INTRODUCTION

This past year, since June 2021, MEDEA has carried out a significant work progress overcoming challenges and delivering the desired results. 

An important highlight to mention is that MEDEA successfully organised three RDI Days inviting in a common environment, security stakeholders, industries, academia, research organisations and SMEs to present pertinent solutions to MEDEA consortium members and practitioners. Each of them specialized in different topics. As a result experts from various fields had the opportunity to interact, make suggestions and exchange ideas. It was undoubtedly a productive year!

MEDEA consortium proceed with launching an Open call , which was released in autumn 2021. More specifically, MEDEA organized four Open Calls to Academia and Industry. Twelve successful submissions were received by the consortium. Many practitioners submitted their contributions to the Open Calls for Ideas and Solutions, with regards to the gaps that had been identified by the TCP experts of the MEDEA Project. The Open Call was promoted to MEDEA’s network through direct invitations and through events and conferences such as the  “World Border Security Congress”, which was held in Athens, in autumn 2021 where security practitioners and stakeholders were present during this 3 day event.

Each MEDEA TCP (thematic community of practitioners) had a dedicated open call concerning different issues corresponding with relevant capability gaps (four TCPs as a total).

MEDEA’s Thematic Communities of Practitioners invited solution providers, researchers, academics, policy makers and of course experienced practitioners to jointly explore proposals that will help  advance existing practitioner’s capabilities and enhance their everyday duties.

All TCPs security practitioners were looking for innovation approaches to eliminate / restrict / limit the identified capability gaps of each TCP aiming to allow potential advancement and innovative solutions in the following areas:

Open Call - TCP 1: Management of Migration Flows and asylum seekers

FOR TCP 1: Management of Migration Flows and asylum seekers 

  • Real time monitoring of migratory routes 
  • Lawful interception of communications and internet-based communications as to enhance practitioners situational awareness
  • Detection of fraudulent documents
  • Speech recognition solutions to facilitate practitioners’ operations
  • Prediction methods for migratory flows.

FOR TCP 2: Border Management

  • Language translation tools.
  • Longer range detection systems and better signal processing to tackle false positive alarms.
  • Improved identification tools to scan fraudulent documents.
  • Surveillance cameras that are smart, more capable, and energy efficient.
  • Integrated solutions to deliver images from satellites in real-time.
  • Standardisation and automation of IMINT extraction (e.g., AI feature detection capabilities).

Open Call - TCP 2: Border Management

Open Call - TCP 3: Fight against cross-border crime and Terrorism

FOR TCP3: Fight against cross-border crime and terrorism 

  • Autodetection of online terrorist content or radicalisation content that may lead to violent extremism and/or terrorism.
  • Accurate translations of non-EU languages.
  • Communication, information exchange, and intelligence.
  • Databases and advanced searching tools in the field of online radicalisation and drug smuggling.
  • Vulnerability assessment.
  • Safe telecommunications between LEAs.
  • Interception of commercial applications of telecommunications.

FOR TCP4: Manage natural hazards and technological accidents.

For this TCP two main topics (WUI Wildfires & Flash Floods) were identified and consequently for each one of them solution providers, academics, researchers, and policy makers were invited to participate in the following ways:

  • Present current technological solutions and research for providing guidance to evacuees in case of a WUI fire.
  • Present solutions for improving the spatial and temporal resolutions of weather forecasts at local level.

TCP 4: Manage Natural Hazards and Technological Accidents

Based on the Open Calls, MEDEA has organised so far three out of four RDI (Research, Development and Industry) Days. During the RDI Days, participants such as industries and SMEs were able to present pertinent solutions at an advanced level of operational details.

Each RDI Day offered interactive workshops with all participants showing great interest. 

More than 250 attendees from all of Europe participated in RDI Days.

Management of Migration Flows

TCP1 RDI DAY took place virtually on May 3rd 2022 and lasted for 3.30 hours. Over 60 attendees participated in the event.

Several companies and organisations put forward many solutions for Managing of migration flows and asylum seekers, based on the challenges that arise by irregular movement. Some of them were ADAPTIT, CRFS, SPACE, VOST, OVD KINEGRAM, CERTH, FRONTEX.

Find out more here.

TCP2 RDI DAY took place virtually on March 9th 2022 and lasted for almost 8 hours. More than 80 attendees participated in the event.

Following the EU Integrated Border Management strategies, the members of this TCP aim to review modern surveillance technologies for land and sea borders linked to common information-sharing environment (CISE), search for advanced solutions for faster and more accurate border control checking, leading to detection of irregular crossing, recognition of fraudulent documents and efficient identification of clandestine entries.

Thirteen solutions concerning Border management and surveillance were presented by ADDITESS, CEA (ENTRANCE PROJECT), EU TEMA, LAUREA, ROBOTNIK, GMV, MILTECH,ICSS, NARDA, SATWAYS, ITI-CERTH, CS GROUP, VILABS

More information here.

TCP 2 RDI DAY - Border Management

Manage Natural Hazards and Technological Accidents

TCP4 RDI DAY took place virtually on January 18th 2022 and lasted for almost 8 hours. It was a joint event with the FIRE-IN project.

The MEDEA Project, after launching an Open Call for Technology Solutions and Ideas, organised an RDI Day event, so that industry solution providers could present their solutions regarding the Management of Natural Hazards and Technological Accidents.

The event was co-organised with the FIRE-IN project in the framework of synergies with similar projects. The results were optimally multiplied. More than 140 participants (industry, researchers, practitioners) registered online at this event.

The RDI Day offered a unique opportunity to bring together solution providers and practitioners. The former could present their solutions to possible end-users, and the latter could share their needs and insights about existing solutions. This joint event boosted interaction and created communication channels between all involved stakeholders.

A number if interesting solutions concerning Management of natural hazards and technological accidents were suggested by AeroMind sp. z o.o. sp. K, Solar Impulse Foundation, Intaero Ltd, Institute of Communication & Computer Systems (ICCS), VWORLD, CRISPRO, Vogt-CTE, OMIKRON Consultants SA, PSTECH, INFALIA, SPACE, SIGNALERT, STME FIRE, VOST (Solution), VOST (Idea).

To know more have a look here.

Other Activities

MEDEA project was featured in a number of other events throughout the past year enhancing the dissemination of its results, actions and findings. Some highlights you can find here below.

MEDEA In The 2nd Annual Workshop Of EU-HYBNET

MEDEA project was invited to the 2nd Annual workshop of EU-HYBNET project, that took place in Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Rome on Wednesday April 6th, 2022. The workshop featured security related topics focusing on technological and non-technological innovations and ideas in areas such as: Future trends in hybrid threats, Cyber and Future Technologies, Resilient civilians and local admin, Information and strategic communication. A number of more than 60 participants were present physically and remotely that day. The audience consisted of Policy Makers, SMEs, Academics, and Research Centers all around Europe. MEDEA received a warm applaud from the present audience and policy makers for the innovative approaches. Additionally the project established a first contact with the innovation lab of Europol.

Find out more here

“Health Care Work during Covid19: Looking Back”  – MEDEA at the NO FEAR event.

NO-FEAR Workshop on “Health Care Work during Covid19: Looking Back” and “Ethical, Legal and Social Issues of Security Critical Incidents” was held in Oslo, at November 17-19, 2021.

MEDEA participated in panels (world cafe), sessions, and workshops indicatively pertaining to:

  • Organisational resilience and staff/volunteer support 
  • Psychological first aid and Needs of helpers: case examples from Covid-19
  • Community Participation in Pandemics in each country
  • Remote Multiplayer VR Security Player game
  • Stigmatisation and Violence against Health Care Workers
  • Results from Survey on Security Critical Incidents
  • Ethical Issues In Mass Casualty Incidents
  • First Aider Liability: Surveying the Legislations Regarding Liability of First Aid Providers around the World
  • Integrating Ordinary People into Emergency Response
  • Inclusion and Exclusion of Volunteers at Disaster Response Operations
  • Bystander Helping in Emergencies: Evidence from Public Assaults and Beyond
  • Reducing Risk of Violence against Healthcare Workers.

MEDEA IN SMI2G

The coordinator of MEDEA, (KEMEA) attended the  SMI2G event in Brussels in May 2022 and it was a memorable experience! The SMI2G brokerage event gathered European-wide innovators and practitioners who were looking for further consortium partners by presenting game-changing ideas and novel technologies addressing the challenges of Horizon Europe’s Civil Security for Society 2022 Work Programme.

The SMI2G 2022 event took place on May 16th & 17th and was attended by more than 200 people in-person and some 300+ online! Sixty-seven presentations took place and the event brought new and interested partners to the Horizon Europe family.

MEDEA was a co-organizer, alongside the European Association of Research and Technology Organisations (EARTO), European Organisation for Security (EOS), European Cyber Security Organisation (ECSO), European Network of Law Enforcement Technology Services (ENLETS), and the research projects: DAREnet, CYCLOPES, FIRE-IN, NOTIONES.

While presenting the MEDEA project Mr Kokkinis discussed the Mediterranean & Black Sea Security Practitioners’ Network. He conferred about the Thematic Communities of Practitioners, as well as the challenges and the methodology of the project.

Find more information here: SMI2G – Security Mission Information & Innovation Group Event 2022 (cmine.eu)

Taste the experience here.

Next Steps

MEDEA has more to deliver so stay tuned and see the results on the following areas:

  • RDI Day for TCP3 will take place in June 2022. More presentations and workshops will be featured concerning “Fight against cross-border crime and terrorism”. 
  • Evaluations of the submitted solutions through the Open Call will take place during the summer of 2022.
  • MEDEA will released 3 PoCs (proof of concept demonstrations) and 1 TTX (tabletop exercise) withing the upcoming year. 
  • MEDEA is happy to participate in the CEPOL European Research & Science Conference, in Vilnius, Lithuania, 8-10 June 2022 with a paper submission which was accepted and titled “Implementing the THOR Methodology in Security projects: Lessons learnt on the interplay of technological, human-related, organisational, and regulatory challenges” George Kokkinis, Genny Dimitrakopoulou, Freideriki Makri, May 2022.
  • MEDEA is planning to have a final conference in April 2023 with workshops, results presentations, and more, aiming to engage a wide audience of stakeholders and practitioners.
  • Through the last year of MEDEA’s lifecycle the Mediterranean Security Reasearch and Innovation Agenda is planned to be launched including all challenges and innovations identified.
  • Lastly, the project aims to deliver the final edition of the Technology observatory which will be an asset on practitioners “hands”.

Interactive Stakeholders Map

Stay Tuned

Stay tuned with more updates from MEDEA network!

Remain informed about the network’s plans for upcoming surveys, webinars, workshops and many other updates.

Share on:

MEDEA is funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 – Research and Innovation Framework Programme, under grant agreement no 787111