FITNESS is a Doctoral Network at the intersection of electric power distribution networks optimization, electricity markets, communications, and control systems. The project will develop new methodologies for active distribution networks services in the era of smart grids. FITNESS is the first training network dedicated to this challenge and involves 4 Beneficiaries and 6 Associated Partners from 7 EU countries, guaranteeing a pan-European approach in a multi-sectoral context (universities, research centres, and SMEs). FITNESS will train a new generation of scientific professionals who can transition between disciplines and between the public and private sectors based on (i) Recruited Researcher (RR) projects; (ii) courses and workshops, with the emphasis on hands-on, collaborative learning and attention to transferable skills; (iii) mobility, knowledge transfer, all within a training network that includes some of Europe’s finest researchers.