INTERNATIONAL HUMAN EXPOSOME NETWORK PROJECT

Project Information

IHEN PROJECT

Grant agreement ID: 101137317

DOI

10.3030/101137317

EC signature date 22 November 2023

Start date 1 December 2023

End date 30 November 2026

Funded under

• Health

Total cost

€ 2 999 957,50

EU contribution

€ 2 999 957,50

Coordinated by

FUNDACION PRIVADA INSTITUTO DE SALUD GLOBAL BARCELONA
Spain

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - IHEN PROJECT (INTERNATIONAL HUMAN EXPOSOME NETWORK PROJECT)

Reporting period: 2023-12-01 to 2025-05-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The proliferation of exposome research programs and projects has led to a significant increase in research output and to the establishment of new initiatives and infrastructures in Europe and globally. Yet, cooperation between initiatives at the EU level and globally is still sporadic and scattered. The IHEN Project aims to establish an International Human Exposome Network (IHEN) with the overall purpose of improving global research and cooperation on the exposome. It proposes an ambitious pathway towards the development of a longer term IHEN that brings together multi-sectorial
stakeholders globally, which is essential for enhancing the impact of future exposome research. Specific objectives are to:
1) design the organisational structure of IHEN so that it serves to strengthen cooperation and coordination of exposome research in Europe and foster and align cooperation globally, including options for long-term governance and financing;
2) identify and make available exposome tools, metadata and resources at the global scale in a FAIR toolbox, including tool inventories and data catalogues;
3) test the FAIR toolbox via a series of demonstrator projects;
4) develop a roadmap for future exposome research and innovation, including the formulation of an operational definition of exposome research and an interim research agenda; and
5) effectively communicate and disseminate the IHEN Project results to a wide community of stakeholders, and develop an inventory of exposome training opportunities.
The project will interact, in all stages of the work, with key stakeholders’ groups: EU and global exposome researchers, initiatives and infrastructures; EU, national, and international agencies and organisations; funding bodies; civil society organisations; and industry.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

In this first period, WP2 established a 3-component structure consisting of Consortium members, an International Board, and IHEN members. WP2 actively expanded IHEN membership to 431 registered members from 286 institutions in 65 countries as of 31st May 2025, and growing. Two meetings were organised with the IB and other stakeholders and WP2 worked actively with European and international stakeholders to investigate models for the sustainability and governance of a medium-to-long-term global network.
WP3 established the Exposome Toolbox, by creating the inventory of exposome tools in the existing ELIXIR bio.tools platform and engaging with tool owners to submit tools to the toolbox. WP3 also improved two data points (i.e. MOLGENIS health data catalogue and Exposome Maps including geo-spatial exposome data) by increasing their coverage and implementing data standards. We drafted a controlled vocabulary to describe geo-spatial exposome data.
WP4 has progressed according to schedule. The demonstrators and the launch of the fellowships are providing the expected impact by developing collaboration and cooperation. Three demonstrator projects have been launched, including open calls for collaborations with researchers and institutions to submit metadata on existing exposome datasets for integration into MOLGENIS catalogue (with WP3). An ambassador`s fellowship linked to exposome research training has been launched with an open call, where 172 candidates applied (first training school planned in Oct 2025 at ISGlobal).
WP5 first developed a definition of the exposome and exposomics in line with the Banbury definitions. It consulted scientists and stakeholders to prepare an interim roadmap for research on the exposome. The report is expected to be finalized in summer 2025.
WP6 has developed the project’s visual identity, following an extensive consultation with partners and key stakeholders, and incorporated into all IHEN relevant materials. Additionally, the communication channels have been established, leading to the release of the IHEN Newsletter, and ongoing notifications for events, conferences, and training opportunities, providing the necessary exposure for the project.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

WP2 has designed a solid, cohesive and extensive international network of stakeholders in Exposome research: The International Human Exposome Network (IHEN) has 431 registered members from 65 countries and continues to grow. Meetings with a wide range of stakeholders were held to promote and grow the network. Next steps include building the long-term governance and sustainability of the network. Also, it is expected to develop regional IHEN hubs to connect to the wider stakeholder community in each global region.
By developing the Exposome Toolbox and actively engaging tool owners to submit their tools to this platform, WP3 has now created a location where (aspiring) Exposome researchers can have a good overview of the tools that are available to them. We have implemented DCAT and FAIR data point standards into IHEN health data catalogue to enable federated search with catalogues with other infrastructures such as EHDS, BBMRI and EUCAIM.
WP4 expects to build a group Ambassadors extending exposome research and training in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs), and that exposome methods are applied to datasets from LMICs. In addition, demonstrator projects will draw valuable lessons about the Exposome Toolbox.
The interim roadmap in WP5 identifies so-called “white spaces”, which are areas that have been under the radar of research programmes despite important relevance for health and environment. As an illustration, we identified needs for more research on the human health impacts of biodiversity loss as well as on the anticipated or unanticipated health consequences of circular economy.
For WP6, the convergence of the national and international networks on the exposome, such as NEXUS, ISEE, and others, has materialised quicker than anticipated, through targeted meetings of key stakeholders, messaging and communication. In turn, this has led to several high-profile international meetings on the exposome with global inclusivity – for example, the Exposome Moonshot Forum (May 12-15, 2025), the Exposome Momentum meeting (July 1, 2025) and others.

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