EU awards honour six outstanding regional projects

The European Commission honoured six projects at the REGIOSTARS ceremony in Brussels for their regional development impact through EU cohesion policy. The winners were selected from 274 applications, with judges also presenting a public choice award. The ceremony took place during the 24th European Week of Regions and Cities.‍​​​​​​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‍

Slovakia’s AI Holopresence project won in the innovation category with €61,245 in European Regional and Development Fund support. The generative artificial intelligence solution creates photorealistic 3D human reconstruction, enabling people to meet in Immersive Extended Reality as their real selves. It has led to three patent applications and a market-ready product used in industrial training, education and remote collaboration.

Germany’s eLiRec – Greener Battery Recycling project won the environmental category with €329,000 in support, developing innovative recycling solutions that recover valuable raw materials more efficiently while advancing the circular economy and supporting Europe’s strategic autonomy in critical materials.

Greece’s Alexandroupolis Independent Natural Gas System, funded with more than €178 million, strengthened energy security through a new floating liquefied natural gas terminal. The project enables import, storage and regasification of natural gas, improving diversification of energy sources and reducing dependence on single suppliers.‍​​​​​​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‍

Germany’s BROTHERS project received more than €193,000 from the European Social Fund to prevent violence against women, creating spaces for discussion on women’s rights and respect through peer-to-peer workshops promoting gender equality, particularly aimed at young men and school classes.

Czechia’s Together in Žďár won recognition for civic engagement, with almost €813,000 used to transform the public library in Žďár nad Sázavou into a civic hub. The library now hosts more than 900 events annually for all generations, from early literacy programmes to artificial intelligence courses for seniors, and supports 106 smaller libraries across the country. It received Czechia’s City Library of the Year 2025.

The People’s Choice Award went to Porto’s Precision Oncology Programme, supported with almost €15 million in funding. The project created Portugal’s first Precision Oncology Programme, giving more than 1,500 patients access to cutting-edge diagnostics and enabling hundreds to participate in clinical trials, whilst producing 53 publications and five international patents.‍​​​​​​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‍

Source: European Commission, licensed under CC BY 4.0 (Commission Decision 2011/833/EU). Changes may have been made. Distributed via BLINK Wire. Original release