This project aims to boost the entrepreneurial performance of all consortium members in close collaboration with their ecosystem partners.

We focus on improving and extending core entrepreneurial activities, at three different levels: students (entrepreneurship), faculty and researchers (founders, academic spin-offs), and ecosystems (scale-ups, open innovation). Complementary efforts and resources will be devoted to developing testbed infrastructures, comprehensive curricula, and supportive material based on the EntreComp framework and developing and anchoring better practices by creating a learning community within and across the consortium’s ecosystems. As such, the consortium consists of a diversity of complementary HEIs situated across Europe (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (coordinator) (GR), KU Leuven (BE), Maria Curie-Skłodowska University (PL), Thomas More (BE), Pablo de Olavide University (ES), Fontys University of Applied Sciences (NL), University of Macerata (IT). In addition, and in order to achieve our specific ambitions towards knowledge triangle dynamics, the project is backed up by IDEAS Forward (GR), a strategic valorization partner of AUTH. The diversity of competencies, practices, and target groups present within the consortium will guarantee that the development of the activities and their outcomes will be transferable not only within each partner institute but also to bear relevance and hence create an impact across Europe.

Backed up by senior management of all the involved partners (who all have been involved in the HEI self-assessment and the development of the joint IVAP underlying this proposal) as well as relevant ecosystem partners, our goals and philosophy build on a profound belief in the relevance of third mission activities of universities (knowledge triangle) for Europe’s knowledge society, today and tomorrow; the growing importance of inter and transdisciplinary (valorization) activities and finally the potential of operating systematically on a European scale.

All partners are actively pursuing synergies and collaborations within their own ecosystem (knowledge triangle) to create an impact with their valorisation activities. Within this project, we explicitly aim to increase the impact by improving and extending current practices and to lift the current knowledge triangle dynamics at a European scale in concert with relevant EIT KIC initiatives.

In terms of goals (KPIs), we aim to support (at least) 50 start and scale-ups, train over 1000+ students (including mentoring 150), train and mentor over 150 faculty/staff, to improve relevant support structures (n=20), and establish new partnerships, both locally and at a European Scale (n=10). We are all convinced that AccEnt will make a significant difference in terms of Accelerating Innovation and Entrepreneurial Excellence in Higher Education Institutes across Europe.

The proposal promotes training of PhD students in academia and industry in the EIT RM field of Sustainable discovery and supply of mineral resources. It tackles challenges in mining industry caused by e.g., energy transition and climate change mitigation. ADMA3 educates experts to industry and academia, gives models and skills to establish enterprises, and helps to foster sustainable development (SD) and businesses, think up innovations, and handle ethics related problem-solving.

The aim of ALCASIM project is to design, develop and pilot a professional course on tools for environmental footprint and water footprint via Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) integrated to process and thermodynamics simulation tools. To promote circularity LLL education to more advanced level and due to tightening regulations in future, the companies need to have more accurate quantification tools for assessment of environmental impact, product sustainability, and energy efficiency.

The project ALPE aims at developing and commercializing a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) power plant yielding 5 kW, a durability of 5000 hours, and including 0.5 g of Pt instead of 1 g or more. This is achieved with radically new hierarchical nanostructured electrocatalysts (ECs) promoting the electrochemical processes of the PEMFC. ALPE covers the value chain from the ECs to the assembly and validation of the PEMFC power plant.

AMIR is the only EIT-Labelled Master Programme focused on the theme of recycling. AMIR-LIH will improve teaching offers with regard to the LIghtHouses (LIH) on Sustainable Materials for Future Mobility and on Raw Materials and Circular Societies. AMIR-LIH will increase the number of students to 48 students per cohort and will be the only programme having two universities for Master 1 studies in RIS countries.

AMIS is an EIT-labelled Master programme. Its objective is to educate students in materials science with a focus on substitution of critical & toxic materials and to give them a broad vision on the full raw materials value chain. Thanks to an innovative curriculum in line with the EIT RawMaterials strategy and including a solid I&E component, students will act as game changers to find innovative & sustainable solutions towards a circular economy.

BattValue develops courses and trainings, in the battery field for industrial stakeholders working in the metal processing, refining and recycling, in technology development, in energy and automotive industry and related areas. BattValue is a demand-driven project, based on the industrial needs. It covers key aspects of the battery supply chain, and educates experts for new jobs, including tools which promote sustainability.

The BOOSTalent project brings together an eight-partner consortium comprised of five higher education institutions and three business partners to enhance institutional innovation and entrepreneurship practices. With a vision for 2030, the consortium aims to foster innovation in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) across higher education institutions, students, and businesses, particularly in the fields of aerospace, electronics, advanced materials, sustainability, and biodiversity. The consortium seeks to establish a long-term partnership between industry, academia, and government to develop cutting-edge education programs and address the climate crisis and wider sustainability issues. The project aligns with the goals of the Deep Tech Talent Initiative, Climate-KIC, EIT Digital, and EIT Raw Materials and supports their strategic aims.

BrineRIS project aims to build RIS countries' capacity on carbon-neutral critical raw materials (CRM) recovery from geothermal brines. To decrease the dependency of Europe on imported metals for battery production, BrineRIS will identify prospective deposits of brine and test emerging recovery technologies. By developing an interactive platform and investment case study, BrineRIS will attract investors to RIS regions participating in our project.

CastQC will produce a stronger and more sustainable aluminium alloy that directly contributes to a 30% weight reduction and a 20% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to the DIN 226 alloy. Consumers will benefit from more efficient and safer vehicles, while manufacturers will benefit from the reduced weight of installed parts. The QC composition and HPDC parameters will be patented. CastQC is expected to deliver a working product from QC alloy and enter the market through an established start-up.

To develop skills suitable to support the transition to circular economy, the Consortium is promoting a series of PhD Summer Schools entitled “Closing the loop: building circular skills on the entire value chain for Circular Economy”, with a strong focus on techno-scientific topics. It t will be a 1 week international school, providing an Open Badge, with a specific thematic orientation for each edition, complemented by extra activities such as in-field laboratories at industry, MOOC, hackathon.

The project consortia will scale up technology that turns CO2 emissions from industries to valuable sustainable carbon nanomaterials and graphite for making greener batteries. Within this project a scalable shipping container synthesis pilot reactor unit will be designed and built. This unit will increase the capacity to ton-scale per year and is further easily scalable to provide nanocarbons that will be manufactured into sustainable batteries.

CSyARES creates a standardised sustainability certification for rare earth elements (REE), focusing on a "Product Environmental Footprint". The project intends to integrate REIA’s sustainability standards for REE with Circularise's patented traceability technology and Minviro's sustainability metrics. The integrated solution provides affordable confidentiality-preserving certification to suppliers, proving their sustainability metrics.

DEETECHTIVE intends to transform each participating HEI into a university of significantly increased entrepreneurial and innovation capacity and to enhance their impact on surrounding ecosystems.

DEETECHTIVE’s unique approach is based on Deep Tech, Open Innovation, Sharing Economy and Social Product Development, as we are facing a major shift in the way how people work, innovate and study. It is caused not only by the Industry 4.0 era and social media – based reality but also a huge impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the way how education and daily work has changed.

Low level of innovativeness in the ESEE RM-sector is partly related to lack of professional LLL courses. Project aims to implement four innovation workshops in exploration, orebody characterization, extraction, and ore processing for the ESEE RM-professionals, and four spin-off programmes for RM-students at the participating ESEE Universities. Programmes content has been drafted based on questionnaire campaign conducted in the ESEE region.

Drone geophysical measurements can improve cost, time, accuracy, environment and work safety, but are held back by unreliable drones and heavy sensors. DroneSOM will develop specifically fitted drones, a novel drone electromagnetic and world’s first drone gravity sensor and novel data integration software. As the main product, Partner Radai will commercialize this solution as a service for mineral exploration offering 50% savings to a 395 M€/a market, CAGR 4.6%.

DysCovery scales-up a recycling processes for EoL permanent magnets through hydrogen-free leaching process, extraction chromatography metal separation and metal/alloy production. The new plant will recycle 630 t/a EoL material, enhancing EU recycling capacity by min 23%, to produce magnet-specification metals (300 t/a), commercialised 30% lower than current market prices. The metals will be tested in NdFeB/SmCo magnets for e-mobility application.

ECHO aims to commercialize the patented electrical, programmable, breaker hammer (LEH) which is capable of interaction in multi-hammer setting to boost the fragmentation process, decrease environmental impact (reduces emissions up to 100%), and increase efficiency (up to 60%) within underground and open-pit mining. Piloting and go-to-market activities will ensure a full commercial deployment of LEH to be introduced to a global 1,46B€ market.