The Horizon Europe-funded GEMSTONE Project successfully held its final Independent Advisory Board (IAB) meetings in two dedicated sessions on 8 December 2025 and 15 December 2025, marking an important milestone in the project’s lifecycle.
The meetings brought together distinguished international experts who provided independent, strategic feedback on the project’s progress, outcomes, and long-term impact.
- Part I (8 December 2025): Prof. Günter Höglinger (Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich), Prof. Janet Mifsud (University of Malta), and Süha Taşpolatoğlu (Abdi İbrahim Pharmaceuticals)
- Part II (15 December 2025): Prof. Annamaria Vezzani (Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research), Assoc. Prof. Cristoforo Comi (University of Eastern Piedmont)
The GEMSTONE consortium was represented by Prof. Filiz Onat (Acıbadem University), Prof. Deniz Kırık (Lund University), Serena Cogoni (ICONS), Assoc. Prof. Nihan Çarçak Yılmaz (Acıbadem University), Assoc. Prof. My Andersson (Lund University), and Cem Öztürk (Acıbadem University).
Each session commenced with a 30-minute presentation by the consortium, followed by an in-depth one-hour discussion with the IAB members. The agenda focused on:
- Overview of project activities since the last IAB meeting (20 September 2024), covering: research and knowledge transfer, institutional capacity and research support, visibility and networking, dissemination and communication
- Response to previous IAB recommendations and summary of key performance indicators
- Discussion and next steps, including sustainability and long-term impact
The meetings were highly productive and constructive. The IAB members expressed strong appreciation for the substantial progress, coherence of activities, and strategic alignment achieved by the GEMSTONE consortium across scientific, institutional, and outreach dimensions.
The consortium, in turn, warmly thanked the IAB members for their invaluable insights, thoughtful assessments, and continued guidance, which have played a crucial role in shaping the project’s direction and maximising its impact.
The final IAB meetings provided a meaningful opportunity to reflect on GEMSTONE’s achievements, validate its outcomes, and identify pathways for sustaining and replicating its successful model beyond the project’s duration.