CapCell was pleased to participate in the 2026 Projects to Policy Seminar, held on 10 and 11 June 2026 in Brussels. The annual event is organised by the European Commission’s (EC) Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME) and the European Research Executive Agency (REA), bringing together newly launched Horizon Europe civil security research projects with policy representatives and key actors from the European security research and innovation community. According to the EC, the 2026 edition gathered more than 160 participants from almost 40 new projects.
Represented by Prof. Bram Bekaert (KUL-FBS) CapCell team lead for forensic biology and sequencing assay development, and Alexandra Furio (accelCH), lead for communication and dissemination activities, CapCell joined discussions with other projects funded under Horizon Europe Cluster 3 “Civil Security for Society”. The programme included policy roundtables, sessions on dissemination and exploitation in security research, thematic breakout discussions, and presentations on the research and innovation activities of EU agencies and the Joint Research Centre.
CapCell participated in the thematic discussions on Fighting Crime and Terrorism, reflecting the project’s focus on forensic innovation. CapCell is developing a modular forensic toolkit that combines microfluidics and single-cell genomics to improve the analysis of complex DNA mixtures, particularly in sexual assault cases. By working closely with forensic institutes, police authorities, industry partners and European networks, the project aims to ensure that its tools respond to operational needs and can support future uptake by the forensic community
The seminar also highlighted several routes through which projects can strengthen their policy and practitioner impact, including policy briefs, project reporting, CERIS community activities, collaboration with EU agencies, and targeted dissemination through relevant security research networks. These exchanges are directly relevant to CapCell’s work on communication, dissemination, exploitation, stakeholder engagement and future policy recommendations.
More information about the event is available in the European Commission’s official news item on the 2026 Projects to Policy Seminar and the event page prepared for participants.
