Europe Day: celebrating unity and innovation

By Katharine Worley and Despoina Mademtzoglou, Project Managers - GO

On the occasion of Europe Day (May 9th, 2025), we devote this newsletter’s Focus article to two EU-funded projects coordinated by Institut Pasteur: Sonar-Cities and PvSeroRDT. Europe Day was established as a celebration of unity across the continent, and what better example than these projects founded on collaboration and shared progress across Europe and beyond.  

In Sonar-Cities, 12 partner teams from 8 European countries will research and develop tools with the aim of building resilience in Europe’s cities during health emergencies and disasters, with a focus on citizens facing vulnerabilities. During this 3-year project, co-creation techniques will be used to develop a toolset in six pilot cities – Groningen, Vienna, Ljubljana, Stockholm, Udine and Zagreb – to improve health literacy and crisis communication, strengthen capacity and decision-making, and assist frontline responders working towards inclusive preparedness and response.

In PvSeroRDT, 9 teams from 8 countries in the EU, Africa, and Oceania will work on developing a malaria diagnostic to support malaria control and elimination efforts. With R&D and manufacturing teams in Europe and Africa, the consortium will create a simple, portable test kit that uses serology to detect dormant forms of the Plasmodium vivax parasite. The test will then be tested in Ethiopia, Madagascar, and Senegal for accuracy, followed by a policy and market strategy to bring it to the end users. 

Both projects are funded via the EU’s flagship Research & Innovation funding program “Horizon Europe,” specifically the program’s second pillar that supports international consortia to develop new technologies and solve global challenges. If you are interested in applying for Horizon Europe funding, keep an eye on GO-Europe’s calendar and contact the Grants Office at GOeurope[at]pasteur.fr.