Prof. Toral ()Ph.D. Electronic Engineering) research focuses on the use of artificial intelligence algorithms based on deep learning and reinforcement learning for the adaptive deployment of unmanned vehicle fleets using environmental information. The main application cases have been transportation, disasters and environmental monitoring. Additionally, he is also expert in large language models and natural language processing, including the ethical issues related to generative AI. He is part of Stanford University names World’s Top 2% Scientists, 2023, being 1244 out of 111.935 authors in the area of Electric & Electronic Engineering. His scientific production includes a total of 110 journal publication with impact factor which are distributed per quartiles as 44/29/28/9 (Q1/Q2/Q3/Q4), being 18 of them in the first decile.  

His main achievements include the application of deep reinforcement learning techniques for the monitoring of water resources, including the optimisation of the parameters of the neural network models used, the development of deployment and informative route planning techniques for autonomous surface vehicles using Bayesian optimization, and the detection of cyanobacteria in Lake Ypacarai (Asunción, Paraguay) using a fleet of three autonomous vehicles.

Prof. Toral is committed to open science and the reproducibility of research, so all his publications are openly available in the institutional repository of the University of Seville idus (idus.us.es) and the code is openly available on github.

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Marga Martín Sánchez, (M.Sc.in Physics). In my current role, I am focusing on the creation of de-facto standards aligned with EU values to enable trusted decentralized digital ecosystems based on federated cloud infrastructures and enabling data use and re-us within and across sectors and data spaces, e.g. mobility, smart cities, green deal, I4.0, health, energy, etc

With over 20 years of international R&D&I and business management experience in the mobility and ICT domain, particularly in cloud, AI and critical infrastructure protection, she has also been participating in EU funded projects since the FP6, including the role of project coordinator. She is also an independent expert since 2013 for the European Commission in various General-Directorates and since 2020 she also became an external independent expert for the governmental network EUREKA. She has also participated as a business mentor in large EU initiatives to support organizations and SMEs to scale-up innovative solutions and defining routes to market. Juror of the i4Trust Jury Board to select the best start-ups/SMEs and Digital Innovation Hubs with best business proposals for data sharing in strategic market sectors.

Furthermore, I am very active in standardization activities, supporting EU initiatives, where I provide guidance to companies and organizations involved in EU funded projects. My role is to advise on how best to contribute to international and European standards, including de-facto standards, providing coaching on standardization practices and procedures, as well as identifying relevant related standards based on the project’s needs to facilitate market adoption in various areas such as: Artificial intelligence, Ethical data usage, Cloud services, Trustworthy AI, Energy, Mobility, Health, Building automation.

(Re)designing sustainable cities is a major issue, requiring cooperation, exchange of best practices, innovative design, training, empowerment, participation, strategy and tactics. Be it city planning or urban metabolism, climate or biodiversity, social or generational gaps, digitalization or production issues, European cities play a key role. A systemic and multiscale approach is necessary to imagine and implement appropriate public policies. 

My career path as a senior civil servant, for French Goverment and local authorities, led me to design and manage challenging projects, involving stakehoders from different backgrounds (public-private, SMEs-large companies, charities, research centers...) and nationalities. The search for common good, relying on a collective intelligence approach, is my guideline.

I believe that URBACT is a very relevant framework to address the unprecedented issues we are faced with and make Europe a worldwide reference in city management and sustainability.

Willing to bring my experience and knowledge to the community and to learn from peers, I would be happy to know about your projects and maybe work on them. Thanks for your attention.

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⚙️ With a solid academic background on mechanical and energy engineering, especially during my master education in Energy for Smart Cities, I bring together several years of experience in the energy transitions sphere, tackling it at different and broader levels.

🇪🇺 Thanks to work experiences in Italy, France, Spain and, now, Belgium, I was first Project manager and LCA/LCC evaluators in multiple EU projects, under Horizon 2020, related to sustainable energy and mobility and, secondly, as Energy consultant, I accompanied trade association, research centres and NGOs in achieving sustainability assessment and energy analyses.

🌱 Currently, I am in an environmental NGO - ECOS - leading the work on heating decarbonization in buildings, a key challenge in EU cities, focusing not only on the electrification rollout but also on bioenergy and hydrogen topics, liaising with many national and European partners, thanks to coalitions I steer, such as Coolproducts and The Cool Heating Coalition.

💪🏾 My strength is my motivation. Doing my best is natural to me in anything at which I am truly believing. I am challenge-seeker, which brought me to looking forward to such a new adventure, by assisting and supporting cities to embrace transitions needed in many aspects in a just, efficient and resilient manner.

➡️ Don't hesitate to look for further details, available on my CV or portfolio.

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Elisa is a project manager and consultant of international and European projects in the field of territorial development, knowledge economy and innovation eco-systems.

Elisa supports public administrations and regional stakeholders in the design and implementation of innovation-related policies.

She worked for the European Commission in the field of Smart Specialisation, Cohesion Policy and structural funds. She collaborated especially with regional administrations and national institutions of Italy, Spain, Croatia, Bulgaria, Poland, and the Western Balkans.  

She was part of the Secretariat of the Joint Programming Initiative for Cultural Heritage under the leadership in Ministry of Culture in Italy and took part in the project management of Interreg and Eu projects.  

She has a solid experience with regional and local public administrations in strengthening dialogue among territorial stakeholders, promoting territorial excellence and sustainable development. 

I am an expert in European networking and knowledge exchange, the URBACT method, communications and integrated approaches to sustainable urban development. I offer networks and cities a broad range of relevant skills and experiences to support their URBACT journeys.  

I have worked closely with the URBACT programme since 2018, including as co-moderator of the 2022 URBACT City Festival and lead author of two studies of the Integrated Action Plans (IAPs) of URBACT cities (2023+2019).

I was also engaged as an expert trainer on integrated approaches to SUD at a European Urban Initiative (EUI) capacity building event for cities and hope to have the opportunity to support URBACT IV cities to deliver stronger and more integrated IAPs based on the lessons of the two studies.

Previously, under URBACT III, I was mobilised as an Ad Hoc Expert for the BeePathNet-Reloaded network, supporting the planning and creation of the new Bee Path Cities network, which now sits within the URBACT Knowledge Hub on food.

I have also worked for several years on communications contracts for both URBACT (2019-2022) and the European Urban Initiative (2022-2024) giving me an excellent and broad understanding of both. My work covered the development, implementation and monitoring of communications strategies, particularly the planning and production of written content for both web and printed media.

More broadly, I have worked in European networking and knowledge exchange since 2002, in roles covering policy work, communications, moderation, event planning, monitoring and evaluation - and covering diverse policy sectors such as urban development (URBACT, EUI, UAEU), rural development (ENRD, SmartRural21), education and training (ETF, PES Network), anti-poverty and homelessness (EAPN, FEANTSA), energy, climate change, and nature protection (LIFE+, CEMR).

I have co-authored an organisational Knowledge Manifesto and a new methodology for measuring knowledge uptake and have a strong understanding of the process, opportunities and challenges of transferring good practice in Europe.

I hope to have the opportunity under URBACT IV to support Europe's towns and cities to network and exchange effectively, transfer good practice and develop stronger and more integrated action plans, confirming the specific added value of the URBACT Programme.

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As a Civil Engineer specialized in Infrastructure and Transport Planning and over the course of my career, I have demonstrated a deep commitment to sustainable urban development and mobility innovation.

In previous roles, including Project Manager and Mobility Innovator, I have led numerous European Transport Projects and studies, emphasizing sustainable and urban mobility, electromobility, and alternative vehicle technologies. My proficiency extends to logistics, urban freight deliveries, data analysis, and fostering innovation in transport and mobility.

Currently serving as an R&D Manager for Mobility, I am adept at steering innovation and research-driven strategies to address contemporary mobility challenges. My experience with funding mechanisms such as Horizon Europe, H2020, COST, Interreg and EIT Urban Mobility enables me to strategically manage projects that shape the future of transportation.

I am characterized by effective communication skills and a results-oriented approach to project execution. I envision contributing valuable insights and leveraging my expertise to address common challenges faced by cities. The prospect of actively participating in knowledge exchange, fostering innovation, and promoting best practices resonates deeply with my professional philosophy.

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