Re-imagining Environments for Connection and Engagement: Testing Actions for Social Prescribing in Natural Spaces (RECETAS) will address loneliness, a modifiable health condition that is known to shorten one´s lifespan and may be as dangerous to one’s health as smoking or obesity. In Europe alone, and before COVID-19 pandemic, over 75 million European adults reported meeting with family and friends at most once per month and 30 million European adults frequently felt lonely. Loneliness knows no geographic, economic, cultural, and social boundaries and affects all age groups. For urban dwellers, nearby nature, with social structures, can improve health and mental well-being and reduce loneliness. Even under the extraordinary circumstances of COVID-19, people need time in nature for its healing benefits and its role in allowing people to interact in nature. Investments in nature-based solutions (NBS) and green infrastructure (GI) that address rapid urbanization and its adverse consequences on environmental systems in our cities, can be harnessed for health and well-being even in times of health emergencies. RECETAS explores loneliness through a transdisciplinary lens, integrating social, behavioral, health, and natural sciences, and is grounded in participatory principles. It will use randomized controlled trials (RCT) and other epidemiologic, anthropological and health economic methods to test socially- and culturally-innovative nature-based social prescribing (NBSP) in six cities in Europe, Latin America, and Australia. The approach aims to improve upon real-world policy and practice to reduce loneliness by connecting people experiencing loneliness with helping professionals and extensive investments in NBS and GI, while alleviating pressures on stressed health care systems. If successful, it will systematically reduce loneliness, promote and sustain vibrant, socially-connected communities, and reduce health inequalities by connecting to nature in meaningful ways. “RECETAS” is part of the European Cluster on Urban Health.

VR training simulations (VRS) are on the verge of becoming an absolutely mass product. It is becoming a new way to develop skills in many areas. Previously, people could not fully immerse themselves in the event until they were involved in it. With VRS, we can immerse people in a virtual environment so that they can gain practical experience in their profession before they begin to put their knowledge into practice. Especially in healthcare education VR is a new technology that allows researchers and teachers to simulate different learning scenarios in a less costly and elaborate way. Compared to traditional methods, virtual reality makes it easier to change the smallest parameters of nursing and caretaking training. It also allows the lecturer to use more accurate methods of assessment and result analysis that were previously unavailable. It is crucial for them to be able to practice their nursing skills in a reliable and safe way. VR training gives us the opportunity to safely immerse the students into the process as much as possible so that they are as ready as possible to treat real patients.Problem:Although the new technology has definitely arrived for some time in different areas of healthcare and medical training on the high-end level, its practical implementation in nursing and caretaking educational programs or even the curriculum itself in the European countries is very low, especially comparing to some Asian countries and North America, where it has become a part of many training programs in hospitals, colleges and universities. Most of the technological trials are currently at the level of experimentation and prototype development. A more time-efficient integration of VR applications in the teaching and training practice is partly slowed down by the lack of efficient and convenient testing and optimization environments. The mechanisms of cross-discipline collaboration of subject teachers, media didactics specialists, software developers etc. in the process of VRS design and production has also not been fully worked out in most of the nursing and care education institutions.Main goal:Adoption of advanced digital technology, such as immersive virtual reality, in nursing education and training in Europe. This should be achieved through development of a standardized procedure, including technology, testing protocol, organizational structure, operation mechanism and digital tool set for efficient multidisciplinary collaboration throughout the development and implementation of the modern Virtual Reality Simulators into nursing education and training. Based on the experiences and findings of the project a demonstration and learning courseware on VR applications opportunities in Nursing Tertiary Education will be developed. This shall enhance an effective collaboration between the educational institutions and software developers and close the current gap between the needs of nursing education and training and the great potential of the VR technology.Objectives:1. Mapping the contents of nursing curricula suitable for transfer to current state-of-the-art consumer-grade VR applications to identify digitization potentials.2. Development of the customized collaboration procedure for trainers, teachers and media didactics specialists facilitating co-operative elaboration of concepts and scenarios for instructional design and implementation of VRS in nursing education skills training.3. Development of testing and demonstration toolkit for:- experiencing and understanding of the technology;- bringing up basic operational skills to the teaching and training staff of the nursing education institutions;- selection and adoption of functions and settings provided by VR simulation technology corresponding to the specific requirements of training programs suitable to train particular professional skills in nursing and caretaking.4. Development of a mixed technology VR Simulator, based on 3D graphics (CGI) and 360-degree videos for practical application of haptically tangible learning scenarios in nursing and caretaking based on the elaborated procedure.5. Pilot implementation of the VR-supported application into curriculum and/or teaching and learning practice and empirical study on their impact on skills learning success.6. Development of the up-to-date extensive training course on design, development, adjustment and integration of VR training modules into teaching & learning. Results and impact:Through collaborative project activities of researchers, lecturers, trainers and software developers, joint learning and teaching a Pan European expert network to share skills and experiences of VR applications development and integration in education will be built. Use of synergy effects of the 6 partners with diverse backgrounds from 5 EU countries shall facilitate faster and deeper integration of VR technology in European higher education in the healthcare field in general and nursing training,

Medicine is currently undergoing a major revolution that is gradually transforming the nature of healthcare from reactive to preventive. The changes are catalyzed by a new systems approach to disease that have triggered the emergence of keeping people healthy and active since, as this will in the long run have a positive impact on productivity and competitiveness. However, developing, managing and exploring integrated models of service delivery and cooperation across many sectors is challenging.Montenegro (ME) is a small country facing rapid changes and development challenges in all areas that are relevant for societal progress and prosperity. PH-ELIM project is focused on enhancement of educational system in public health in ME in accordance with well known EU best practices, thus providing education of public health professionals making them highly skilled to support own nation in creating sustainable and flexible health system, providing good quality health, protecting of citizens against health threats, all by cost-effective and straightforward approach. The continual sustainable educational approach will be developed at all levels, from undergraduate to PHD at four ME HEIs (through creation/improvements of 25 courses, established new Master program in health economy and management, and updated one PhD program) in interdisciplinary fields of public health law, economy and management, ICTs and medicine; all adopted to ME specificities, including evidence-based approach through innovative National Platform for Education and Research in Public Health, with full support of national ministries and HEI society in ME.Finally, carefully selected raising awareness campaigns about health prevention and public health promotion will be implemented among ME citizens (including children, youth, workforce, elder population, vulnerable groups, etc.), while sustainable long-term activities are ensured through newly established Center for Public Health Education in ME.

Unfortunately it has been noticed that the Mathematicians see mathematics as an area of study in its own right. The rest use mathematical formulas as a tool for deriving quantitative conclusions from these relationships. For that purpose, mathematics courses, as they are taught today, are seldom helpful, their importance is not realized by the students & teachers and are often downright destructive. The failure rates among the students are the highest among their curriculum courses, mathematics popularity is among the lowest within the student communities and thus an implementation of methodological and teaching changes of Mathematics is demanded. This project aims to bring a breath of fresh air in the way that the mathematics are taught. The project targets to link Mathematics, taught in the 1st year of BSc degrees in Engineering and Computer Science Departments, with real life problems and try to express these challenges qualitative and quantitative using Mathematics principles. Along its implementation, new Educational trends regarding innovative teaching methods (Problem Based Learning), new delivery tools (ICT use in Higher Education) and experiences linking Mathematics with the Industry & daily life problems that have developed and experienced in the Program countries HEIs will be applied in the course curricula of the participating Partner countries HEIs from Western Balkans and Israel. Project's primary objectives are:- Improve students math level of 1st year Computer Science and Electrical Engineering Departments- Assist student to be able to guess answers without a proof or an exact calculation- Reduce failure rates in math courses- To demonstrate to the students that math is relevant to the program they have chosen to study - Improve students confidence in their ability to learn mathIts outputs / deliverables will be:- Reports - Off line & Online Teaching material and tools - Training workshops for students and teachers