The SUNCOCAT proposal aims at the nanoscale engineering of electron and energy transfer pathways and ultimately, the development of efficient biophotoelectrodes, to capture solar light and convert CO2 to carbon monoxide, the latter product being an important platform chemical and fuel. This novel class of the hybrid photoelectrodes will employ the strong reducing power of photosystem I (PSI) to drive the high performance of the CO2 converting biocatalyst, CO dehydrogenase (CODH). A robust extremophilic PSI will serve as the central light harvesting and charge separating biocatalyst, capable of capturing solar energy in the visible part of the solar spectrum to drive reductive chemistry. Photoactivated electrons generated by PSI upon visible light capture will be wired to novel O2-tolerant CODH variants for conversion of atmospheric CO2 into CO. The well-structured and oriented attachment of the PSI-CODH hybrids to the electrode surface via the DNA building blocks is the breakthrough approach of this proposal for enhanced solar energy capture and conversion into fuel. To achieve the highest possible energy conversion efficiency, SUNCOCAT uses a highly interdisciplinary approach based on both fundamental electrochemical investigation and quantum mechanical/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) modelling of electron transfer (ET) together with a number of physico-chemical, genetic, and biophysical methods in order to efficiently interface the abiotic and biotic components for solar-driven reduction of CO2 to CO, aiming at high product selectivity and yield. Rational assembly of the robust biophotocatalytic assemblies onto the electrode surface with the use of advanced physico-chemical methods (molecular wiring, DNA origami technique and plasmonic enhancement of absorption and fluorescence), as well as oriented coupling of the hybrids to earth-abundant conductive materials, i.e., single layer graphene (SLG) on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO), will be used to optimise the energy and charge transfer (CT) within the hybrid photoelectrode for efficient solar-driven chemical conversion. With its multifaceted and interdisciplinary approach, SUNCOCAT strives for highly efficient solar-to-fuel system based on novel hybrid nanoassemblies to drive the desired reductive chemistry via a rational approach based on a combination of iterative ET modelling and state-of-the-art spectroelectrochemical investigation of ET and its competing pathways

STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics – is the field that helps children learn how to program, make codes, and understand technological devices. During STEM education activities, students learn in a safe environment that allows them to fall and try again. STEM education stresses the value of failure as a learning exercise, which will enable students to embrace mistakes as part of the learning process. STEM in Action; Open Educational Resources for Teachers is based on Online and Face to Face STEM courses to the teachers free of charge. 7 organisations from Turkey, Belgium, Romania, Ireland, Germany, Croatia and Greece who are experienced in STEM will take place in the project. One of Educational objectives of Erasmus+ is to promote the open access of project outputs to support learning, teaching, training, and youth work. Our Project has the same objective. Moreover, Erasmus+ supports that A common purpose is to ensure that skills and qualifications can be more easily recognized and are better understood, within and across national borders. The objectives of STEM in Action; Open Educational Resources for Teachers; •to exchange good practice across the partner countries through learning raids•to provide tools, methodologies and approaches to facilitate the acquisition of needed skills with collaborative learning and teaching environments in STEM•to increase interest of educators about the priorities to gain the competences that they need around STEM education.•to develop collaborative partnership between schools and the universities in formal, nonformal and informal learning at the aim of strengthening the profile(s) of the teaching profession EU countries.•to develop a website incorporating good practices including curriculum materials across partners and avirtual courses for teachers•to produce a range of curriculum materials in STEM area for teachers’ usage•to upskill teachers in each partner county including knowledge•to impact on pre-schools, primary, elementary, high schools, VET and university students career choices10 Academicians from 6 countries totally 60 Academicians and 10 technical staff from Greece will join the project actively and they will be responsible for Open Educational Resources for Teachers. At least 100 teachers from each country will gen benefit from these materials and they will use these materials for their students. The project will last 24 months. The project has two LTTs . The first one is in Ireland. 5 staff from each organisation will join this LTT and they will take two kinds of trainings. These are how to make a video and how to prepare a STEM video. As Cork Institute of Technology has experience in preparation online courses, they are responsible for these trainings.The second LTT will be in Germany. 4 Staff from each organisation will join this LTT . In this LTT, The staff will take the training of creating curriculum of STEM. University Unıversıtaet Paderborn is responsible for this training as they have experience in STEM. The Intellectual Out Puts of the projects are Three Modules of Online STEM courses and Curriculums of STEM which will be divided into three kind ; for preschool, for primary school and for branches. The Multiplier Events of the projects are Celebrating Science Day, Celebrating Pi Day and face to face Stem Courses to local teachersOnline STEM Courses will have three kinds of modules; preschool teachers, primary school teachers and branch teachers. Online STEM Courses will have three kinds of curriculums; preschool teachers, primary school teachers and branch teachers. While giving trainings to staff of the organisations, Seminar and workshops methodology to will be used. While giving STEM courses to teachers, Online education, will be used. However, the main theme of the project is a methodology, STEM.The results and impact envisaged of STEM in Action; Open Educational Resources for Teachers are; •At least 30 Academicians and 5 technical staff will have taken two kinds of trainings which are how to prepare a video and how to make a STEM video.•At least 30 Academicians and 5 technical staff will have taken a training about how to prepare a STEM curriculum.•Teachers will have reached to virtual courses for teachers and a range of curriculum materials in STEM area without charge.•The participant organization will have increase the awareness of STEM among the teachers.Totally there are 3 modules of Open Educational Resources related to STEM for Teachers which are divided into preschool teachers, primary school teachers and branch teachers. They will have totally 30 videos and this website can be reached for lifelong. The teachers working in local area will have take face to face STEM courses. The teachers who will take online and face to face courses will implement STEM with their students and they are supposed to carry out eTwinning and Erasmus projects related to STEM.

Artificial photosynthesis (AP) is a promising approach for solar fuel production, but current systems are inefficient, expensive and unsuitable for industrial deployment. The interdisciplinary SUNGATE consortium of 12 partners from six EU countries and Turkey will overcome these limitations by combining the principles of AP with photoelectrocatalysis and flow microreactor technology, leading to the first modular full-cell continuous flow microreactor technology that requires only sunlight (as an energy source) plus water and CO2 (as simple, abundant feedstocks) for conversion into solar fuels such as methanol and formate. The technology will operate at room temperature and neutral pH using aqueous solutions. In contrast to state-of-the-art photoelectrochemical (PEC) technologies, SUNGATE will not use toxic or critical raw materials, and will combine efficient water oxidation catalysts, with biological components such as photosystem I and enzymes, novel CO2 reducing catalysts and nanostructured diamond-based cathodes to radically improve the efficiency of conversion. The unique modular and scalable design of SUNGATE technology will allow the decarbonised production of solar fuels by increasing the size of the microfluidic PEC device or by numbering up the PEC modules, thus providing the flexibility for diverse applications ranging from decentralised energy infrastructure to closed carbon cycles for industries that emit large amounts of CO2. SUNGATE aims to achieve proof of concept at TRL5, heralding a technology breakthrough that has the potential to secure the future global energy supply at an affordable cost. This meets the central goal of the European Green Deal and the European Climate Law to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. SUNGATE’s diverse mix of academic, RTOs and industry partners will allow the full validation of the technology, including life cycle assessment, as well as effective dissemination and knowledge transfer to accelerate industrial take up.

EVOLVEPACK project is framed in the context of innovative sustainable strategies for reducing food waste in the Mediterranean area through the use of sustainable, environmental-friendly, cost-effective and antimicrobial packaging materials to control food hazards by inhibiting microbial growth. The project proposal is a RIA that seeks to contribute to an increased sustainability of the food supply chain, by exploring underexploited agro-industrial, marine residues and antimicrobial enzymes and then develop novel antimicrobial sustainable food packaging and coating materials, aimed at reducing food waste and improve safety in the Mediterranean food supply chain. The overall objective of the EVOLVEPACK project is to design and produce innovative, cost-effective, compostable and/or recyclable food packages based on active bioplastics and cellulosic materials. Trays, flexible films and absorbing pads will be developed considering a circular economy strategy. A thorough analysis of the antimicrobial packaging structures in terms of composition, antimicrobial characteristics, safety assessment and validation in food products will be carried out. These materials will be used to pack fruit/vegetables and fish, which are the basis in the Mediterranean diet, but are prone to rapid deterioration. Migration studies will be performed to assess the food safety of the developed concepts. Quantitative and non-quantitative constraints such as processability, consumer acceptance food safety, among others, will be considered in order to facilitate the design of sustainable packaging structures based on a requirement-driven approach. EVOLVEPACK will also provide an answer to society´s concerns related to food safety, environmental and economic circularity issues of the food industry and food packaging in the Mediterranean region. The project Consortium is composed of 10 Partners from 8 different countries, covering a range of complementary competences and skills, aligned with the European Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy from 2018, which seeks to contribute to one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from the United Nations, related to prevention and reduction of marine contamination, promoting the use of more sustainable materials. EVOLVEPACK will be executed over 36 months with a total budget of € 1.998.553,22 requesting a public contribution of € 1.559.053,96. The project will generate broad scientific-technological knowledge (TRL 4) and develop applicable solutions (TRL 6-7), under an overall approach structured in 8 Work Packages.

INTACTBioPack is a 36-month time-frame project involving a pan-Mediterranean consortium of 11 partners that aims to foster the adoption by the Mediterranean region, of novel, cost-competitive, biodegradable, and reusable food packaging, able to reduce food waste and loss. This relies on three main objectives: 1. Developing innovative home-compostable food-packaging materials, covering the dual functions of protective barrier and active food ingredient, as well as a reusable sensor (vegetal layer coupled with low-cost RFID) and colorimetric sensor to monitor food freshness during storage at home. 2. Exploring the potentialities of bio- and microbiome-based solutions to design consumer “self-packing” solutions to preserve and upcycle at-home leftovers or unconsumed but still edible raw fresh produce. 3. Enabling a general strategy for designing safe, sustainable, and efficient biodegradable, active packaging solutions by the deployment of generalised methodologies, mathematical tools, business plans and guidelines. Stemming from consortium’s complementarity and cross sector expertise, the philosophy of INTACTBioPack is to develop a replicable, holistic approach to design safe and working, smart and active packaging solutions, that enhance food quality & shelf-life, inform on food freshness and even transform the product (e.g., fermentation process) to decrease food waste and loss especially at home. By broadening the range of bioactive substances to microbiotes and focusing on abundant bio-based resources (e.g., cellulose, agricultural residues), upcycled with high added value constituents (e.g., probiotics, essential oils), INTACTBioPack is fully contributing to scope and impacts of Thematic Area 3, “Sustainable Mediterranean food value chain for regional and local development” of PRIMA 2023 Work Plan and, more specifically, topic 2.3.1 of section 2. The materials developed will be demonstrated on a selection of relevant food case studies for the Mediterranean region (e.g., bread, dairy, fruits and vegetable, seafoods).