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EDIAQI at the IDEAL Cluster Annual Meeting: A United Front for Healthier Indoor Spaces

Image of the participants of the second IDEAL Cluster meeting

Last week, EDIAQI was honoured to participate in the IDEAL Cluster Annual Meeting, held in the vibrant and picturesque city of Braga, Portugal. The event took place at the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL)—a truly remarkable and state-of-the-art research hub that not only champions scientific innovation and experimentation, but also stands out as a unique international territory. INL governs its own work permits, allowing researchers from all over the world to work there, making it a truly global space for collaboration in science and innovation. 

The venue’s forward-thinking spirit and architectural beauty provided a fitting backdrop for an event dedicated to accelerating collaboration and impact across Europe’s Horizon Europe-funded indoor air quality (IAQ) projects. It was an inspiring environment to discuss how all the projects, as the IDEAL Cluster, can work together to turn research into real-world solutions for healthier indoor environments—particularly for Europe’s most vulnerable groups.

A Strong Showing from EDIAQI

The EDIAQI team made a dynamic contribution across both days of the agenda. Here's a recap of EDIAQI's key interventions:

  • Mario Lovric, EDIAQI’s Scientific Coordinator, kicked off EDIAQI's involvement during the cluster’s “Project Highlights” session. He delivered a succinct but impactful overview of EDIAQI’s mission, the challenges EDIAQI addresses, and the progress achieved so far.
  • Later, Alex Borg, Communication and Policy Manager, represented Working Group 1 (Policy) alongside Carla Martins (K-HEALTHinAIR). Alex outlined the direction of the second Joint Policy Brief (JPB2)—which will focus on the needs of children in indoor spaces—and invited all partners to contribute to this crucial effort.
  • Alessandro Battaglia, EDIAQI’s representative on sensors, contributed during the sensor-focused sessions by sharing lessons from the Ferrara pilot, particularly on calibration, standardisation, and the practical deployment of indoor air quality sensors.
  • Jon Switters, EDIAQI’s Project Coordinator, took the stage to present EDIAQI’s standout work in communication and dissemination, spotlighting EDIAQI's webinar series, wiki, and chatbot as effective tools for knowledge sharing and stakeholder engagement.
  • Mario Lovric returned with a more personal touch—presenting insights from a collocation study conducted at his parents’ home, illustrating how everyday activities and household conditions influence air quality.
  • Bojana Žegura, speaking in the in-vitro session, presented the methodological approaches EDIAQI employs to understand the toxicological impact of indoor pollutants. Bojana's work forms a critical part of the project’s health-focused research.
  • In the final session of the second day, Mario also led the Microbiome Working Group (WG8) and introduced the IDEAL Cluster members to a compelling analysis of a Danish-Croatian mix of bacteria and fungi, emphasising the complexity and diversity of indoor microbial ecosystems.

A Broader Community of Innovation

EDIAQI was in excellent company throughout the event, with impactful contributions from all IDEAL Cluster sister projects: LEARN, SynAir-G, KHEALTHinAIR, InChildHealth, INQUIRE, and TwinAIR. Sessions ranged from data management and standardisation to new health outcome models, in-vitro experimentation, and the road to creating a unified European Indoor Air Quality Index.

The two day event—which also included engaging workshops, keynote addresses, and strategic planning sessions—made clear that collaboration is not just encouraged within the IDEAL Cluster; it is essential. As projects working on different dimensions of IAQ, the greatest possible impact will only come when the composite projects of the IDEAL Cluster align efforts and amplify each other’s results and outputs in a united manner. 

Gratitude and Next Steps

The EDIAQI project extends our heartfelt thanks to the meetings gracious hosts at INL—Ana Ribeiro and Ernesto Alfaro-Moreno—for their exceptional organisation and warm hospitality. Their careful curation of the programme made the meeting not only productive but deeply inspiring.

Finally, a special thank you to Rita Araújo, the European Commission Project Officer of the IDEAL Cluster, whose insightful engagement and thoughtful recommendations are helping the IDEAL Cluster go from strength to strength. The EDIAQI project hand-in-hand with the other IDEAL Cluster projects will continue to build on the shared commitment to creating safer, healthier indoor environments across Europe.