The main activities conducted in Year 1 of NATI00NS were a series of linked engagement, training and capacity building activities: National engagement events, engaging potential applicants before the deadline for the first call for Living Lab topics, were organised in 42 countries and joint materials were produced all in national languages. Five factsheets on the concept and their specific role of Living Labs and Lighthouses were produced and presented. Three webinars were held to support for stakeholders engaging in a Living Lab, focusing on setting up, governance and core elements of Living Labs. Matchmaking Portal was created to facilitate consortium building, providing support for matchmaking of likeminded Living Labs in preparation. The Helpdesk was set up online to address questions from applicants, providing support until the closure of the 2023 Living Lab topics. Additionally, NATI00NS Mentors in 18 EU or Associated countries were trained to assist applicants at the national level.
In year 2 of NATI00NS, six thematic events were carried out, addressing topics related to the Mission and directed to transnational domain-specific communities. The second round of National engagement events were organised in 44 EU Member States and Associated Countries, and two dedicated events were held to better engage potential applicants from Northern European and Baltic countries. A final event organised on 25th September 2024 provided last-minute support to applicants by involving representatives from funded LL projects. The five factsheets produced in year 1 were updated to promote the 2024 call for Living Lab topics. Two webinars training the Mentors were implemented, and following the three webinars in year 1, another four webinars were developed as part of the capacity building program. Two matchmaking events were organised facilitating consortia creation. The helpdesk continued to support applicants.
Overall, the main achievements and outcomes of these activities are that NATI00NS has spurred major awareness across Europe as regards knowledge of the Mission Soil, the soil health Living Lab concept, and the criteria for applying for the soil health Living Lab topics. The high number of applications (44 in 2023 and 72 in 2024) submitted for the topics for Living Labs was partly due to NATI00NS activities, from NEEs to training to matchmaking support, which also led to a varied range of proposals representing differences in geography, soil type, actors, and soil health challenges. Five projects were funded responding to the 2023 Living Lab call topics and the first 25 Mission Soil Living Labs are unveiled. If a number of proposals meet the criteria and are selected for funding after the 2024 call, the outcome of high-quality, collaborative, multi-actor, transnational consortia selected can again be confirmed.
