MOSAIC INNOVA, a Coordination and Support Action funded by HORIZON Europe, will run for 12 months. Its mission is to strengthen Europe’s innovation ecosystem around deep tech and critical technologies, while fostering sustainability, circularity, and industrial resilience across Europe. Main objectives of MOSAIC INNOVA are to

•  Reduce fragmentation between regional and national innovation ecosystems.

•  Foster cooperation between regions with different levels of innovation performance.

•  Promote the exchange of best practices and knowledge transfer.

•  Engage companies, clusters, research centres, and public administrations through communication, dissemination, and exploitation activities.

The project includes a European consortium committed to sustainable innovation: ISMC the Iberian Sustainable Mining Cluster, the International Center for Advanced Materials and Raw Materials of Castilla y León ICAMCyL Foundation, the Bulgarian Industrial Cluster Srednogorie, and Germany´s Geokompetenzzentrum Freiberg e.V.

 

Aim of MOSAIC INNOVA: Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups focused on critical and deep technologies are crucial to enhancing value chains in digital innovation and clean technologies. The project will support them in transitioning to Industry 5.0 and foster an innovation ecosystem. The project will establish an excellence hub for deep-tech innovation, promoting knowledge exchange and technology transfer among partners. It involves local, regional, and national stakeholders to improve coordination and create better synergies between EU funds that promote resilient innovation and a circular economy. The project will summarise ecosystem actions and guide future developments, including stakeholder mapping, selecting four deep-tech companies, and analysing EIC Accelerator-certified entities applying for the Plug-in scheme.

 

GKZ is responsible for the following tasks: identifying, integrating, and supporting the most promising deep-tech enterprises within the MOSAIC project. Its role begins with establishing selection criteria and coordinating the process to identify companies with strong innovation potential, market readiness, and strategic value for the ecosystem. Once the most suitable enterprises are chosen, GKZ oversees their integration into the MOSAIC network, ensuring smooth collaboration and continuous evaluation to strengthen their innovation capacity. In addition, GKZ provides tailored support regarding funding and investment opportunities, helping these companies access suitable financial instruments for their business development. Through these combined efforts, GKZ acts as a central facilitator, ensuring the selected enterprises are effectively connected, supported, and empowered to contribute to the broader goals of the MOSAIC ecosystem.

Attention solution providers: The IDEALIST project is seeking energy efficiency solutions for the following four challenges.

You can also submit your own challenges and promote them via Hack&Match. The target group is tech-savvy SMEs, start-ups, researchers, technology centres, EDIHs, digital innovation centres, accelerators and other similar scale-up organisations. More Info

Exploring technology loops and raw material supply schemes in chemical and rail industry. IDEALIST’s Learning Expeditions (LEX) support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to adapt to current and future challenges by identifying technological solution providers, and connecting to alternative business partners along value chains and innovative collaboration partners for material development. IDEALIST covers the three key industry sectors: Energy Intensive Industries, Aerospace & Defence, as well as Mobility, Transport & Automotive. Get connected with SMEs of the region as well as from the IDEALIST network. The main target groups of this two day event are SMEs interested or active in the field of raw material and feed stock supply, technologies for circularity and decarbonisation of processes, and innovative solutions in material development or digital solutions for chemical R&D/production processes. Please note that the language of the conference is English and the participation in the matchmaking activity is voluntarily. Day 1 – Conference Day: a full day of expert lectures and networking activities to get in touch with potential alternate suppliers, novel solution providers and inspiring experts from the seven European project partner countries and ecosystems to enlarge your own network, acquire new knowledge and learn about best practices. You may also benefit from startup pitches, B2B matchmaking and a ‘Walk & Talk’ in the vineyards. Day 2 – Site Visit Wacker Chemie: we take you to one of the major German production sites for silicon-based chemicals and materials operated by Wacker Chemie AG in Nünchritz. Main products are some 200 different silicones, pyrogenic silica and hyperpure polycrystalline silicon for the solar industry as well as silicone adhesives and sealants. The production site is a prime example for low-waste and energy-efficient production pioneering a drone project to identify energy and heat losses in the insulation. Find out more info and about registration here

 

25.5.2025: EU HORIZON IDEALIST Project Learning Expedition to Katowice | 12.06.-13.06 | Katowice, Poland

Physical meeting in Katowice - one of the most innovative industrial centers in Central Europe. On the agenda: practice-oriented workshops on digitalization, industry of the future and drone technologies as well as exclusive site visits. The GKZ is offering two travel vouchers for participating companies. Further information on the event

15.5.2024: EU HORIZON IDEALIST Project Webinar on Circular Economy and Critical Raw Materials - Opportunities & Challenges | 4.6.2025

Webinar on the potential of the circular economy to address the challenges of critical raw materials; from the circular use of batteries to the processes in metallurgy. Afterwards there will be the opportunity for 1:1 meetings with the speakers.

Further information

This event will connect stakeholders from Partnership countries, offering a platform for networking and building strategic alliances in preparation for upcoming EU funding calls and RM Partnership. International Partnership Development: Facilitating interaction and collaboration with R&I stakeholders Partnership countries to expand the Raw Materials Research and Innovation connections. EU Funding Opportunities: Creating opportunities for participants to identify and secure new partners for applications to upcoming EU funding calls (e.g., Horizon Europe), as well as for future Co-funded Raw Materials Partnership. Academia-Industry Synergy: Bridging the gap between academia and industry by offering a space for knowledge exchange, showcasing expertise, and presenting innovative ideas or challenges. Participants will have the chance* to pitch their areas of interest, specific project concepts, or problems requiring collaborative solutions, thereby promoting mutual awareness and potential collaborations. *(subject to availability)

 

 

 

For more information see here

We are pleased to inform you that the above peer reviewed article has now been published in the prestigious Magazin Economic Geology. You can download it here. It presents the current state of knowledge of effective, cost-efficient and environmentally sound exploration on NCT / NYF pegmatites, one of the main sources of hard rock lithium. We owe the research work on this topic to the EU GREENPEG project New Exploration Tools for European Pegmatite Green-Tech Resources, which was funded as part of the HORIZON 2020 funding programme under grant agreement number 869274.

2025-02-13 Advanced Materials for European SMEs Webinar

Our EU IDEALIST project offers: The ‘Hack&Match’ events offer a straightforward and efficient way for European SMEs to develop concrete ideas and solutions using advanced technologies. Over two consecutive days, tech-savvy SMEs and technology experts from Europe work together to address needs and capitalise on market opportunities. Further information. Read more

Join the IDEALIST’s Expert-to-expert webinars to learn, connect and exchange!

 

• The Expert-to-expert webinar on Additive Manufacturing will allow attendees to explore the full scope of the additive manufacturing’s potential and challenges, as well as use cases, with a focus on the green transition:

Date: 28 January, 11:00-12:00.

Register here until 27 January.

 

• The Expert-to-expert webinar on Carbon Neutral and Circular Manufacturing will allow attendees to gain insight into innovative approaches and technologies aimed at accelerating the transition towards carbon neutral and circular manufacturing

Date: 31 January, 11:00-12:00.

Register here until 30 January.

 

Join the IDEALIST sphere on AGORA, get the latest information on IDEALIST’s activities and engage with its network: IDEALIST project (AGORA) - AGORA

 

The expert-to-expert webinars are organised as part of the Project IDEALIST. Funded by the EU, IDEALIST helps small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to foster resilience with a focus on energy intensive industries; aerospace and defence, and mobility, transport and automotive.”

GKZ welcomed the EU project SEEBRIDGE consortium led by our partner the Istanbul Mineral and Metals Exporters' Association to held a peer learning visit at GKZ in Freiberg, Germany, focusing on supporting SMEs in their transition to sustainability and digitalization. The event emphasized aligning with the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and the EU Green Deal, with a particular focus on aiding energy-intensive industries like aluminum and cement through financial and market support. The consortium shared insights from extensive research on CBAM compliance, complemented by webinars, workshops, and international sessions aimed at equipping SMEs with practical tools. Key contributors included GKZ, which showcased its expertise in the circular economy and EU initiatives like the Critical Raw Materials Act. Our member Rail.S cluster and Set4Future initiative highlighted innovations in the railway industry, emphasizing smart solutions and talent recruitment while addressing funding challenges. The EU IDEALIST project – GKZ is partnering with - also played a pivotal role, supporting SMEs in aerospace, defense, and railways through learning expeditions, industrial excursions, and global visibility opportunities, such as the upcoming JEC World 2025 trade fair in Paris. The visit underscored the importance of collaboration, capacity-building, and innovation to support SMEs and advance Europe’s sustainability and digital transformation goals.