Recent progress in artificial intelligence (AI) has been mostly due to machine learning and, in particular, deep artificial neural networks (ANNs). Deep learning has an increasing presence in everyday life, including critical applications such as medical diagnosis, transportation, and energy distribution. In response to this, the field of Explainable AI (XAI) has generated much effort in terms of techniques and algorithms to address this problem. However, there is still no consensus on a suite of technology to address these challenges, progress has been extremely limited, and the formal properties of such systems are under-studied. On the other hand, computational neuroscience (CNS) aims to discover the principles behind biological neural networks that enable the brain to support cognition, perception, and action. This project will employ the latest approaches and techniques used in the field of CNS to develop the field of XAI. Specifically, the first major goal will be to employ the methods of representational geometry and neural encoding manifolds (both proven to be effective in revealing meaningful neural relationships in previous studies) to reveal how activations of collections of artificial neurons in hidden layers are associated with the decision-making process of deep networks. Second, the same methodology will be used to reveal novel insights from a variety of existing large-scale biological datasets. Finally, we will compare and contrast the encoding strategies of neural populations found various deep learning architectures with those observed in biological networks. A better understanding of the inner-workings of biological models could directly inform researchers on how to build novel artificial models that are more accurate, robust, and even economical during both training and inference in terms of data, time, and energy consumption.

CIVICA–The European University of Social Sciences is an ambitious European University Alliance that unites ten higher education and research institutions across cultural, linguistic, and national borders: Bocconi University, Central European University, the European University Institute, the Hertie School, IE University, the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, Sciences Po, SGH Warsaw School of Economics, the Stockholm School of Economics, and The London School of Economics and Political Science. Following a successful pilot phase that laid the foundation for a comprehensive digital and physical campus, CIVICA will increase even further institutional collaboration and consolidate its plans for creating a sustainable European University of the future. Built around 11 work packages, CIVICA aims to achieve significant progress in education, research and innovation, lifelong learning and civic engagement, and to develop a diverse and inclusive CIVICA community, while extending the alliance’s global outreach to establish itself as a leading actor in the social sciences.CIVICA aims to establish an integrated and fully-fledged European University, providing joint and multi-campus courses to over 2,000 bachelor’s and master’s students and more than 400 training opportunities for early-stage researchers. 800 academic and administrative staff will contribute to CIVICA’s continued implementation, and over 7,500 students, early-stage researchers, and staff are anticipated to benefit from mobility activities. Research collaboration will be deepened around four thematic priorities, which reflect contemporary issues and the joint expertise of CIVICA’s members. In the face of evolving political contexts, CIVICA strives to build bridges between academia and civil society, while acting as a model of sustainable institutional cooperation and providing a stable and inclusive environment in which the values of autonomy and academic freedom are defended.

People are increasingly moving across national borders, where many of these people are refugees fleeing natural disasters, war, and persecution. This proposed project will investigate the impact of refugee-run small-scale businesses on resilience of marketing systems within refugee settlements, where resilience is the ability of a system to recover in the face of disturbances. This project will specifically seek to understand the resource sets in the marketing system in relation to resilience through employing an integrated capitals framework that includes nine resources (financial, physical, social, natural, human, cultural, public, political, and health) and bridges seven existing capitals frameworks from academia and practice. This work will be qualitative in nature: The researcher will engage in longitudinal fieldwork to collect observational and interview-based data in a refugee settlement in Europe and inductively analyse this data towards the creation of theoretical models. The resulting theory will further academic understanding of resilience, marketing systems, and involved resources, while aiming to create actionable models that can be used to strengthen economic activities related to refugees. This work aligns with the European Commission’s (EC) 2018-2020 Work Programme research priorities related to social and economic effects of migration (SC6). Further, the running of small businesses is considered by the EC to be of key importance towards supporting refugees’ integration in Europe, while resilience is named as a part of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals related to communities. As such, furthering our understanding of refugee-run businesses in relation to resilience within marketing systems is important to the refugees themselves, their host countries, and the public and private sector, and thus to the future of Europe and for the wider global community.

Early evidence suggests that participants in Blockchain ecosystems have to resolve technological, innovation, governance and stakeholder management tensions at different levels: organizational (internal innovation development and management), ecosystem (alliances, platform emergence) and individual level (consumer, user adoption). Industry, Government and research bodies must join forces and share expertise to properly investigate the phenomenon and maximize the societal and economic impact of Blockchain technology for EU and global entities. Given that Blockchain technology exists at the intersection of these three different levels of analysis (organizational, ecosystem, societal) it is impossible to study the phenomenon without taking into consideration the dynamics that are created at the intersection of these levels. DIEM consortium brings together academic, government and industry expertise to holistically investigate the managerial, economic and societal implications of Blockchain technology. DIEM is a Doctoral Network (Industrial Doctorates) that creates a platform for researchers to engage in the co-production of knowledge by investigating state-of-the-art challenges and societal implications of Blockchain technology across actors and industry boundaries. It has a significant potential for creating an impact on careers of PHDs, as transforming Europe into a society capable of building its competitiveness on digital technology requires developing a new generation of responsible researchers with the competency to understand how fundamental shifts in digital technology impact across businesses, industries and society.