<< Background >>Man-made or natural disasters can cause severe damage to individuals, communities, economies, supply chains, and the environment. Moreover, they may trigger secondary disasters, aggravating initial impacts. Such type incidents in the previous decades, clearly illustrate the urgent need to tackle these hazards within the overall frame of inclusive disaster risk management. Furthermore, the cost of disasters worldwide has risen from previous years and continues to grow due to increasing disaster risk as a result of factors such as climate crisis, rapid urbanization, and industrialization. This project will contribute to improving the management of these risks and strengthening resilience. We would like this effort to offer a targeted set of both scientific and practical activities for implementation at national and local levels contribution and to support training and capacity building and to raise awareness of the risks and impacts of man-made and natural disasters.Civil Protection Personnel face important challenges due to the complexity and incidents’ increased demands, while private sector Safety and Security Personnel face relatively same challenges in protecting the indoor estate. Under these circumstances, both Civil Protection and private sector personnel need to be able to evaluate critical issues under complex conditions and make quick and reasonable judgments based on sound scientific knowledge and former experience in order to reduce possibly occurring errors. Therefore, it is important to provide more and diverse training and seek new and improved ways to train target groups that optimize the actual task performance, while minimizing physical danger and financial cost.<< Objectives >>SETOFF Project aims to improve the readiness and occupational safety of both civil protection and private sector Safety and Security Personnel against future crises and emergencies by developing an innovative e-training curriculum based both on a successfully tested and implemented simulation model combined with the latest scientific knowledge and on comprehensive needs analysis. In detail: • Provide high quality training for both civil protection and private sector Safety and Security personnel to increase readiness and actionability• Facilitate and support professionals by validating practices acquired in the field• Identify knowledge and performance gaps through various comprehensive training needs assessments• Develop a common e-training curriculum resulting the cooperation between 4 countries (Greece, Republic of North Macedonia, Belgium & Spain) based on findings gathered from simulations (Discussion Exercises) that will address existing knowledge and performance gaps• Develop an e-platform, accessible from any portable device to host the training modules and develop a community of demanders • Generate new and better simulation scenarios to improve the knowledge database through collaboration of experienced professionals from different countries • Mitigate the resource availability issues, sharing already existing installations among participants of the Project, both on-site and through distance learning• Further use and mainstreaming of a successful training modelNUMBER AND PROFILE OF PARTICIPANTSThe partnership consists of 8 partners from 4 countries: universities and training organizations with expertise in civil protection issues, municipalities, and non-profit research organizations as well as technical consulting service companies. Furthermore, twelve (12) associated Partners recognize the need and potential of this project to enable structured knowledge sharing and facilitate collaboration between practitioners, civil society, and stakeholders in the field of disaster management via the proposed SETOFF online platform and express their interest in support and their intention to actively participate in SETOFF.<< Implementation >>The activities are the following• Comprehensive training needs analysis through literature review, including good practices, target audience, and topic analysis. • Validation of the Partner countries’ needs in terms of knowledge and skills gaps. • Development of training methodology: design and development of collaborative, evidence-based curriculum on simulations, integration of contemporary learning theories and practices, development of learning/training scenarios and lesson plans. • Design and development of the e-training platform.• Conversion of the training material into e-training, hosted in the e-learning segments of the platform.• Validation of the e-training usability and efficiency• Development of retention service skills• Training the appointed trainers on the methodology, modules, and training tools.• Organization and implementation of pilot projects in the 3 Partner countries.• Implementation of the ECVET tools• Assessment of pilots and adjustment of the Project outcomes.METHODOLOGYThe consortium will design, develop, test, implement and disseminate an innovative disaster management training programme/curriculum for both Civil Protection and private sector Safety and Security personnel supported by the e-training platform and the Skills Retention Service. The Project will follow a systematic approach to outcomes development: cycles of design, development, testing, and evaluation to assess usability and functionality. The development of the training program will be based on the adoption of a user-centered approach which requires the target groups’ representatives been involved in all project stages. In addition, it is expected that involving users in the design of the training and of the platform functionalities from the beginning will not only increase the efficiency and usability of e-learning training but will also moderate any resistance to change in adopting the proposed innovative training framework.SETOFF fully respects gender and age representation, as proved by the number of male/female consortium key-personnel, as well as the civic and civil protection Safety and Security Personnel involved in the training.Furthermore, two organizations, the Hellenic Federation of the Deaf and the Panhellenic Association of Paraplegics are associated to SETOFF in order to provide input and experience on Safety and Security procedures of invalid/disabled people at risk. SETOFF is in accordance with EU digital transformation priority as it’s curriculum and training techniques request enhancing digital skills and competences and scale up those already trainers and trainees practice. In accordance with the EU green Deal Communication, the SETOFF Project will tackle green goals related to reduced energy by: -hosting virtual meetings where possible-for the in-person training, travelling green and staying at hotels that respect building and renovating policy -reducing CO production and saving energy through the appropriate webtools, use of drives to reduce emails, reducing printed documents and using upcycled or recycled materials where possible SETOFF been an international Project aspires to respect language diversity and promote multilingualism by:-translating curriculum in all Partners languages-assuring press releases and social media presence in all Partners languagesThe SETOFF training will be based on ECVET approach and the certification will be built in accordance to levels 6, 7 of the European Qualifications Framework.<< Results >>Using the simulation facilities and online technology, the SETOFF Project will develop an e-training curriculum based on the real needs and the cognitive profile of the target groups, which can be applied in different stages of both civil protection and private sector Safety and Security training personnel: • e-learning educational platform • e-training modules• online technologies to bring remote training closer to face-to-face training• Skills Retention Service• ECVET supporting toolsIMPACT & LONG-TERM BENEFITS• Provide a high-quality innovative, flexible, and affordable training curriculum for both civil protection and private sector Safety and Security personnel • SETOFF will raise skill and performance levels and will serve the digitalization efforts of the field• Enhance VET providers offer online training with remote control practices• Improve collaboration between Partners and sharing of best practices and resources• Establish simulation training as mainstream methodology• Provide visibility of EU innovative and effective disaster management practices• In order to maximize impact, SETOFF curriculum will be available for consultation and to be included in future disaster management training. Moreover, Trainees will be accredited to perform in their turn as future trainers.

The turnover of mining and quarrying in Europe reaches up to 224 billion Euros and has generated EUR 64.9 billion of value added, 1% of the non-financial business economy total. The rise of key enabling technologies and the urbanisation and industrialisation of emerging economies in combination with increase in population and living standards will continue to drive growing demand for raw materials. The need to extract raw materials in a profitable, environmentally sound, and safe way for both mining workforce and communities is driving the mining industry towards innovative approaches to transform operations. Even though Industry 4.0 offers a wide spectrum of solutions, and intelligent technologies to address respective challenges, the mining industry hesitates to adopt such innovative approaches when compared to downstream industries. In addition, the need for a human-centred, environmentally oriented and society-driven approach is emerging in developing Industrial Internet of Things technologies for mining. Dig_IT will address the needs of the mining industry to move forward towards a sustainable use of resources while keeping people and environment at the forefront of their priorities. In order to achieve that Dig_IT proposes the development of a smart Industrial Internet of Things platform (IIoTp) that will improve the efficiency and sustainability of mining operations by connecting cyber and physical systems. The platform will collect data from sensors at 3 levels: (i) human, (ii) assets, (iii) environment and will also incorporate both market real time and historical data. The impact of Dig_IT to the European Mining industry, but also the society itself, can be summarised in the following (with a horizon of 4 years after project ends): (i) increase of the mining efficiency by 17%, (ii) increased OEE for machines and loading by 20% and 18% respectively, (iii) 19% reduction of CO2eq, (iv) about 310 new jobs created and (v) over 28M EUR ROI for the consortium.

METAWAVE proposes the introduction of advanced microwave-based heating systems in high-temperature heating processes. Its key outcome is the demonstration of these systems in three industrial sectors (ceramics, asphalt, aluminium) achieving superior performance. Process efficiency, energy use, GHG emissions and productivity are the main metrics that define the positioning of the project results on the industrial innovation atlas. The advantages of higher system efficiency, shorter process time and process controllability have the potential of bringing the twin-transition one step closer, helping the process industries to reduce the energy demand and leverage their overall flexibility. Further optimisation requires feedstock enhancement with novel nanostructured additives, waste-based refractories for advanced process monitoring and controls as well as robust modelling and predictive functions for the Process Digital Twin. METAWAVE will target seamless integration of renewable energy sources to power the microwave-based heating systems through Virtual Power Plant (VPP) configurations, accompanied by an energy management system based on data-driven modelling optimisation and alongside the investigation of industrial symbiosis developing a detailed Hub 4 Circularity (H4C) roadmap. A complete assessment of the techno-economic feasibility of the novel technologies and their environmental impact will be conducted paving the way towards their up-scale and commercial adoption. METAWAVE will mobilise different stakeholders into new ways of operating process industries through capacity building, open science, and new forms of sustainable economic activity with an emphasis on sustainable fuels and feedstocks. 7 SMEs along with 6 RTDs, 2 universities and 3 large enterprises work together to achieve 420 GWh energy reduction, over 95ktCO2 averted and more than 19% productivity increase yielding total revenues of more than 230M and the creation of more than 900 new jobs by 2032.

INPERSO is a holistic deep renovation programme addressing the building’s entire lifecycle and combining industrialisation and personalisation. The project will deliver inclusive, affordable, efficient, and sustainable renovation, adaptable to various climate zones and building typologies, but focused on residential and heritage buildings. Aiming to deliver a near-market solution, INPERSO is comprised of five highly exploitable, integrated results (IRs) plus an underlying, human-centric methodology for low-carbon renovation. New technological components leveraging the advantages of prefabrication, pre-integration and robotic 3D printing will drastically reduce the time (>50%) and costs (>25%) of construction, and increase resource efficiency, productivity and quality, coupled with waste reduction (>40%). The project highlights the advantages of digital solutions, by integrating scan-to-BIM, AI, AR and ML into the established RE Suite platform, creating a solid foundation for harmonising information flows and addressing the fragmentation challenges of the sector. These resources will also be used to optimise building energy performance and indoor environment quality, as well as improving the energy footprint of the renovation process, in addition to improving working conditions and safety. INPERSO will be demonstrated in Spain, Netherlands, and Greece, forming energy communities and promoting sustainable energy use. Ambitious upscaling and replication plans, supported by green financing and six business models, will be implemented to generate local and EU-wide impacts. The Consortium consists of 8 research organisations, 8 SMEs, 2 large enterprises and 3 NPOs, privately investing €4.7M in the project.

The problem addressed by the OPTIMINER project is multi-faceted and significant in the European context. Europe's mining industry is grappling with the pressing need to efficiently and sustainably recover CRMs from increasingly complex and low-grade ores. OPTIMINER offers a comprehensive solution to Europe's mining challenges, encompassing five Key Exploitable Results (KERs). REMINER focuses on advanced technologies for efficient CRM recovery. These include smart ore sorters, membrane-based hydrometallurgical processes, bioleaching, and phytomining. They will comprise a marketplace of technologies that will be offered to the extractive industry through an innovative AI-enabled CRM Recovery Selector. DIGIMINER offers a digital platform for smart monitoring and control. It is enhanced with a Decision Support System and an NLP-based digital assistant, the Virtual Miner. Moreover, Digital Twins of the recovery pilot plants will be created to optimise productivity and provide with simulation capacities. ECOMINER delivers services enhancing sustainability and resilience. It boosts resource management and efficiency by designing a toolkit to optimise energy, water usage and waste valorisation, along with strategies for toxicity management and LCA. Financial sustainability is tackled by using an AI-enabled Market Observatory system to provide knowledge support and resilience to the end user. DEMOMINER showcases pilot lines for CRM recovery across different materials and geographical locations. Specifically, we are proposing 6 use cases in Spain, Greece, Poland, Finland and Chile, while focusing on CRM recovery, namely magnesium, tungsten, REE (esp. Neodymium), Copper, Cobalt and Coking Coal. GLOBEMINER promotes increased awareness and market uptake, highlighting the strategic EU-Chile strategic cooperation. Together, these components form an integrated approach to revolutionize CRM recovery, ensuring environmental sustainability and operational efficiency.