Last Friday, on 18 July, the TED4LAT Doctoral Summer School concluded with an inspiring excursion to the De Woldemer Museum. The summer school took place from 14 to 18 July at Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences (ViA), gathering PhD students from various European countries. This final event served as a symbolic "cherry on top," offering participants a chance to better understand Latvian culture and foster informal international networking.

The most valuable activities of the summer school, according to the PhD students, included the colloquium—an opportunity to present their doctoral research progress and receive constructive feedback from professors and fellow participants. Attendees especially emphasized that this activity helped them develop presentation skills, prepare for their defenses, and receive practical suggestions for further work. Another highlight was the open data hackathon—teamwork focused on developing data-driven business ideas to address societal issues. Its structured format, where each thematic part was followed by a three-minute pitch presentation, helped participants not only refine their ideas but also learn principles of research project development. The guest speaker presentations—contrary to expectations, even the classic lecture format received high praise. Participants noted that listening to some of Europe’s top experts in their fields provided them with both new knowledge and inspiration for their research.

“The TED4LAT Summer School proved that PhD student development is best supported through a diverse format—from academic colloquia to creative hackathons and cultural experiences. It is becoming an important platform for strengthening collaboration and developing new ideas among future researchers,” said lead researcher and doctoral school organizer Ph.D. Oskars Java.

Event gallery available here

The doctoral school is implemented by project partners: Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences (Latvia), Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (France), Politecnico di Torino (Italy), Riga Technical University (Latvia), and the Baltic Open Solutions Center (Latvia).

This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe programme under grant agreement no. 101079206.

Researchers from Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences (ViA), Riga Technical University, and the Stockholm Environment Institute Tallinn Centre in Estonia, along with entrepreneurs from Latvia and France, continue their work on the project "Coastal Fishing Vessels Powered by Zero-Emission Hydrogen Fuel Cells (H2-SEAS)." The researchers and project partners are participating in seminars and the "Welding Ceremony."

On Wednesday, July 9, a Welding Ceremony was held at the shipyard of ATOZ Group, a partner in the Horizon Europe H2-SEAS project. The event marked the execution of the first weld on the vessel’s hull – similar to laying a cornerstone in a new building.
The project leader from ViA, lead researcher Ph.D. Oskars Java, delivered a speech expressing two acknowledgements. The first was directed to the representatives of the European Commission, as such international research and innovation projects facilitate knowledge transfer and innovation across a wider geographical scale than national project competitions typically allow. The second was directed to Riga Technical University for involving ViA in the implementation of this project, which has enabled ViA to strengthen its life cycle assessment (LCA) research group as a new research direction.
Life cycle assessments are essential in the development of new products because, when carried out correctly, they demonstrate how sustainable a product will be throughout its entire life cycle.

The focus of the project is the reduction of the small-scale fishing vessel footprint on the maritime environment. The use of H2 as a fuel will dramatically limited noise pollution (only propeller sound will radiate from the vessel), absence of diesel engine exhaust and oil pollution will make no impact on greenhouse gases, airborne particles, acidifying compounds, and others, and will make one significant step for improving sea ecosystem quality, human wellbeing, and climate stability. Energy efficiency during project design phase will be implemented by optimising vessel’s hull form, selection of efficient equipment and adaptation of soft programs for economical use of the vessel Energy system. After design and construction, during vessel tests, we will collect data for comprising and analysis with similar class diesel fisherman vessel, and not only in energy consumption but in full spectrum of the environmental footprint.

H2-SEAS is an innovation action aimed at fulfilling the general objectives of the HORIZON-MISS-2023-OCEAN-01-05 topic. The project is funded by the European Union.

From July 14 to 18, the Ted4Lat Doctoral School and Workshop “Open Data for Addressing Interconnected Environmental and Social Challenges” will take place at Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences (ViA), bringing together students from Latvia, France, Italy, Ukraine, Hungary, Romania, Albania, and India.

The doctoral summer school will gather students and professors to work together with data. Students will present progress reports on their doctoral research and collaborate in teams to develop new open data solutions, while professors will provide valuable feedback and serve as mentors.

Students will participate in lectures, workshops, and a hackathon to not only learn about using data as a driving force of digital transformation but also to foster innovation across various processes.

“The doctoral summer school is designed to give PhD students and candidates a boost in developing their dissertations, while also enhancing skills in defining innovative products — a crucial aspect of modern science, which must become increasingly connected to society. To achieve these goals, PhD candidates will have the opportunity to present progress reports and participate in a data hackathon. Additionally, the program includes several guest speaker presentations, focusing both on data use in current research projects and on specific data-related topics,” explains lead researcher and doctoral school organizer Ph.D. Oskars Java.

The Doctoral School is implemented by the project partners: Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences (Latvia), Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (France), Politecnico di Torino (Italy), Riga Technical University (Latvia) and The Baltic Open Solutions Center (Latvia).

This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe under grant agreement. no 101079206

The fifth edition of the E³UDRES² Ent-r-e-novators newsletter is now online.

This edition highlights recent developments, events, and results that demonstrate how the project is contributing to the creation of open, engaged, and collaborative research and innovation ecosystems across Europe.

Among the key topics covered:

• Deliverable 4.1: Mapping institutional readiness for Open Science, Open Innovation, and Open Education;
• WP5 results on citizen science: a new framework for engagement competencies and interactive training tools;
• Highlights from the EXPER Final Conference, including the contribution of Ent-r-e-novators;
• Participation in the KU Leuven Open Science Day, showcasing tools and models to foster effective citizen science;
• A look back at the E³UDRES² PhD Summer School 2025, held in Timișoara, Romania;
• Recognition of excellence: IPS and UCLL awarded the HR Excellence in Research label;
• Event highlights from the Logistics Day Conference in Hungary and the Science Policy Conference in Portugal;
• Updates from the BETTER Life cluster project and other initiatives within the consortium.

Access the full newsletter here: Newsletter #5

Stay connected with our updates and follow our progress towards building a multi-institutional research and innovation hub for smart and sustainable regions.