Twinning foR indUstrial SustainabiliTy

The TRUST project aims to boost research excellence in the area of INDUSTRIAL SUSTAINABILITY by increasing the scientific and technical capacities. This will allow supporting and engaging European industries in their pathway to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. TRUST partnership brings together ISQ, a Portuguese research institution and two internationally-leading universities, the University of Cambridge and Chalmers University.
Within TRUST, ISQ will be building upon the experience and development potential it has demonstrated in this area to address the issues related to the lack of both scientific culture to systematize/theorize their project results (leading to poor scientific productivity) as well as lack of specialized training in emerging sustainability assessment and management tools.
The TRUST concept will be achieved following an approach based on an active shared learning strategy, based on:
1) Training of staff on-campus, on-line courses and webinars;
2) joint initiatives including staff exchange, joint supervision, experience of different research & organizational cultures, scientific review, organization of biannual summer schools and joint scientific publications and
3) dissemination and communication strategy allowing the engagement of relevant stakeholders, namely by TRUST workshops and annual stakeholder exchange forums, to foster the identification of new partnerships and industrial driven research opportunities.
The TRUST partnership will not only improve the scientific and technical capacities of ISQ but will also set the basis for a long-lasting cooperation for the development of excellence research in service of the European industry. This initiative will create a Joint Research Agenda beyond TRUST project lifetime, aiming to contribute to a more balanced development of the European Research. These twining initiatives are aligned with the European Commission strategy for the creation of “stairways to excellence”.

The first actions carried-out in the project were detailing the training program plan and the planning of joint activities for staff exchanges, joint summer schools, networking with relevant stakeholders and organization of workshops. The training activities have been worked out through a training program plan (TPP), including tailor made actions designed for researchers following their identified research gaps. These activities being attended by ISQ researchers, have been selected according to their academic background, professional experience and area of activity. Moreover, the training activities included both virtual learning (on-line courses and webinars) as well as on campus courses at UCAM and CHALMERS premises.
The joint initiatives and networking includes staff exchanges between the three organizations during the project life-time as well as the organization of biannual summer schools and networking activities with external stakeholders. Two joint summer schools (JSS) have been organized, at ISQ and Chalmers. During both JSS, workshops to foster the identification of new partnerships and industrial driven research opportunities have been organized and a SEF event gathering the relevant stakeholders in Portugal.
Developing a dissemination and communication strategy and an action plan is one of the essential components of the project. It is crucial to establish at the project onset, the dissemination and communication strategy and channels both within the project consortium and with external stakeholders. Such dissemination plan ensures that the dissemination activities are focused on the right targets and includes: (i)a detailed planning of all communication actions, including key messages, according to the defined target audiences; (ii) an event and publications management plan. This is a living document that is being updated and revised at the end of each year to address the evolving information and communication needs of the Consortium and to promote the evolving vision, goals, objectives and priorities, taking into account the evolution of the project and results.
TRUST project website (http://www.trusttwinning.eu) as well as LinkedIn account https://www.linkedin.com/in/projeto-trust-936323181/ has been set-up enabling to share results and events of the project. Print materials and presentation have been prepared for dissemination.

The TRUST project will strongly contribute to the research excellence of the coordinating institution (ISQ) by: improving the scientific capacity of ISQ, increasing the rate of published articles and papers in peer-reviewed journals, as well as enhancing the research impact through the citations of scientific publications; boosting the conferences attendance and the dissemination of scientific results through posters, oral communications and publications in conference proceedings; reinforcing and promoting the exchange of graduated students to be hosted by ISQ, creating a more active and focused team for article publications.
Several joint initiatives & networking activities will take place, such as training, staff exchanges and summer schools, which will not only increase ISQ researchers’ scientific and technical excellence but will also be an opportunity for all TRUST participants to get first-hand experience in different learning and cultural environments. Both virtual training and on-campus training courses will contribute to an effective training environment for all participants.
TRUST project aims to strongly contribute to enhance the reputation, attractiveness and networking channels of the coordinating institution (ISQ).
The TRUST project will improve the capability to win national, EU and international competitive research funding by supporting an increased submission of proposals.
Networking with external stakeholders will be encouraged through annual stakeholder exchange forums and participation of the TRUST partners in industrial sustainability-related initiatives. These events will help identify industrial sustainability best practices, understand real industrial needs and opportunities, work on real case studies, enlarge the range of possible collaborations and showcase the expertise of TRUST partners in this research field.

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - TRUST (Twinning foR indUstrial SustainabiliTy)

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