In January 2024, the Horizon Europe project SMART ERA, worth €6.5 million, was launched to empower rural communities facing socio-economic and environmental challenges. The 4-year project fosters a community-led pathway to change based on high-tech digital products and services using co-developed solutions bundled into smart innovation packages. It covers technology, governance, business, societal aspects, and policy making. The project involves 25 partners from 10 European countries and is coordinated by Fondazione Bruno Kessler.
The kick-off meeting in Trento, Italy, was attended by our member, Tjaša Heričko, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muhamed Turkanović from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Maribor. UM FERI will cover research and innovation development tasks related to data analytics, data integration, and visualization. At the same time, the project partners will use the existing services and products of the Blockchain Lab:UM group, such as a platform for digital certificate management, a digital wallet for storing and sharing digital certificates, a platform for supply chain tracking based on blockchain technology, etc., as part of the pilot activities.
