Interview to Christian Kallesøe, Director of the Centre for Nano Production and Micro Analysis, at Danish Technological Institute and coordinator of RECYCALYSE

 Q: What challenges a coordinator faces in the management of a project like RECYCALYSE and how are they overcome?

A: The main management challenges within a Horizon 2020 project like RECYCALYSE are three-fold, related to Scientific, Administrative and Financial responsibilities.

Fortunately, Danish Technological Institute has an internal financial office dedicated to the financial aspects and an internal international office that can assist with administrative issues and uncertainties. This provides more time to focus on the scientific management, for which it is essential to ensure the attention, cooperation, and contribution from all the partners within the project.

Formed collaborations within RECYCALYSE are for the most part new, partners are located in different countries, and some of them also new to Horizon 2020. On top of that, the COVID-19 pandemic situation has further hindered collaboration visits and physical meeting, which makes it even more important to be accessible and visible to all partners, and make sure that all partners are participating. This includes several online meetings a month, at consortium and work package level, and introducing the partners to each other’s facilities with visual lab tours and experiments. Luckily, the entire consortium is showing great commitment and enthusiasm in their contribution, which is a great help in simplifying the project management.