On 25-26 September 2025, the POLYMEER consortium gathered in Rome for its 12-month meeting, hosted at Birra Peroni and organised by Sapienza University. The event marked the project’s first anniversary, a year that brought both important achievements and significant challenges. As a complex and ambitious initiative, POLYMEER has required flexibility, strong coordination and close collaboration among partners. The meeting provided the opportunity to review progress, plan next steps and celebrate the work done so far.
Work package updates
Work Package 1 (WP1), led by UNIPG, reported strong progress despite encountering unexpected complexities. The team adapted its approaches to overcome obstacles, which strengthened cooperation and teamwork across the consortium. In WP2, coordinated by UNIROMA, partners presented results of testing materials for mulch films, textiles and tertiary packaging. This included the characterisation of three commercial mulch films, one traditional and two bio-based, as well as textile analyses on a yarn and two fabrics, which underwent abrasion and tensile testing.
Some updates were presented for WP3, led by Bio-mi, where activities are advancing on scaling processes from laboratory to pilot level to demonstrate industrial feasibility. WP4, coordinated by Lomartov, presented results from its work on sustainability assessment and end-of-life scenarios. Using the European Sustainable-by-Design framework, the team has completed hazard assessments of chemicals and is conducting environmental sustainability evaluations through streamlined life-cycle assessment methods.
WP5, led by Zabala and Gate2Growth, highlighted the project’s active communication, dissemination and exploitation efforts. The consortium has established a strong visual identity while achieving steady growth on social media. The project has been presented at major international events, and together with its sister projects, POLYMEER launched the BIOPOLY Cluster. In terms of exploitation, the first workshop was held in the previous consortium meeting, individual coaching sessions with partners were conducted and exploitable results have been identified. Finally, WP6, led by UNIPG, outlined upcoming administrative milestones.
Responsible Research and Innovation workshop
A highlight of the second day was the first workshop on Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) and Societal Readiness, under WP4. The session encouraged partners to reflect on the ethical, social and governance dimensions of their research and to anticipate how stakeholders such as policymakers, NGOs, companies, and the public may engage with POLYMEER’s results. This interactive exercise generated valuable insights and will support the integration of RRI practices throughout the project.
Strengthening collaboration in Rome
Beyond the technical sessions, the consortium also enjoyed a guided tour of the Fori Imperiali and a networking dinner overlooking the Colosseum. On the final day, partners visited the Birra Peroni facilities, learned about the production process of the company, its range of products, and how the brewer’s spent grain used in POLYMEER is generated. With this, the consortium gained a deeper understanding of one of the project’s key industrial contexts and how POLYMEER’s innovations may connect to real-world applications, helping also to reinforce collaboration and strengthen team spirit.
