The MNO-MINDS project kick-off meeting was held in Rome on 5th December 2023 together with the first Project Management Board Meeting. Representatives of all members were present.
The meeting started with the welcome of the Istat Methodology Director Orietta Luzi, followed by the illustration of the European Statistical System (ESS) context about the project by F. Ricciato (Eurostat), who stressed also the expectations surrounding innovative methodological developments with the use of new data sources.
T. Tuoto (Istat) then provided an overview of the project, setting the stage for the technical discussions that followed.
The first in-depth session focused on Work Package 2, led by M.-P. Joubert (INSEE), and was followed by an open discussion. After the break, the spotlight shifted to WP3, presented by J. Fosen and L.C. Zhang (SSB), which also included an interactive dialogue with all participants.
Following the lunch break, A. Kowarik and M. Six (STAT) introduced WP4, and attendees engaged in an open discussion to explore key aspects of the work package.
In the afternoon, the meeting turned to WP1: Project Management, jointly presented by M.G. Calza and T. Zangla, and later by M.F. D’Ambrogio and T. Fera (Istat). During this session, the team provided a comprehensive description of the project management activities, deliverables, milestones, and the functioning of the Project Management Board. Special emphasis was placed on quality assessment procedures, financial considerations, and the consortium’s collaborative environment established on MS Teams.
The second part of the WP1 session focused on communication and dissemination strategies. The Istat team shared plans for a dedicated email box, the launch of the project webpage on Istat’s official site, and outreach via X and LinkedIn. Additionally, a preliminary project page was set up on the new CROS portal. A preview of major upcoming events was also given, including the announcement of the SPRINT event (WP2 – Task 2.2) scheduled for 10–11 June 2024 in Vienna. Partners were encouraged to track and report all related activities, including new initiatives arising during the project lifecycle.
Efforts to promote the project were already underway: several social media posts had been shared on X and LinkedIn, garnering substantial attention. The ten posts on X accumulated 1,248 impressions, while on LinkedIn, the top-performing post reached 339 impressions and 14 reactions, contributing to a total of 1,466 impressions—a promising start in terms of engagement.
The meeting concluded with a wrap-up by T. Tuoto, who outlined the next steps and reiterated the collaborative spirit of the consortium.
