As part of its work on empowering research excellence, CROSS-REIS launched its first short exchange of academic staff, hosted by Oslo Metropolitan University, Faculty of Technology, Art and Design from 9 to 23 September 2025. The exchange brought together members of the CROSS-REIS Academic Forge Team for two weeks of intensive collaboration, dedicated to writing joint research papers and building long-term partnerships. This initiative is central to the project’s goal of strengthening research careers, promoting interdisciplinary ideation, and advancing talent circulation across widening and research-intensive institutions.

During this exchange, participating researchers were working on key publications for CROSS-REIS. The hybrid format allowed both onsite and online participation, with plenary and parallel sessions enabling collaborative writing, peer exchange, and the sharing of resources. A shared digital workspace supported continuous knowledge exchange and joint development of articles.

The structured agenda included daily start-up meetings, focused writing sessions, and afternoon progress reports. In addition, participants engaged in networking activities and partner meetings, including a dedicated session with potential collaborators for the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026–2027, focusing on the New European Bauhaus Facility and Horizontal Activities.

This short exchange is the first of three planned, with future exchanges to be hosted at POLIEDRA + POLIMI and EMEA. By the end of the project, 30 researchers from widening countries will take part, fostering mutual learning, co-authored publications, and visiting professorship opportunities.

The OsloMet exchange is already demonstrating the value of intensive collaboration, strengthening CROSS-REIS’s mission to empower research excellence, support interdisciplinary innovation, and build enduring academic and policy bridges across Europe.