On December 14–15, STARLIGHT attended the CERIS—Fighting Crime and Terrorism/Resilient Infrastructure—annual event in Brussels, Belgium.
Organised by DG HOME, the two-day event brought together a diverse group of participants, including security research practitioners, policymakers, researchers, civil society, and industry leaders, to delve into pressing issues impacting security research and innovation.
The first day of the event focused on the challenges of accessing high-quality and substantial domain-specific research data. Freek Bomhof from partner TNO, representing the STARLIGHT project, shared insights into the project's journey in data collection and integration. With over 150 datasets comprising public domain data, new annotations, and unique datasets acquired or created by the team, STARLIGHT showcased its commitment to data-driven innovation and adherence to AI ethics.
The second day shifted the spotlight to the challenges faced by new stakeholders, especially NGOs and CSOs, in participating in security research consortiums. Discussions revolved around finding feasible solutions to encourage diversity in these consortia and enhancing collaboration at a European level.
Throughout the event, the importance of collaborative efforts was a recurrent theme. These two fruitful days have set a strong foundation for future collaborations and innovations in security research.