PlatformUptake.eu project promoted a discussion in Portuguese language about open platforms in the Active and Healthy Ageing domain
On the 25th of February 2021, a workshop with the title “Plataformas Web abertas que apoiem o envelhecimento ativo e saudável”( “Open Platforms in the Active and Healthy Ageing (AHA) domain”) was held in Portuguese language. The event was hosted and broadly promoted by Cáritas Diocesana de Coimbra, Portugal. The workshop was attended by more than 50 stakeholders from all over Europe and beyond who hold various key positions in the field.
Ageing presents one of the greatest socio-economic challenges of the 21st century. According to estimates more than 20% of Europeans will be 65 or older by 2025. Reacting to related puzzlements of demographic shifts and ageing in general, and guaranteeing the availability of the required structure to help Europe utilise the Active and Healthy Ageing (AHA) sector’s opportunities, the EU has devoted a high level of resources to ICT projects in the field. As such a considerable number of open platforms for the development of innovative solutions in the AHA domain have been created.
The workshop was held within the framework of the PlatformUptake.eu project and sought to share knowledge and collect the needs and doubts of possible users of open platforms in the area of Active and Healthy Ageing, meet the requirements of the various stakeholders, and identify success factors and lessons learned. The participants were welcomed by SYNYO GmbH, the coordinator of the PlatformUptake.eu project and Afedemy, Academy on Age-Friendly Environments in Europe BV which is responsible for the workshop cycle. Following a brief introduction to the topic of “Open Platforms in the Active and Healthy Ageing domain” was conducted by Ms Flávia Rodrigues from the Innovation Department at Cáritas Coimbra. The workshop continued with a presentation of the pioneering open platform – eVida which was conducted by Mr João Quintas from Instituto Pedro Nunes in Portugal. In the last part of the workshop, the topic of implementation and use of this type of platforms was introduced as an integral part of the SHAFE ecosystem (Healthy, Smart and Friendly Environments) by Ms Carina Dantas, coordinator of the SHAFE Network. The event ended with a discussion between the guests and presenters which was moderated by Ms Diana Guardado from the Innovation Department of Cáritas Coimbra, and project manager at PlatformUptake.eu.
The host of the event concluded that the theme of open platforms is very relevant nowadays. Furthermore, Ms. Guardado acknowledged the productive discussion which was rich of shared knowledge thanks to the different experiences and views of the various participants.
The PlatformUptake.eu project, which is a Coordination and Support Action for the European Commission, funded by the Horizon 2020 program of the European Union, aims to analyse and describe the ecosystem of open platforms in the Active and Health Ageing (AHA) domain and promote synergies between the respective networks and related projects in the field. It is a partnership of 12 entities: SYNYO GmbH (project coordinator), Austria; Institute of science and information technologies, Italy; Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGD, Germany; Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain; Institute of Communication and Computer Systems, Greece; Jožef Stefan Institute, Slovenia; Afedemy, Academy on Age-Friendly Environments in Europe BV, Netherlands; Cáritas Diocesana de Coimbra, Portugal; Linköping University , Sweden; Universitat de les Illes Balears , Spain; Smart Homes, Netherlands and Etablissementsa Lievens Lanckman, Belgium.