Católica leads European project boosting entrepreneurship in science, health, and the creative industries

Turning knowledge into solutions with real-world impact — this is the goal of ELEVATE, a European project led by the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, which promotes entrepreneurship and innovation in the fields of food (bio)technology, (bio)medicine, artificial intelligence, and the cultural and creative industries. Funded by the European Union's EIT HEI Initiative, the project brings together higher education institutions and business partners from three countries: Portugal, Italy, and Denmark.

With an interdisciplinary approach anchored in the European EntreComp framework for entrepreneurial education, ELEVATE includes project acceleration, expert mentoring, and a range of activities designed to foster collaboration between businesses, municipalities, and research centres. The project will offer three editions of a specially designed course to enhance creativity and entrepreneurship in interdisciplinary contexts, along with two SummerSchools and more than 25 training activities. These initiatives are aimed at students and staff from higher education institutions but are also open to the broader innovation ecosystem.

“ELEVATE seeks to drive institutional change within partner universities, promoting more agile internal structures focused on technology transfer and the strengthening of strategic partnerships,” says João Cortez, director of the Research andInnovation Office at Universidade Católica Portuguesa. The project team aims to support the transformation of innovative ideas into solutions with tangible impact, facilitating the creation of start-ups, new job opportunities, and stronger links between academia, industry, and society.

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A diverse consortium of partners

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The ELEVATE consortium is coordinated by Universidade Católica Portuguesa (Portugal – member of the SACRU network and the Transform4Europe alliance) and includes Università degli Studi di Trieste (Italy – Transform4Europemember); Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (Italy – SACRU network member); Aarhus University (Denmark); Food4Sustainability CoLAB (Portugal); TecmaFoods (Portugal – food sector enterprise); and MateraHub (Italy – centre for cultural and creative innovation).

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At Universidade Católica Portuguesa, five research centres across the country are involved in the project - Centre for Biotechnology and Fine Chemistry (CBQF/ESB); Research Centre for Science and Technology of the Arts (CITAR/EA); Research Centre in Management and Economics (CEGE/CPBS); CATÓLICA-LISBON Research Unit in Business and Economics (CUBE/CLSBE); Center forInterdisciplinary Research in Health (CIIS/FM) - coordinated through the Research and Innovation Office (RIO).

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A European catalyst for innovation

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“ELEVATE aims to act as a catalyst for innovation in key sectors such as agri-food, health, ICT and the cultural industries, by building bridges between academic knowledge and real societal challenges,” highlights João Cortez. “This is a unique opportunity to create an interdisciplinary ecosystem that brings together creative perspectives and expertise from diverse fields, including food, health, and the creative industries — all empowered by artificial intelligence,” he adds.

With its impact expected across three European innovation ecosystems — inPortugal, Italy and Denmark — ELEVATE is strategically positioned to enhance competitiveness and sustainability across the European landscape.