On May 31st, the European Horizon (EH) Health Cluster Matchmaking Event took place in Brussels. Organized by the Brussels offices of research and innovation agencies from five countries (Ireland, Finland, Spain, Latvia, and Estonia), the event aimed to bring together partners and coordinators for the EH Health Cluster application rounds.
The partnership event started even before the official beginning, as early arrivals gathered over coffee to discuss the contours of future projects. The event smoothly transitioned into the formal part, where keynote speakers took the stage. To ensure everyone was on the same page, Argo Soon, the Senior Consultant for the Health domain at the Estonian Research Council, introduced the principles of the second pillar of the Horizon program, the Health Cluster, and the National Contact Point (NCP) role.
Christoph Castex from HaDEA also presented the European health program, EU4Health Programme, which provides funding opportunities for health researchers and practitioners. The program supports the implementation of national health strategies and offers opportunities for competitive funding. Collaboration is crucial in this context, and consortia of EH projects have the potential for success.
Over 60 participants from the countries mentioned above were registered for the event. Half of them had the opportunity to present a three-minute elevator pitch, introducing their research team and project ideas. This session helped participants align their interests before the afternoon’s one-on-one meetings, where they could discuss collaboration possibilities with specific partners. These meetings started during the lunch break, allowing for informal discussions among three to four parties.
Thanks to the “Mobilitas” travel grants, Estonia was also well represented at the event. The business representatives included Kaia Palm from Protobios Ltd., Martin Leiger from Migrvention Ltd., and Salome Virkus from SpeakTX. Kätlin Joala from Tallinn University of Technology represented academic institutions. Mart Toots from EAS/KredEx Joint Foundation/Research Centre for Applied Research represented funding organizations. Alexis Fourlis, whose company Emma Triage Ltd. is based in Greece but is an e-resident of Estonia, also attended the event.
Salome Virkus, Business Development Manager at SpeakTX, says partnership events are essential for several reasons. Firstly, reaching the right people when searching for partners can be challenging. With so many players involved, connecting with suitable partners often takes significant time and effort, and navigating through vast amounts of information can be overwhelming. Secondly, these meetings ensure that participating organizations are professional, motivated, and reliable. “We hope there will be more events like this, and we would be happy to participate,” said Salome.
Kaia Palm, Founder and CEO of the biotechnology company Protobios Ltd. expressed her intention to participate in similar partnership events. “I see the need for closer networking on health topics, including cancer, with our neighbouring countries to foster a habit of collaboration. Additionally, partnership events offer exciting opportunities to meet inspiring individuals, gain insights into their work and institutions, national health-related topics, and most importantly, provide participants with the opportunity to tackle entirely new challenges in novel collaborations,” highlighted Kaia Palm.
Kätlin Joala, a doctoral candidate at Tallinn University of Technology, also highly valued the event. Without the support of the “Mobilitas” program, her participation would not have been possible, and hopefully, some of the connections established will lead to actual research collaborations.
Eve Päärendson and Kadi-Liis Veiman from EAS/KredEx Joint Foundation played a significant role in facilitating the discovery of Estonian entrepreneurs at the Health Partnership Event.
Authors: Kristel Oitmaa, Argo Soon
Photos by: Cristina Agudo Diez