Aerosolized particulate matter (PM), suspended in the atmosphere, particularly its fine fraction, has well documented detrimental effects on air quality, human health and ecosystems. Every winter, the Western Balkan (WB) region is experiencing some of the poorest European and global air quality, due to the extensive use of solid fuels for domestic heating and an old vehicle fleet. Countries of the WB lack state-of-the-art atmospheric scientific research despite high levels of ambient pollution. It is imperative to understand the sources and mechanisms governing such air pollution. The SAAERO project proposes setting-up the first systematic extended measurements of fine aerosol in the city of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, to deliver detailed aerosol physico-chemical characterization and quantify their effects. During six months, measurements will be performed with on-line, high time resolution (total, organic and elemental carbon, and black carbon) instrument and daily, continuous filter samples will be collected for off-line laboratory analyses. Additionally, during an intensive two week field campaign, aerosol chemical composition will be measured with state-of-the-art aerosol mass spectrometer on board a mobile research laboratory. Subsequent off-line analyses of aerosol filter samples will give detailed aerosol chemical composition from bulk to source-specific organic marker species, and the sample oxidative potential, which will be used as a health effects proxy. Finally, sophisticated source apportionment methodology will be used to deduce PM emission sources, atmospheric processing of emissions. A novel methodology linking aerosol fractions and oxidative potential will be developed to assign health effects to specific sources. The proposed SAAERO project aims for a strong and lasting impact in understanding and resolving current major environmental and health crises in the entire WB region, establishing a solid baseline for the abatement intervention.

SMASH is a brand-new training and research programme to be co-funded by the Slovenian Ministry of Science, Education & Sport. The Beneficiary, the University of Nova Gorica, is a research-focused university, situated at the Italian border, that boasts a 51:49 female:male ratio among its 200+ staff. The programme is designed to enhance the career prospects of outstanding post-docs from around the world, while strengthening Europe's human capital in R&I. Fifty talented individuals will be hired by five of Slovenia’s leading institutions, allowing them to expand their own research ideas based on access to the data-science potential of the Vega HPC supercomputer, the first such facility of the EU’s €-multi-billion HPC initiative. With a diverse group of Associated Partners, including top SMEs from Slovenia and the EU as well as world-leading institutions like UC Berkeley, SMASH will form a close-knit community with a single unifying concept: the use of cutting-edge data science to answer some of the world’s most challenging questions. These include predictions related to the impacts of climate change, the development of personalised medicine, finding answers to fundamental questions about our Universe and digging deep into the fundamentals of language and how we communicate. SMASH will guarantee a recruitment process based on openness, transparency, impartiality and equality, and will ensure neutrality by giving all selection power to external experts, setting an example for the region. Top-level training in applications of machine learning, that is one of today’s most transferable skills, will be complemented by rich soft-skill training opportunities, developed in collaboration with some of the world’s best experts, including CERN's Learning Hub. The impact of the programme will be felt for decades, both in the local research landscape and across Europe as the researchers take their skills to pursue their careers on the strength of their successes in SMASH.

Rapid detection of organic biological agents in water is crucial in disease prevention, yet it currently relies on costly and time-consuming biochemical, bacteriological and viral identification techniques. In this proposal, we aim to develop a novel chemical sensor to detect organic biological agents, such as phospholipids and proteins, in an efficient manner. Taking into account the applicant’s experience in the synthesis and characterization of covalent organic frameworks (COFs), we envision using this relatively new class of materials. Luminescent COFs will be constructed so that the target analytes will form either (i) coordination bonds with metallated centers of organic building blocks, which has been previously demonstrated by the host lab in related monomeric systems, (ii) Meisenheimer complexes with free amines in proteins, or (iii) both of these two types of interactions. The interactions developed between the COFs and the analytes are expected to induce changes in the luminescence properties of the COFs, specifically cause fluorescence quenching due to the disturbance of continuous conjugation in the COFs. Once promising COF candidates have been identified and characterized, the materials will be coated on substrates and tested as sensors for phospholipids and proteins by dipping them in solutions of micelles, commercial proteins, or non-pathogenic bacteria. Sensor reversibility will be investigated by establishing suitable pH conditions, or introducing competitive binders. Full realization of this proposal relies on the applicant’s experience in COF synthesis and characterization, the host institution’s expertise in sensorics, surface science and electronic structure, and involvement of two secondment supervisors with detailed knowledge on surface photoemission and structural modeling of COFs. The fellowship will provide the candidate with new research competences, networking opportunities, teaching and outreach programming experience.