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The REEPRODUCE project was invited by the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) to participate in its second Showcase Event that took place on 19th January 2026 in the Charlemagne Conference Centre, Brussels.

The aim of the event was to demonstrate how EU-funded projects support key EU policy priorities on competitiveness and preparedness. The event hosted 500 in-person and 150 online participants, 26 high-level speakers and 14 project stands. The programme included panel discussions, keynote and testimonial speeches, project exhibition and networking opportunities.

HaDEA’s Director Ms. Marina Zanchi opened the event, welcoming the community and setting the scene on how EU-funded projects are strengthening Europe’s innovation, competitiveness, preparedness and technological sovereignty.

One of the focus topics was “Enhancing Europe’s resilience in raw materials supply chains”. In this context, the vulnerability of Europe’s industrial competitiveness to disruptions in the supply of critical and strategic rare earth supplies were addressed by several of the high-level speakers and experts from across the European Commission. Keynote speaker Mr.  Valère Moutarlier, Deputy Director-General at DG GROW, specifically named the REEPRODUCE project as a good example of how research and innovation projects help to enhance Europe’s competitiveness and preparedness, reinforcing long-term strategic autonomy in rare earth’s permanent magnets supply.

Plenary discussion on the stage was led by Ms. Katleen Engelbosch, Head of Department at HaDEA, with the participation of experts from across the European Commission: DG CONNECT, DG GROW, DG RTD, DG DEFIS, DG SANTE and DG HERA. The experts discussed how can the EU reconcile the priorities of enhancing competitiveness with the growing need for preparedness in the fields of digital technology, industry, space and health.

Representatives of 13 EU-funded projects presented concrete results across strategic areas, including raw materials, connectivity, AI-enabled manufacturing, space observation, healthcare innovation, digital product passport and digital media observatory. The project representatives participated in panel debates with the following subjects: “Investing in Europe’s infrastructures for strategic autonomy”, “Boosting innovation and enhancing competitiveness”, and “Securing essential societal functions for all”.

The coordinator of the REEPRODUCE project, Ana Maria Martinez, chief scientist at SINTEF, participated in the panel debate on “Boosting innovation and enhancing competitiveness”, discussing how advanced technologies, resource efficiency, and circular approaches are transforming the European economy. A key take away from Ana was that innovation is crucial in terms of reaching competitiveness at a global level. Besides, she emphasised that the support from EU funding programmes is instrumental for innovators and industry partners to explore new technologies and high-risk business models towards reducing dependencies from unreliable supply chains of strategic and critical raw materials. Furthermore, she pointed out that the multidisciplinary, multi-party, and value-chain approach embraced in EU-funded programmes, helps in understanding the needs and outcomes from each of the steps in value chains. This is instrumental to create robust innovation ecosystems and to foster industrial symbiosis allowing to achieve technological sovereignty in Europe.

Participation in the HaDEA Showcase Event offered a valuable opportunity to share results, foster synergies, and demonstrate REEPRODUCE’s role in strengthening Europe’s industrial competitiveness and innovation capacity.

Photos: European Union, 2026.

More information and recording of the event are available at the HaDEA site.