BIOMICS Twinning Project Kicks Off in a Two-Day Event in Lisbon

23–24 January 2025 | Lisbon, Portugal

The BIOMICS Twinning Project, funded by the European Union, officially launched with a vibrant two-day hybrid Kick-Off Meeting hosted by the Gulbenkian Institute of Molecular Medicine (GIMM) at the VIP Grand Lisboa Hotel & Spa. Held on 23–24 January 2025, the event brought together 63 participants, including scientific leaders, advisory board members, work package teams, and early-career data scientists from across Europe.

Organised by Project Manager Diana Vieira and Project Coordinator Nuno Barbosa-Morais (both from GIMM), the meeting provided a collaborative platform to align scientific vision and strategic goals across the BIOMICS consortium.

The programme featured three key components:

Management Meeting (Day 1 – Morning): Work Package leaders and co-leaders presented detailed overviews of their research objectives, methodologies, and upcoming milestones. These sessions helped establish a shared understanding of project deliverables and timelines.
Mini-Symposium for Young Data Scientists (Day 1 – Afternoon): Early-career researchers from GIMM participated in a dedicated session introducing the scientific landscape of BIOMICS partner institutes and the forthcoming training and mentorship programme. The symposium fostered cross-institutional dialogue and showcased the role of young researchers in shaping the project’s future. Programme here.
Executive Meeting (Day 2 – Morning): A strategic planning session involving the General Assembly, Scientific and Societal Advisory Boards, and key collaborators focused on refining the project’s activity schedule and outlining a Data Management Plan. This meeting laid the groundwork for a structured and inclusive approach to project implementation.

Feedback from participants was overwhelmingly positive, with an overall event satisfaction score of 4.8 out of 5. The mini-symposium matched this rating, reflecting its value in community-building and knowledge exchange. Venue and logistics were also praised, with the meeting dinner at Restaurant People earning a perfect score of 5.0.

The BIOMICS Kick-Off Meeting successfully launched the project with clear momentum, reinforcing collaboration, communication, and a shared commitment to advancing data-driven biomedical science.