Valuable discussions in VIMAS project mid-term evaluation meeting in Norway

The VIMAS project, which is funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) under the Horizon Europe framework, held its Mid-term Evaluation Meeting in Oslo, Norway, on January 30-31, hosted by Norwegian University of Life Sciences in As, Norway. The event brought together 10 doctoral candidates and their advisors from Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, and Latvia, along with online participants from partner institutions. The meeting was also attended by REA Project Officer Isabelle Aires Pinto, who oversaw the evaluation process. Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences was represented by Prof. Agita Līviņa and MSCA doctoral candidate Ilker Gul.

The first day featured a series of presentations by professors and doctoral candidates, followed by discussions in which participants assessed the project's current progress and achievements. Various aspects were thoroughly reviewed, including research developments, collaborative efforts, and challenges encountered.

On the second day, the focus shifted to a workshop on future collaboration opportunities, fostering discussions on how to strengthen further research networks, interdisciplinary cooperation, and project impact. The ways of cooperation between doctoral candidates was explored by Peter Fredman from Mid-Sweden University. He identified four types of collaboration: 1) sharing ideas and knowledge; 2) collaboration on a research area when multiple researchers study the same area using different data collection methods; 3) sharing and reusing data, analyzing it from different perspectives; and 4) joint publications. Often, the first three types of collaboration are overlooked, with focus placed solely on joint publications.

The mid-term evaluation meeting was successfully concluded after valuable exchanges of ideas and a shared commitment to advancing research in the field. This project meeting also provided ideas for planning and developing the ViA Doctoral School, but it was especially significant for doctoral students as it offered an opportunity to discuss relevant issues.

Information prepared by: Agita Līviņa and Ilker Gul