we have uh Retita Anson board member of EBA.So that being said, I will just open the floor.Please let's go with the next slide with you all.You're first in line.Um and I just want to briefly ask you three um three points that will be interesting to share with the audience which is okay briefly what is a little bit of an introduction and what is your relation tothe hi and why did you join and what is the benefit for your organization and maybe some tips on how to engage and start uh cooperating and forging partnerships for apply applying to the call.
So the stage is yours.
Jean Christ describes the Catholic University of Portugal’s experience in previous HI projects and the benefits of cross-sector collaboration. He offers practical advice on aligning goals, securing leadership support, planning for sustainability, and being ambitious.
So shall I go ahead?My name is Jean Christ.I come from Catholic in Portugal.uh we have coordinated the uh project deep forag in cohort 3 and uh coordinated also elevate which is still running until April in cohort 4 and we are actually members of the t- rise project in the uh newuh cohort.So unfortunately although we would want to we cannot apply for the next round.Um we we have been uh deeply involved uh in different uh uh contributions in this uh different projects by bringing in connections to the ecosystem uh players and stakeholders.um obviously in coordinating uh different types of activities but also obviously deeply in training uh the different um um stakeholders and targets in these type of projects from our students and staff to non uh to non-academics um umparticipants.Um we have also been deeply involved in mentoring in uh developing and implementing an acceleration program in uh developing and implementing events that link uh with the ecosystem.
Uh what did we uh look for in this particular type of uh HIT calls?uh our really the main goal that we had was the opportunity to improve first of all our own internal structures and best practices by engaging with other universities of course but also by engaging with the ecosystem itself andlearning with the other players.So the international perspective and inter sector perspective were very much uh opportunities and challenges that we wanted to face.So the sharing of best practices for promoting innovation entrepreneurship structures within our uh university were a goal from models of setting up uh processes in our tech transfer offices and entrepreneur and entrepreneurship support um structures and to createand consolidate a mentorship pool that was just beyond Catholic and our local ecosystem but internationally as well.So the training modalities that we could learn and uh internalize also to promote entrepreneurship and support our students and staff to translate their ideas into actual products and services.
We started by agri food as a focus in the first project but then we wanted to expand to multiple sectors in elevate which now covers four different uh types of sectors which is quite of a challenge but alsoan opportunity for growth.So best practices in connecting non-academic entities and consolidating uh our local international ecosystem were also um uh goals that we really had and we managed to build uh really great connections with other universities that will last surely beyondthe the project.Uh practical insights for collaborating with higher education institutions.Well, first of all, ensure that you have matching goals.So all uh if you in between universities and between different types of partners, this is crucial to build a common vision, a common goal and common uh beneficial uh activities throughout the project.So um it is important that the university has experience in their TTO and entrepreneurship team I would say.
So uh from experience in training programs and uh eventually other types of activities like acceleration programs that you may wish to be part of and it to implement uh commitment to impact and full engagement in the project actionsfrom the scientific side or technological level or even um support from the university structures like business schools and that would be also a nice interesting asset to look for to understand the the how wide is the reach uhof the ecosystem of the different uh his would also be important to ensure that you have a very good match.So either you match them or they match you.So this is important to ensure this alignment.So also in interesting is always to have at least some Hayes that have very wide experience in in the management of u uh EU projects in in particular um HIT projects would be good.
I would leave you if I may still within my minutes with four words.One as as tips in general.One purpose plan all your activities uh plan them based on your real needs and the needs of your partners.So do a very good clear um assessment of your needs and discuss them with your senior staff.So to ensure that leadership is engaged as Rosanna already mentioned right from the design phase.So everything will be more impactful.Two, sustainability.So design your project from the start with a long-term vision not just the two years of the project but think what you want to build in the long run and use the project for that.So also think laterally how can uh this particular proposal project interlink with other initiatives of your own entity and how you can link with Hayes and and the other ecosystem players and with other European projects and so on
and so forth.And the last one is be bold.This is a great opportunity for thinking out of the box and to pilot initiatives that you would really want to try.So be bold.Thank you.
Nicole explains AlmaCube’s role as an incubator and how it has used HI projects to test and scale deep-tech venture-building methods. She emphasizes complementarity, measurable outputs, and involving non-academic partners early.
Thank you very much you all.This is great insights.Uh probably many his also reflect on this experience.Um okay, thank you.Now moving forward uh to the next group of stakeholders, we have industry and innovation stakeholders and therefore I would like to call in Nicole Monty from Alma Kuba uh who has also participated uh in two previous cohorts forhi funded project.So Nicole welcome to the stage.
Yeah.Hi.Good afternoon.I'm Nicole Montiad of the startup unit in Alma Cube.Thank you Natalia and Rosanna for inviting me.Um and I'm very sorry but uh my camera is not working uh with the with the zoom call.So um Alma Cube is an incubator and an innovation app from Bolognia.Uh so we are based in Italy.Uh we are strongly connected with the university which is one of our shareholders.So uh we work a lot with researchers and students and uh our aim is is indeed to bring the research excellence to the market supporting the development of scalable businesses.Uh we also do open innovation and we develop new methodologies together with the university.Um so based on this mission we decided to look toward Europe and apply for EIT higher education initiative calls uh successfully securing two projects uh one is named techtox which started in 2025 and one named uh as three
venture factory which uh just started two months ago.Um in tech tweaks we we collaborate with within a consortium of six partners including for European universities um and its aim to strengthen universities entrepreneurial capacity across the climate and mobility sector.Um our role here is to lead a deep tech venture builder designed to bridge the technology transfer value of debts.We work hand inhand with um teams made by researchers and students to move them from an initial proof of value to a validated business concept, a tested MVP and a founding team that should be ready for spin-off incorporation.Um so tech led to successful results uh and strong connection with the partner.So we uh with some of them we decided to bring this tech to market methodology that we tested in tech2x uh to a step further by submitting the S3 venture factory that that we won.
Um so in S3 project we are now testing the methodology on a larger scale through a three-stage funnel.uh in the first phase we bring university patterns directly into academic degree courses where students can carry out market analysis to identify the most valuable commercial uses use use cases.Um in a second phase we select the top performing project and guide them through an intensive acceleration sprint and in a third phase we support the teams through incorporation help them deploy a proof of concept with an industrypartner.Um so for us um there are two primary drivers to participate in EIT higher education initiatives.First uh is the methodological experimentation yet he provide an authentic test bed where we can pilot validate and scale cutting edge techtom market method methodologies in the deep tech which is our uh main focus being um university incubatorum and second the international ecosystem of course um it has enabled us to exchange best practices and build the last single operational relationship with um leading universities and re research centers across Europe.
Um so opening doors that would otherwise take years to to establish independently.Um to conclude uh I would like to leave three practical takeaways for anyone preparing an application.Uh so I'm bringing of course the perspective from an incubator.So we we are an SMMES.Um the first point is establish uh genuine complimentarity.Uh universities on one side generate scientific excellence while incubators andmemes bring more pragmatism, agility and market mindset.Um second um I would focus on tangible, measurable and outputs.Um yet rewards uh concrete impact.Um so uh may for example patents commercial commercialized industrial PC uh and spin-off incorporated and the third point is to uh involve also non-academic partners and strategic co-designers uh since uh within the EIT consortia of coursememes can beuh an operational bridge connecting laboratory discoveries to industrial markets.So thank you everyone and best of luck with your application.
Marian presents the perspective of an innovation consultancy working across the project lifecycle. He highlights strategic foresight, capacity building, and connecting academic work to broader innovation ecosystems.
Thank you Nicole.Uh also very interesting and I hope everybody's also taking notes of all of these tips and advices of um the our pioneers and experienced uh leads from the different stakeholder groups.So next we have uh Marian.He is director and innovation lead for the new way.organization um and is currently participating from tech side.So Mariam, you bring in also the innovation and industry perspective maybe from your own experience.Welcome to the stage.
Thank you.Uh and it's a pleasure to be here today.Uh my name is Maria Nikolovski like you said I'm a managing director and innovation expert at the new way which is a strategic innovation consultancy uh and business partner in the cohort for uh techite project uh which thefull name is a future proving higher education institutions for European and global leadership uh in deep tech innovation.First time I start to say that for my experience the initiative the EAT higher education initiative is the most impactful and systematic uh way of enhancement innovation entrepreneurship in Europe if not globally within the higher education institutions andthe other actors.Uh my role uh besides being a lead for dissemination and engagement activities in the tite project is to act as a innovation expert across the whole project life cycle.uh texite project it's actually a a consortia of 30 organizations we are seven full partners five uh higher education institutions one public body and one theme which is the new way uh and it's uh include 23 associated partner
of the largest uh businesses chambers of commerce accelerators etc uh with uh with the main goal to boost the regional innovation ecosystem development and to transform uh the higher education institution we are working with uh just a fewlines about the takes site project.It's a multi-dimensional project.I think it's a very exciting because we are on the cohort for trend B line within the deep tech uh line uh that we are working into kind of building uh um experimentation between strategic portrait and horizon scanningfrom one side and innovation entrepreneurship from other side because we believe that deep tech entrepreneurship requires a long-term that one lin start lin startup approach only uh offers uh then we believe that by embedding principle of strategic foresightlike uh uh we can build confidence and by teaching uh stakeholders in the quadravo helix how to identify weak signals we can uh boost the first of a kind innovation especially relevant for the emerging and moderate regional innovation
ecosystems where we believe the fragmented networks of limited confidence can sometimes prevent promising technology and ideas from moving forward and uh third with this we believe we are closing the gap between the regional innovation ecosystem development of theleaders and then emerging regions with the overall goal into kind of European uh strengthening the European leadership in deep tech innovation.Uh for me as a strategic innovation consultancy and partner is not limited like I said to one working package.I support the connection between academia and industry entrepreneurship innovation ecosystem development and European networks.This includes uh giving a lot of uh guest and joint lectures into strategic portrait and horizon scanning, embedding an existing innovation, entrepreneurship, new product development courses, most of it in the technical faculties participating in the project uh buildingindustry executive program for GI tech sectoral leaders and governmental stakeholders.uh two weeks ago I coordinate as the new way our capacity building program for all the academic and non-academic staff professors researchers and other stakeholders more than 100 people uh had the opportunity to learn how they can anticipate
different futures uh in their field and where their field is heading maybe in 2040 how to anticipate to get there.Um and this is kind of where you have somebody when you bring a strategic innovation consultancy as uh somebody who is very passionate uh about uh long-term strategic change systematic transformation and holistic impact on the table.It means that I'm supporting the overall impact of the project making sure the large institutions are uh making the changes the best they can and uh in that context I would like to say as a SM innovation consultancyas a partner can help connect individual project activities into broader strategic direction strengthen engagement across the quadro helix and ensure that the project lives a meaningful legacy beyond its formal lifetime for the new way.This is also where the greatest value of participating in the EAT higher education initiative lies being able to apply expertise at European level while contributing to long-term transformation of universities and innovation ecosystems around them.
Thank you.
Rita explains why business angel networks matter for turning research into investable ventures. She shares practical advice on involving investors early, building real relationships, and supporting commercialization pathways.
Thank you Marian for all of the insights um and also for giving the perspective from the innovation ecosystem actor and your closeness relation as well with both worlds the industry and the Agis itself.So, thank you for that.And now, last but not least, we have Rita Anson.Uh, she is board member and gender initiative chair from the European Business Angels Network.She's also very present and active in other different networks like Norwegian Business Angels and others.So, I would just leave the stage for her to tell a bit more about that.Rita and itself uh has been involved in two different um projects.Uh but Rita is joining us today as a senior member and as a a strategic member of EBAN talking us a bit more about the big picture and um joint areas where in general investor networks can actually leaseand connect um for not only cooperation for the applying for the call but in general for ecosystem integration as well.
Sorita happy to have you here and the stage is yours.
Thank you.Thank you Natalia for uh this amazing introduction about me.Uh I feel a little bit the different one you know from uh all the academy that you are talking about.But good afternoon everyone.Thank you for inviting me a representative from industry and specifically from business angel investor network.that maybe for some of you is something like a out of your perspective.So I would like to contribute in this session just to giving you and addressing how important I think is go to go from research to getting investment for business development and commercialization and why we investors networks matter inthis call and in general uh in the EIT HI initiative uh not only because of the integration uh objectives that the call uh is talking about but also because uh the connections with us investors and that investment readinessand commercialization for the universities is important.
So I would like to share three perspectives that I think that are uh easily then transferable to the applications that uh you are writing.The first is the investor network perspective on these projects what we can bring to universities and researchers and then some practical advice on how to build maybe a successful collaboration uh with investor ecosystem.So, so for us investors uh there is a super big opportunity in Europe uh because the amount of knowledge, research and talent in universities is something that we feel there is still a gap between what is developed inthe university or in the laboratories and what eventually becomes a business and more important how sustainable uh is that solution as a commercial as an and as a venture.So, so we often see a lot of technologies that are pitching to us.They have a research with a significant potential but at some point that from research to market requires much more than the idea itself.
It requires entrepreneurial thinking.It requires understanding of customer needs, market validation, a lot of things but also of course it entails investment.So so we think that from Ian's perspective this is essential.We want to see more researchbased ventures uh reaching the stage in which they can attract private investment and because of that we think that we can contribute but being partners uh in these calls uh to make that earlierwhen researchers and students are exploring that potential of their ideas is when they need to begin to think about uh what is going to be their investment journey or their commercialization journey and so So maybe for some ofyou you would ask yourself but what can investors networks uh can contribute.So the first thing is that we can open doors to the investment ecosystem meaning that uh business angels we invest normally in early stage but then we have uh an ecosystem of other uh potential industry partners an ecosystem
of the next stage of invest investment with venture capitalists and I think that this uh or we can give uh the researchers exposure to these people uh that understand how to build a company and how to finance it.The second is that we can contribute in in the in the different projects you are writing not only with that but also with developing the entrepreneurial mindset uh because with our different I don't know workshops knowledge programs thatwe have done in different incubators around the Europe uh we can challenge uh the assumptions that researchers can have especially when it comes to identifying market opportunities and uh and of course we and create pathways uh from researchto investment uh not only with uh capital uh but also with network and in my own experience I think that uh that connection between education and entrepreneurship is particularly important and uh yeah and it's yet a little bit
missing.So, so how to embed into how you universities educate and support researcher researchers but directed on how then uh spin-offs are uh approached or approach investors uh and how they recognize the commercial potential is is something to towork with.And um the third thing is just uh some practicals dos and don'ts when uh uh trying to get into collaborating with investor organizations when you will be maybe creating your consortium.Uh the first thing is of course involve uh the network of investors, business angels in this case early when when you uh are writing the application meaning that uh if you are going to involve uh one of ourorganizations as part of the project try to get us in the whole journey of uh the project not only just at the final pitching event you know not just in when uh you are trying to uh identify uh
the promising ventures but from the beginning uh because we can provide uh with our contribution and expertise a concrete value on uh on how to support investors and focus on real interaction meaning that um you need to giveresearchers the opportunities to meet us.Uh we you need to give them the opportunity to have a mentor that maybe is uh an investor uh because just like a one time of pitch uh event sometimes cannot create uh a meaningful uh relationship.So basically think beyond the project lifetime building relationships investor pipelines mentoring and so on um is is what I think.So just my final message is uh yeah if universities bring knowledge, research and talent, let's connect with what investors bring also market perspectives, capital networks uh and so on.Uh contact us at Evan uh as a bridge uh uh between the different uh network of investors organizations around Europe.
As Natalia was saying, I'm based in Oslo.So in my case I'm representing the Norwegian uh business angel network uh and think about investors are not just the last step uh in uh identifying uh and developing entrepreneurial potential.It comes from uh the very beginning and this I think that is something that needs to be uh changed in the in the mindset uh of everyone.So let's turn every researcher into a founder and into a founder that gets u investment.That's it.This is me.
Rosanna thanks the speakers and answers a few final questions, especially about cohort 5 partners and associated partner eligibility. She also reminds attendees where to find the recording, slides, and matchmaking platform.
Thank you very much Rita and thank you also to Marian Nicole and you all for your insights for being here and also for being an example from our HI network.So with this I give back the stage to Rosana.Thank you.
And then we can continue to last for it.
Okay, there won't really be a last part.I've just been looking in the Q&A and I can see our colleagues have been very busy replying to many questions coming in.Um so I will get to that first.Uh I will get to that afterwards.Sorry.First I just want to say a big thanks to our four um our four project participants or um contacts who agreed to participate in today's info session and give the perspective from these different stakeholders and these different organizationtypes.Hopefully that's inspired you.If you're here as an hi, as anme, as an investor network, as an industry network, as a research organization, as a TTO, um you've been inspired hearing uh the insights from across the um across the ecosystem, let's say.Um and you're now thinking about how you can uh you can um work with your consortia to to build something uh exciting for this call.
Um and also a big thanks to to you Natalia for moderating there and organizing that.Okay.Um before we sign off um I there are I've had a look in the Q&A.I've spoken to our colleagues who are on top of it and it seems that there are quite a number of unanswered questions that are very specific.So specific questions for those um questions we ask you to if they haven't been answered yet to use the HI mailbox um and ask them there um rather than uh kind of addressing those more specific questions in thisforum today.Um I think the common a common uh clarification that has been requested by a few of you is around the participation of cohort 5 um partners beneficiaries.So, cohort 5 funded partners whether they can uh participate in this call as a uh an associated partner.I did say in my presentation, but I know sometimes you're busy writing the questions and maybe you miss things in the presentation.
This is 100% okay for um funded partners from cohort 5 projects to apply as an associated partner.So, non-funded partner.That's absolutely fine.There are no rules and you can apply in uh as many um as many applications as you like as an associated partner.The the rules and um the restrictions come on the funded beneficiaries.So remember if there's anything you take away from today uh please you cannot as an organization apply as a funded partner in more than one proposal.And if you are a cohort five funded partner, you cannot apply to this call as a funded partner.Okay, this is very very clear rule.Um beyond that, I think some people were asking when uh they we would be able you will be able to see this the slide deck from today and the recording.The answer is likely by this evening uh but latest by tomorrow.
So, we um make sure to have all of these uh published on the web page for the call call 2026 in the section that says info sessions.Uh you'll see that um 20 within 24 hours after each session, the links will appear for both the slide deck and the recording.So, you'll be able to um revisit this and and uh anything that you forget, you can you can jump back in and and take a look.Beyond that uh thank you very much to everyone organiz who involved in organizing today.I apologize that uh I am here with a seasonal cold.I hope you've understood everything like the blocked nose.Um and really really amazing to see how many people are are interested and and considering applying just by the sheer attendance today.It's it's very exciting.Um so if you haven't had your question answered, please do use our our inbox.
Um and again please bear with us.We'll get to it as soon as we can.I can see some networking happening already in the chat, which is great.Um, and yeah, I think because some of you are looking for partners, the the biggest thing here is get on that matchmaking platform.It's dedicated to this call specifically.So, everybody on there is interested already in this call.So, that's a really great um pool of people to connect with um if you're looking for partners and if you're looking to build a consortium.
The session wraps up with a final thank-you and reminder about the next info session. Rosanna ends the webinar and says goodbye.
Okay.Uh I think that is all from me.Um so have a great afternoon everyone and I hope to see you on Friday for the H innovate session.Uh Friday at 3 PM Central Eastern uh European time.Okay.Thank you all.I'll end the webinar now.Take care.