European Venom Network Virtual Networking strategy

In the second grant Period, the European Venom Network counted with 105 registered members, divided in 5 Working Groups (WGs) and 4 Horizontal Committees (HCs). The number of total participants diminished about 40% from the first Grant Period (170 members). This was most likely due to the enforcement of a new COST Association procedure which required a formal application through the eCOST system to request joining a COST Action WG and officially become an Action member. However, we expect a continued growing of the network, in particular with the addition of International Partner Countries. Moreover, a turnover in the key positions (WG and committees’ leaders and co-leaders) is expected. This document is an updated version of the previous Virtual Networking Strategy and is intended to function as a guide to support virtual activities during the entire lifecycle of the European Venom Network Action. The main objectives are: To facilitate fast and effective communication and collaboration among all the participants, by promoting and implementing the use of managerial and networking tools. To facilitate their active participation through the entire lifetime of the Action. To propose a new set of policies and networking tools in order to comply with the regulations of the European Commission. To assure an effective heritage beyond the Action lifecycle. The updated version of the strategy has been presented and accepted by the Management Committee on 31/10/2022 and it includes all the suggestions and improvements that were received. However, this is a living document and shall be revised and updated yearly.