IED Institute of Entrepreneurship Development

17/06/2026

🌱 Build the Skills to Tackle Food Loss and Food Waste

How can we create a more sustainable food system from farm to fork?

The FoodChase Professional Training Courses are now available, offering a flexible online learning pathway designed to support the development of the From-Farm-To-Fork Specialist, a new professional profile focused on reducing food loss and food waste across the food value chain.

The training programme includes a Generic Module and four specialised modules covering Production, Processing, Distribution and Consumption, helping participants develop practical knowledge and future-oriented skills for the food sector.

Participants can also earn digital badges recognising their achievements and explore opportunities for work-based learning after completing the online training.

The Generic Module serves as the entry point to the programme, introducing the key concepts, challenges and competences needed to better understand food loss and food waste throughout the food system.

🔹 contributes to FoodChase as Dissemination & Communication Leader, coordinating the promotion of the project, its activities and results, while supporting the effective sharing of knowledge and research outcomes with the project's target groups.

👉 Register here:
https://foodchase.eu/professional-courses/

The training programme developed within the Food Chase project aims to prepare the innovative professional profile of the From-Farm-To-Fork Specialist through an asynchronous online learning approach.

15/06/2026

15/06/2026

⚙️ TechUPGRADE Consortium Meeting | Advancing Towards Demonstration

On 28–29 May 2026, the TechUPGRADE consortium gathered in Athens, Greece, for its 7th consortium meeting, hosted by the National Technical University of Athens.

Over two productive days, partners reviewed project progress and coordinated the next steps towards pilot-scale demonstration and validation of the project's innovative clean heat technologies.

Discussions focused on reactor design, material development and characterisation, system integration and optimisation, automation and digitalisation, as well as preparations for the upcoming 35 kW pilot demonstration activities. Partners also explored developments related to digital twins, VR applications and synergies with other EU-funded initiatives.

As the project moves closer to real-world validation, the meeting provided an important opportunity to align technical, impact and dissemination activities across the consortium.

🔹 contributes to TechUPGRADE by leading communication, dissemination and results exploitation activities, conducting impact assessments and supporting the development of policy recommendations that enhance the long-term uptake and replicability of project outcomes.

🔗 Learn more:
https://techupgrade.eu/

12/06/2026

🌿💧 How Clean Is the Pineios River Today?

On 23 June 2026, we are coming together once again for a community cleanup and scientific monitoring action on plastic pollution along the **Pineios River**, as part of the European project JOINABLE.

By bringing together citizens, volunteers and scientific organisations, this initiative contributes to the protection of a valuable local ecosystem while also collecting data that can help researchers better understand and address plastic pollution.

🌱 Protecting the Pineios is not only about the environment. It is about participation, collaboration and caring for the place we all share.

📍 Ampelokipoi Bridge, Larissa, Greece
🗓️ Tuesday, 23 June 2026 | 🕡 18:30

👉 Register here:
https://forms.gle/YX7mFcCHvf3YJZRb7

🔹 contributes to JOINABLE by supporting the long-term exploitation of project results, strengthening stakeholder engagement and helping ensure that the project's solutions and tools create meaningful and lasting impact.

10/06/2026

🛡️ Cyber Safe Senior | Building Digital Confidence for Seniors

As digital technologies become an increasingly important part of everyday life, ensuring that older adults can navigate the online world safely is more important than ever.

As part of the Cyber Safe Senior project, a pilot training was successfully delivered in Larissa, Greece, bringing together 25 senior participants for a practical and engaging learning experience focused on digital safety.

During the session, participants explored topics such as safe internet and smartphone use, protecting personal data and passwords, secure online shopping and digital payments, and recognizing common online scams. They also had the opportunity to discover the project's educational materials, designed to support continuous learning and confidence in using digital technologies.

🔹 contributes to Cyber Safe Senior by coordinating and monitoring the project's 5-module cyber awareness course for seniors and leading the development of the e-learning platform that supports learning and accessibility.

Learn more: https://www.cybersafesenior.eu/

Cyber Safe Senior By providing training for trainers and seniors, developing educational materials, and conducting awareness campaigns, we aim to reduce digital exclusion among the elderly. Download materials Fill out the survey Learn about the project’s goals The goal of the project is to increas...

09/06/2026

🚀 Opportunity for Young Women from Estonia!

Within the framework of the Girls Who Lead Project, we are looking for 3 young women (18–20 years old) from Estonia to participate in the GEN E Riga International Girls Forum 2026 in Riga, Latvia.

The forum will bring together young women from across Europe for an inspiring experience focused on entrepreneurship, leadership, innovation, and international networking.

📍 Riga, Latvia
📅 7–10 July 2026

Participants will have the opportunity to:
✨ Meet young women from different European countries
✨ Develop leadership and entrepreneurial skills
✨ Participate in workshops, networking activities, and discussions
✨ Build international connections and gain new experiences

Application Form: https://www.salto-youth.net/tools/european-training-calendar/training/gen-e-riga-international-girls-forum-2026.14953/

Application Deadline: 13 June 2026

Everything at a glance: training within the ERASMUS+ Youth and European Solidarity Corps programmes and beyond! Are you curious about what Europe has to offer in training activities in the field of youth and non-formal education? Would you like to contribute to the varied range to make it even more....

09/06/2026

🌍 SMARTMED continues its mission to support the digital transformation of Mediterranean cities through innovation, collaboration, and smart city technologies.

Through transnational cooperation between organizations from Greece, Jordan, and Tunisia, the project focuses on:
♻️ Smart waste management
🏥 Smart health solutions
💡 Digital governance
🤝 Citizen engagement & sustainable urban development

SMARTMED aims to help municipalities become more efficient, resilient, and citizen-centered while promoting knowledge exchange and cooperation across the Mediterranean region.

🔗 Explore the project and learn more here:

https://www.interregnextmed.eu/project-page/smartmed/about/

University of Western Macedonia - Πανεπιστήμιο Δυτικής Μακεδονίας
IED Institute of Entrepreneurship Development
بلدية ديرعلا Deir Alla Municipality
BUSINESSMED (Union of Mediterranean Confederations of Enterprises)

Co-funded by the European Union under the Interreg NEXT MED Programme, SMARTMED is coordinated by the University of Western Macedonia (UOWM, Greece) with partners the Institute of Entrepreneurship Development (iED, Greece), the Municipality of Deir Alla (Jordan) and BUSINESSMED (Tunisia). With a budget of €1.133.180, the project is supported by an EU contribution of €1.008.530,20 (89%) and co-financing of €124.694,80 (11%).

Interreg NEXT MED Programme

09/06/2026

🚀 Opportunity for Young Women from Estonia!

Within the framework of the Girls Who Lead Project, we are looking for 3 young women (18–20 years old) from Estonia to participate in the GEN E Riga International Girls Forum 2026 in Riga, Latvia.

The forum will bring together young women from across Europe for an inspiring experience focused on entrepreneurship, leadership, innovation, and international networking.

📍 Riga, Latvia
📅 7–10 July 2026

Participants will have the opportunity to:
✨ Meet young women from different European countries
✨ Develop leadership and entrepreneurial skills
✨ Participate in workshops, networking activities, and discussions
✨ Build international connections and gain new experiences

Application Form: https://forms.gle/SErBuprG1bCADzLf9

Application Deadline: 13 June 2026

08/06/2026

Through the JOINABLE project, students, teachers, local authorities, and volunteers joined forces to take part in environmental awareness and beach clean-up activities in Igoumenitsa and Velika, Agia.

The initiative provided young people with the opportunity to learn about the impact of plastic pollution and microplastics on ecosystems, while actively contributing to actions that promote sustainability and responsible environmental behaviour.

💡 Through hands-on workshops, awareness activities, and clean-up actions, participants gained valuable knowledge about protecting natural ecosystems and the importance of collective action in addressing environmental challenges.

🤝 JOINABLE highlights the power of collaboration between schools, local authorities, organisations, and citizens, helping to foster environmental responsibility and support the development of more sustainable communities.

🔷 Read more:

Students, teachers, local authorities and active citizens joined forces through the JOINABLE project to take part in environmental awareness and beach clean-up activities in Igoumenitsa and Velika, Agia. The initiative aimed to raise awareness about plastic pollution, marine litter and microplastics...

08/06/2026

Proud to be part of the EcoMedIslands project, which was awarded 1st Prize in the "Most Innovative Project" category at the 3rd MED Innovation Summit and the 5th ISE Community of Practice in-person gathering, held in Athens during the Circle the Med Forum.

Congratulations to all partners whose collaboration, innovation, and commitment made this achievement possible. Together, we continue to drive sustainable solutions and positive impact across Mediterranean islands. 🌍🏝️🏆