It’s that time of year again! The end of 2021 is nearly here and we will welcome in 2022.
The end of the year, and beginning of a new one, is always a time for reflection (for what’s happened so far) and excitement (for what’s coming up ahead). Thinking about USE-IT, the project has got off to a great start. We’ve had excellent study visits (electronically that is) and informative meetings with all our partners.
Unfortunately, due to the ongoing pandemic, we have not been able to travel in the same way we usually would, which is a shame – but we’ve made up for it, with fantastic contributions from everyone.
2021 has been a busy year for USE-IT. The last few months have been a time to set-up the project and get everything ready. As we look to 2022, this will be when the project goes into full speed.
A quick round up of 2021
As we find ourselves now at the end of 2021, the pandemic is certainly still having an impact on our everyday lives and our working lives too. USE-IT is no exception! The big impact for the project has been our inability to travel to meetings – the latest being this month’s Transnational Meeting in Trapani. This visit was due to be held as a hybrid event, with some partners travelling to Trapani to visit partners in person.
Unfortunately, due to travel restrictions, this was not possible – but we made up for it, with a very interactive one-day online event. Though never the same as physically being there, these events are always enjoyable and informative. As always, a big Thank You to everyone for your ongoing commitment and enthusiasm – not to mention a little bit of creative thinking too.
This has certainly not been the same as being in the same room, in the city itself – we have made most of a difficult situation and experienced a series of very enjoyable online Study Visits hosted by Rotterdam (in July), Poznan (in mid-September) and Trapani (in late September/early October).
Two online site visits have been made to each city – with a host of guests making presentations and contributing to workshops – such as local government officials, business owners, social entrepreneurs and community members. Once again, a big Thank You to everyone who was involved and supported this.
Looking ahead to 2022
As we’re working with fantastic colleagues in all the cities – we’re feeling very optimistic when we look ahead to 2022. No matter what the pandemic situation can throw at us, with the amount of enthusiasm from everyone involved in USE-IT, we’re looking to achieve great things and a real lasting-legacy for the project.
The project end-date is September 2022; in reality, this will be just a formality – and if all goes to plan, the foundations will have just be laid for 2023 and beyond.
With this in mind, the next few months are very important and will certainly be a team effort. There will be Investment Plans to complete and a whole range of meetings and events leading up to the final event in September. With luck, we will also be able to meet in person in various cities – lets just keep our fingers crossed and see!
All that can now wait until the new year. In the meantime, have a very Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and an enjoyable holiday season. See you in 2022.
