On 12 February 2026, early-career researchers from the UNITY project came together at the Healthy Start Hub in Rotterdam to discuss the interim and final deliverables of the UNITY project. UNITY brings together medical, social, and economic knowledge to give practical, evidence-based advice during pandemics. Its goal is to help policymakers make better decisions in health crises and reduce the wider negative effects on society.

The UNITY project is structured into five work packages (WPs), each focusing on different aspects of the development of an integrated advice framework. In addition, three cross cutting themes (CCs) have been identified with tasks and contributions overarching the work packages. Each WP and CC has its own deliverables, as outlined in the original project proposal. For a relatively short project like UNITY, it is essential to keep planned deliverables clearly in view while also staying closely informed about progress across the other WPs and CCs. With the project a few months underway, researchers were brought together to assess (the progress on) the deliverables and explore how these outputs will fit into the final integrated advice framework.

For each deliverable, researchers individually thought about and then discussed the purpose, format, end users, key components, risks, dependencies and timelines. Subsequently, the deliverables were plugged into an outline for the final UNITY outputs, to identify gaps and give direction to the coming months. Marijke Koopmans, project manager of UNITY, added: “Because the project involves so many different disciplines and interconnected parts, meeting in person really helped us develop a shared understanding and a common way of talking about the framework.” Researchers also discussed how the simulation exercises developed within UNITY are expected to become an important way of applying the framework in practice, helping advisors and policymakers learn how to work with it during future outbreaks.

Ultimately, the UNITY project aims to enhance policymakers’ ability to make informed decisions during pandemics and thereby reduce negative societal impacts. The project is set to run through to December 2026, with the next consortium meeting planned on 23 March 2026. Despite the ambitious timeline, the passion and enthusiasm driving this project provide a strong foundation for success.

Learn more about the UNITY project here.