Aurora Research and Innovation
As a consortium of socially engaged research-intensive universities, Aurora has always had a keen interest in science and research collaboration.
Started in 2021, the Aurora Research and Innovation for Societal Impact (Aurora RI) SwafS-project allowed us to add a research-dimension to our joint activities.
The outcomes and impact of Aurora RI will be shared in the Aurora Research & Innovation Conference organized in Brussels.
Through Aurora RI, we worked towards achieving seven important objectives:
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- Development of an Aurora support plan for research and innovation
- Develop best practices for pooling research infrastructures, expertise, data and resources
- Strengthen cooperation on entrepreneurial activity and creating an Aurora innovation Ecosystem
- Develop the capacities and capabilities of Aurora researchers and support staff
- Sharing best practices on Open Science
- Embedding Citizens and societal engagement further into our research activities
- Maximise impact through collaboration with other European Universities
Working towards achieving these objectives help us further expand the scope and impact of Aurora across our universities. One of the most impactful lasting benefits of Aurora RI is bringing our universities closer together through the creation of lasting communities of best practices in fields such as RMA, Human Resources, and Technology Transfer.
Aurora RI resulted in the creation of several Research Support tools that will serve Aurora universities long after concluding the Aurora RI project:
The developments in Aurora RI served as a springboard for further Aurora research support collaboration, and compliment other Aurora outcomes, demonstrating our commitment to research support. These include:
On this page, you will find a full overview of the Aurora RI project, its outcomes and the long term support and development for these activities.
Work Package 1, entitled ‘Project Management’, has the purpose of coordinating the project. It is horizontal, working across all work packages and partners. WP1 ensures the completion of deliverables overall, organised project board meetings, general assembly, Vice rector research meetings and collaborates closely with each WP leader. The overall objective of WP1 Is to oversee coordination throughout the project lifecycle, and to ensure the completion of all deliverables. Specifically, its objectives are:
Objective 1.1: Ensuring sound coordination of project activities with a smooth decisionmaking process and mitigation of risks and other unforeseen events as well as efficient
allocation of resources.Objective 1.2: Overseeing data management and quality assessment activities.
Lead: University of Iceland
Task 1.1: Project Coordination and Management (M1-M36)
The University of Iceland (UIce) appointed a Project Manager for the AURORA RI initiative to ensure seamless project coordination. This Project Manager is responsible for overseeing the project on behalf of UIce, working in close collaboration with the Aurora Central Office. Additionally, a management team was established within the Division of Science and Innovation at UIce to support this effort. Over the course of the project, four General Assembly meetings were convened, and monthly meetings with work package (WP) leaders and coordinators have been held since the third month. Moreover, quarterly meetings with Vice Rectors for Research have been taking place since the second month. A comprehensive work plan, informed by the outcomes of the initial project phase, was also submitted.
Task 1.2: Quality Management and Risk Assessment (M1-M36)
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for all work packages (WPs) were identified to facilitate effective monitoring and assessment. Work processes were defined to ensure the implementation of quality procedures across the project. Regular updates on milestones and deliverables were provided to the General Assembly to maintain transparency and accountability.
Task 1.3: Data Management (M1-M6)
In March 2022, a Data Management Plan (DMP) was developed to outline the life cycle of all data collected, processed, and generated during the project. This DMP is subject to regular review, though no updates have been necessary thus far.
Work Package 2, entitled ‘Development of a Shared Support Planfor Research and Innovation‘, aims to develop a shared plan of action on supporting and fostering excellent research and innovation within Aurora. By strengthening support for researchers, such a plan will advance the European Commission’s priorities identified in the new European Research Area communication; the Horizon Europe missions; the European Digital Transformation; and the EU Green Deal. Its specific objectives are:
Objective 2.1: Identifying opportunities for convergence of research support strategies,
removing barriers where necessary.Objective 2.2: Developing a platform for research services incorporated into the Aurora
InstituteObjective 2.3: Developing building blocks for excellent research, putting in place the
necessary structures for excellence to thrive.Objective 2.4: Develop a joint action plan for research support in line with our vision.
Lead: University of Iceland
Co-Lead: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Task 2.1: Mapping of Institutional Research and Innovation Support Strategies and Opportunities for Convergence (M1-M20)
A comprehensive survey was conducted to assess the strengths and weaknesses of institutional research and innovation support strategies. The strategies employed by each member university were thoroughly analyzed and documented. Through this analysis, barriers and challenges were identified, and opportunities for collaboration among the institutions were discovered.
Task 2.2: Research Support (M1-M24)
An extensive mapping of the available research support was completed, leading to the identification of best practices across the institutions. Additionally, the development of a Research Service platform has been initiated to enhance research support.
Task 2.3: Developing a Roadmap for a Shared Support Plan Based on Common Interests (M25-M36)
While the AURORA RI project will conclude at the end of September 2024, the collaboration will continue through Aurora 2030 and the Aurora network.
The Vice Rectors for Research aim to continue the collaboration of Aurora universities for research and innovation support to foster and deepen the partnership for excellent research and innovation, through Aurora 2030 and beyond.
In this regard, the Aurora Vice Rectors for Research commit to facilitate the following actions:
- The establishment of Research managers and grant advisors’ group that has the role to:
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- Continue collaboration for research and innovation support;
- Promote the use of shared research support tools, such as the ones developed within Aurora RI;
- Map out and work towards further funding opportunities for continued collaboration through various funding instruments.
- Continued Aurora presence in Brussels for research and innovation:
- Promote Aurora goals and vision;
- Ensure the visibility of Aurora activities and international outreach;
- Contribute to policy making within EUN and ERA and ensure coherence with the EEA
Work Package (WP) 3 of the Aurora RI project aims to map relevant resources for research and, when possible, make them accessible to other members. The pooling of relevant resources can stimulate the creation of hotspots for resource intensive research. Critical infrastructure (e.g. large or specialised equipment) with a high degree of specialisation is present within the consortium and making this accessible to the project partners can generate mutual benefit for all partners involved. Its objectives are:
Objective 3.1 Increase sharing of strategic resourcesObjective 3.2 Increase sharing of infrastructure
Lead: University of Innsbruck
Co-Lead: Palacky University Olomouc
Task 3.1 List of Key Resources
Between April and August 2022, a web-based survey was carried out to gather information on key resources at each partner university. The aim was not to create exhaustive inventories but to identify resources most likely to enhance collaboration. We focused on four main categories: Infrastructure (e.g., equipment and core facilities), Data (databases and repositories), Networks (university-wide networks), and Expertise (research centers and groups).
In several rounds of discussions, we defined these categories carefully, ensuring they were relevant and practical. It was always relevant that universities 1.) are able to share / have capacity to share, 2.) would like to share, and 3.) believe sharing could drive collaboration within the alliance. After our first round of mapping, using DS Wizard as our tool, over 200 resources across the Aurora Alliance were collected.
Task 3.2 Memorandum of Understanding
At the heart of our efforts for sharing infrastructure is the Memorandum of Understanding, which sets out the conditions under which research resources can be shared across the alliance. It specifies that any sharing must align with each institution’s priorities, legal frameworks, and available resources.
The MoU was the result of extensive collaboration with legal experts from all partner universities to ensure compliance with national and European regulations. One of the unique features of the MoU is that it includes modular templates that researchers can use to draft specific collaboration agreements. These templates offer flexibility while providing a solid framework for cooperation, addressing issues such as intellectual property, confidentiality, and liabilities. Another unique feature is that the MoU was also signed by our associated members of the alliance.
The “Institutional Intentions” form the heart of the MoU. Here, we specify the conditions under which the sharing of research resources can take place, those being that any activity made under this MoU shall be subject to the availability of sufficient resources for that purpose as well as each partner’s field of work, priority activities, internal rules, regulations, and relevant legislation, policies, administrative procedures and practices. We do not hinder the freedom of research with this MoU as every research collaboration has to be agreed to in separate agreements in any form needed and feasible. Should researchers choose to write down their agreement, through our templates – more on that later –, we provide them with some guidelines on which topics to cover, and it is through this that we meet the criteria described before. It is also here that we add value for researchers to look for cooperation within the Alliance, as we want to make sharing financially as attractive as possible to researchers while still adhering to the different needs of each university – The partners intend to provide access to research resources in accordance with usual accounting practices for internal use of the research resources; the cost of the collaboration, where agreed to between the researchers and possible, shall be the actual cost of the work incurred and shall not include profit costs. Importantly, the MoU does not impose any binding legal obligations but instead serves as a flexible framework that facilitates cooperation.
Task 3.3 Creating an interactive map locating key resources
To make these resources accessible, we built on previous work from the Erasmus+ “Aurora European Universities Alliance” project, using work done on an interactive map. This interactive Research Resources Map, available on the Aurora website, allows researchers to search for specific types of resources— data, expertise, networks, or infrastructure—and filter by research area or institution.
A registration form was also developed and integrated into the website, allowing new resources to be added more easily. This form ensures that researchers confirm their willingness and ability to share their resources, while also agreeing to the terms outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
Task 3.4 Mapping and sharing of additional resources
In addition to the four core categories of resources—Infrastructure, Data, Networks, and Expertise—we chose to link to other resources of the different Aurora projects, ensuring they remain visible without complicating the search functionality of the research map.
This approach maintains the clarity and usability of the platform while still providing access to relevant resources across different projects within the Aurora Alliance.
Work Package 4 is entitled ‘Strengthening Cooperation on Entrepreneurial Activity‘ and its goal is to enhance the impact of Research and Innovation (R&I) activities within each member institution. The WP is tasked with identifying best practices in entrepreneurial engagement, pinpointing areas for collaboration, developing a long-term plan of joint activities, and increasing the visibility of entrepreneurial activities within Aurora. It contains four objectives:
Objective 4.1 Enforcing the entre- and intrapreneurial spirit of each individual Alliance member through mutual learning and exchange of best practices and setting a programme for mutual capacity building.
Objective 4.2 Identifying areas of benefit for collaboration in knowledge and technology transfer, and in encouraging a greater entrepreneurial mindset amongst researchers, and developing a programme of exchange visits in order to showcase the strategies and approaches taken in different Aurora Alliance countries.Objective 4.3. Developing a longer-term plan of joint innovation activities and
implementation of first test fields, with a particular focus on social entrepreneurship.Objective 4.4 Greater visibility of Aurora entrepreneurial activities at regional, Aurora and European level.
Task 4.1 Setting the basis for mutual learning and capacity building (M1-M15)
Deliverable 4.1 comprised a SOAR analysis on business collaboration and entrepreneurial mindset. SOAR is an acronym meaning ‘Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results’; a strategic planning instrument that allows an institution (or community) to focus on what they are doing and their current strengths, project their vision for the future, understand the motivations of their stakeholders, and determine which skills could be enhanced. Deliverable 4.1 detailed the methodology used in conducting the analysis, which was undertaken by all participating institutions – the clusters established, the results of the analysis and suggestions for future explorations, and next steps for the institutions.
Task 4.2 Setting a programme and realisation of exchange visits (M6-M36)
Deliverable 4.2 set out a proposed programme of mutual (virtual) visits to each university, providing Aurora members with an opportunity to experience the work conducted at the other institutions. This programme was developed in conjunction with the SOAR analysis.
Task 4.3 Developing a plan for joint innovation activities, and implementing first
test fields (M12-M36)
Deliverable 4.3 is our first iteration of a ‘Plan for Joint Innovation Activities’, comprising three areas where we propose to implement first test fields, based on the areas identified for mutual capacity building as part of the SOARs. These activities have been agreed upon by the AURORA RI project to be tested, evaluated, and further developed. As such, this Plan will be continuously developed throughout the second half of the project.
- Develop and Start Running a Series of Aurora Branded International, Online
Workshops for Researchers (Including PhD Students) - Develop and Start Running a Series of Quarterly ‘Coffee talks’ (or ‘In Conversation
with’ Sessions), Targeted at Central Administrative Functions/ Research Offices/
Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs)
Work Package 5 (WP5) is entitled ’Empowering Human Capital’ and its main goal is to define measures for strengthening human capital through career progress and reward, both for researchers and support staff. Its specific objectives are:
Objective 5.1 Sharing best practices among the partners, with special emphasis on the
principles and conduct of good and transparent recruitment, HR management,
assessment, and development.
Objective 5.2 Share human resource policies to provide excellence and ensure Aurora values for societal impact are embedded in the Aurora recruitment strategies at each participating institution.
Objective 5.3 Develop the capacity and resilience of Aurora staff and researchers.
Objective 5.4 Develop new strategies/policies to reward scientific merits and promote talent at every level of career development.
Task 5.1 Setting the basis for the good conduct of HR practices at each partner (M1-M12)
An advisory committee of Aurora Alliance members was created with technical staff from all universities working on this WP in order to explore how these universities manage the diversity, inclusiveness, assessment and development of research human resources in terms of the requirements of internationally recognised standards (e.g., the Human Resources Strategy for Researchers (HRS4R)).
Secondly, the advisory committee developed a toolkit of actions and services to encourage institutions to adopt the best practices detected. The toolkit was developed through several phases: identifying best practices to share by each institution, a round of feedback conducted by the WP leader regarding practices shared, revision and comments on each practice (also a matrix of mutual interest among AURORA partners) and compiling
the final draft with all the review best practices, resulting in Deliverable 5.1 – “Toolkit on
best HR practices” [M12].
Task 5.2 Circulation of knowledge and talent promotion
For Task 5.2 “Circulation of knowledge and talent promotion” the WP leader gathered information from each partner regarding:
- Policies, practices and tools for Talent development and promotion and Intersectoral / interdisciplinary mobility
- Information about Brain Drain drivers and Barriers to brain circulation between sectors and partners
- Equality, diversity and inclusiveness policies and practices.
Task 5.3 Develop a Skills Training framework for the Aurora Alliance, for researchers and research support staff
For Task 5.3 “Develop a Skills Training framework for the Aurora Alliance, for researchers and research support staff”, partners were requested to identify training courses at each university addressing digital technologies, gender equality, diversity, inclusiveness and any other skill/competence useful to reinforce and empower researchers and research support staff.
Task 5.4 Rewarding research merits
For Task 5.4 “Rewarding research merits”, started in May 2023 and features policy and best practices to reward research mertis as partner institutions.
Work package 6 is about sharing and implementing Open Science practices at the Aurora partner universities.
OpenScience requires a culture change, which can be facilitated by:
- Institutional policies that provide clear directions towards Open Science-practices.
- An appropriate reward structure for researchers.
- The necessary skills and knowledge to implement Open Science-practices.
- A flourishing community of researchers sharing experiences and inspiring eachother.
- A good research infrastructure.
WP6 has three specific objectives.
Objective 6.1 Building a shared knowledge base of Open Science resources, policies, and practices.
Objective 6.2 Establish a joint training programme aimed at helping students and researchers to learn about transparent research practices, research integrity and public engagement.
Objective 6.3 Creation of a network of Open Science researcher communities within and between the Aurora institutions.
Lead: Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Co-Lead: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Task 6.1 Aurora IT Development & Services
This deliverable builds on earlier work carried out by the Erasmus+ funded Aurora Alliance, in which a dashboard was developed to exhibit the connection between Aurora research output and the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs). The original idea for the Aurora RI deliverable 6.1 was to add a tab on Open Science to that dashboard.
However, in 2022, Aurora entered into a partnership with OpenAIRE, which allowed us to go beyond the original plan: by embedding our Aurora research meta-information on Open Science-practices and relation to the SDGs within the established OpenAIRE infrastructures and services, we created an Aurora Open Science Monitor.
Aurora will continue to aggregate research information and further develop the Aurora Open Science Monitor as part of Aurora 2030 task team 5.3.
Task 6.2 A shared knowledge base of Open Science resources, policies, and practices
Within the Aurora institutions, there is a lot of
momentum for Open Science. For this deliverable, we are creating a collection of relevant resources, tools, policies and practices related to Open Science as a valuable resource for all Aurora partners and beyond.
To gather the information for this Open Science knowledge base, we sent out a survey to the Aurora partner universities. The questions in this survey were structured based on several requirements or boundary conditions for an Open Science environment.
We are now in the process of shaping the results from the survey into a useful resource that allows the Aurora partners to learn from each other’s choices and experiences.
In the spirit of Open Science, the resource will be made freely available, so others beyond the Aurora Alliance may also benefit from it.
Task 6.4 Establishing a joint training programme on Open Science
Building on the existing Aurora Open Education database and the trainings collected in Deliverable 6.2, we are creating a programme of Open Science training modules. These are aimed at helping students and researchers to incorporate Open Science practices into their research workflows and to become ambassadors for Open Science.
Based on our discussions and the already available trainings, we decided to focus the contents of these training modules more on teaching practical skills than on Open Science knowledge. We are preparing training modules on:
Learning basic software and data skills (shell, git, intro to Python/ R) via Software & Data Carpentries
Learning advanced software and data skill training via Coderefinery
Using DMPonline/ Data Stewardship Wizard for data management planning
Using the Open Science Framework (OSF) for research management
Using OpenAIRE tools, such as Amnesia for data anonymization and Zenodo as a publication platform
The educational resources for these training sessions will be made freely available.
Task 6.4 Creation of a network of Open Science researcher communities within and between the Aurora institutions
For this work package, we are creating a network of Open Science communities within and between the Aurora institutions. In these Open Science communities, students and researchers who want to learn about Open Science can share experiences and inspire each other.
In collaboration with the International Network of Open Science Communities (INOSC), we have created an incubator programme for new Open Science Communities. In this incubator, we assist researchers and/or research supporters in setting up a local Open Science Community. The incubator programme consists of 6 modules:
- Mission and Vision
- Community Engagement
- Communication Strategy
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Governance and Sustainability
- Open!
As of now, 5 of the 9 Aurora partners have started establishing their local Open Science Communities. These budding communities are starting pilots with low-threshold communication platforms to connect to each other.
Work Package 7 is entitled ‘Engaging Citizens and Society.’ Citizen engagement is an overarching term referring to a variety of practices to actively involve citizens in the policy and practice of the production of scientific knowledge and (technological) solutions for societal challenges. Citizen engagement aims to
empower citizens, raise mutual awareness and steer research and innovation towards acceptable and desirable ends. In Aurora RI, the points of departure for engagement with citizens are to build on the existing work on on citizen and (local) public authorities’ engagement and RRI concepts, methodologies, and practices in the community and beyond. The project aims to shift the participation attention from hardware over to software and orgware.Moreover, we aim to shift focus from isolated activities or events to building and nurturing an ecology of participation around the different Aurora partners, connecting the universities to local communities, authorities and organisations, building long-term relationships with citizens, civil society organisations and public authorities, issues and communities in a participatory ecosystem.
In line with that, the WP7 objectives are:
Objective 7.1. Building a knowledge base on citizen engagement methodologies amongst
Aurora partnersObjective 7.2. Build citizen engagement capacity of Aurora staff and students
Objective 7.3 Strengthen relationships of Aurora partners with local citizen
communities, local/regional public authorities, and civil society organizations
Lead: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Co-Lead: Copenhagen Business School
Task 7.1 Examining Citizen Engagement Best Practices
The existing citizen engagement infrastructures across the Aurora network were explored, and between one to three best practices from each member university were gathered. These practices were compiled into a comprehensive inventory of best practices for citizen engagement.
Task 7.2 Developing Capacities to Implement Citizen Engagement
The capacity levels for citizen engagement across the Aurora network were thoroughly examined. A Capacity Matrix is set to be submitted in the fall of 2023, alongside the planned launch of train-the-trainer programs, which are also scheduled for the same period.
Task 7.3 Strengthening Connections with Local Communities
This task is scheduled to begin in Month 20, starting in May 2023.
Work Package 8 (WP8) within the AURORA RI funded project is entitled ‘Learning and sharing with other European Universities’ and it’s focused on sharing deliverables and outcomes and learning from all the other European Universities, mainly through the Forum of European Universities #2 (FOREU2).
This deeper collaboration enables us to share our work and integrate further with alliances sharing our vision and objectives. Specifically, the objectives of WP8 are:
Objective 8.1 The first objective of WP8 is to further cooperation with the other European Universities through participation in the Forum for European Universities #2.
Objective 8.2 The second objective is to exchange ideas and best practices with alliances that share our vision through FOREU2, with the goal to facilitate further and deeper collaboration on all levels of our institutions and alliances when beneficial.
Lead: Universitat Rovira i Virgili
Co-Lead: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Task 8.1 Participation in FOREU2
Aurora RI committed itself to collaborate with its fellow alliances funded by the Horizon 2020 SwafS 2nd pilot call. Analogous to the alliances funded in the 1st SwafS pilot call that collaborate in the FOREU group, the second wave of 24 alliances (including those funded by the 2nd Erasmus call for European Universities Networks) collaborate in the FOREU2 group.
FOREU2 consists of 13 subgroups plus the Global Forum group. Aurora RI is represented in three of the subgroups by experts, the Aurora policy
advisor or the project manager: the SwafS subgroup, the subgroup on citizen engagement
and the subgroup on collaboration university-industry. Aurora RI is actively participating
in these subgroups.
Task 8.2 Internationalisation at Home
Comparing European Universities Alliances (EUAs) and Aurora Alliance which consisted of defining the criteria for comparing alliances and conducting a first analysis to explore the contacts each Aurora partner already has with members of other alliances through data available on scientific publications (obtained using SciVal) and European Projects (obtained using H2020 projects from CORDIS).
The main purpose of the analysis is detecting universities that can establish complementarities within Aurora and with other EUAs, thus an extensive report resulted as Deliverable 8.1 – “A report on the European Universities Alliances and their complementarity to the Aurora Alliance”. This deliverable is structured mainly on
two blocks:
- Complementarities in H2020 projects:
- this part gathers general information on Aurora’s H2020 projects, each Aurora Universities’ H2020 projects, collaboration among Aurora universities and collaboration between Aurora and other EUAs.
- Complementarities in publications
- Aurora’s publications, each Aurora Universities’ publications, collaboration within Aurora by Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) domains, co-publications within Aurora and copublications of Aurora and other alliances collaboration.
Task 8.3 Reporting the lessons learned from cooperating with other European Universities and writing of roadmap
Task 8.3 resulted in a report on the lessons learned from cooperating with other European Universities, as well as a roadmap for furter cooperation. These were delivered in Spring 2024.
The overall objective of Work Package 9, entitled ‘Communication and Dissemination’, is coherent presentation of the project, both internally and externally. Through an inclusive strategy, the WP aims to strengthen the community we are building, and share the Aurora vision far and wide. As one of the goals of this WP is to promote and share the achievements of other WPs, it operates horizontally, linking with all other WPs. The specific objectives are:
Objective 9.1 To ensure internal (institutional and consortium) commitment and engagement through active community building based on Aurora values.
Objective 9.2 To frame Aurora activities and values for societal impact and the achievement of the SDGs in a wider context for society as a whole (scientific and societal).Lead: University Federico II of Naples
Co-Lead: Palacky University Olomouc
Task 9.1 Governance Structures
At the offset, a communication team with members from each university established. Two levels of communications were distinguished: internal and external. The internal communication strategy has two further levels: central and local. The two communication strategies are integrated, harmonising the way we communicate. All the universities should “aurorarise” their way of communicating. The central strategy must be inclusive, building on the strengths that each university in the consortium brings to the table and considering any difficulties that may arise.
Task 9.2 Implementing the communication plan
The implementation of the communication plan is an ongoing project, continuing till the end of he project, and possibly beyond. This has been further developed by establishing a team of trusted local communicators from each university. This team is composed of experts from each institution, and together they have attended Aurora workshops on a joint communication strategy. This group works jointly on the Aurora Erasmus+ project and the Aurora SwafS project. Externally, the main channels of communication are the Aurora website, university web pages, and Aurora social media platforms, such as LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.
Task 9.3 Implementing the dissemination plan
Drawing on the Communication Plan, the key stakeholders were identified and a stakeholder map designed. Furthermore, the group identified primary information tools used by each target group for selecting appropriate communication channels. A dissemination diagram was produced, describing the path of information in Aurora.
Task 9.4 Implementing the dissemination plan
The implementation of the dissemination plan is an ongoing project which continues even after the conclusion of the project. This includes the website management of the open science monitor produced in WP6, and the interactive map produced in WP3.
In addition, a dedicated Aurora Research and Innovation conference is organized in Brussels towards the end of the programme to share the project outcomes with external stakeholders directly.
Disseminating the outcomes both within the consortium and externally ensure to impact and longevity of the achievements of Aurora RI.