Hi everyone!
My name is Eleftheria Pouliou and and I’m currently volunteering with the IVY programme at the University of Patras in Greece.
For the past few months, I’ve been part of an exciting project called ProcuraMED, an initiative co-funded by Interreg Euro-MED Programme, and I’d love to tell you what we’re up to!
What is ProcuraMED? Think about all the things a city needs: buses, streetlights, computers for schools, or even cleaning services. Usually, governments just buy the cheapest ones. ProcuraMED wants to change that! Our goal is to teach public authorities in countries like Greece, Italy, and Spain how to buy “green” and “smart.” Instead of just looking at the price, we want them to choose products that are better for the environment and help local innovative businesses grow.
How do I help? As a volunteer, I’m right in the heart of the action! My job is to help the researchers at the University of Patras collect and analyze information from all over the Mediterranean. I look for “best practices”, real examples of how cities have successfully bought green products—and I help write articles to share this knowledge. It’s amazing to see how much work goes into making our cities more sustainable!
Who benefits? It helps everyone! The real winners are our local communities and small businesses (MSMEs), as they get a chance to big contracts and it helps all of us enjoy cleaner air, better energy, and a healthier environment.
The best part of volunteering? For me, it’s the cooperation. Even though we live in different places, we all want the same thing: a greener future for the Mediterranean. Being an IVY volunteer has shown me that when we cooperate, we can actually make a difference!
– Eleftheria, IVY Project Partner at the Special Account for Research Grants, UNIVERSITY OF PATRAS, for the Interreg project ProcuraMED, under the programme Interreg Euro-Med.
