Net4Cities participated in the European Geosciences Union (EGU) General Assembly 2026, joining researchers and experts from across Europe for a week of scientific exchange on air quality, transport emissions, environmental health, and urban sustainability.
A major highlight for the project was the co-organisation of the session: “Transport and Urban Air Quality: Characterization and Monitoring of Real-World Emissions, Impacts on Health, and Mitigation Strategies”
The session was convened by Konstantinos Eleftheriadis, Soheil Zeraati Rezaei, Erika von Schneidemesser, and Christian George, and brought together contributions from the Net4Cities, MI-TRAP, AEROSOLS, and EASVOLEE projects, focusing on advancing understanding of real-world transport emissions, urban air quality monitoring, exposure impacts on health, and mitigation strategies for healthier cities. Researchers from different disciplines shared recent findings, methodological approaches, and monitoring experiences from across Europe.
Net4Cities Contributions
Several Net4Cities partners presented ongoing work and first results from the project during both oral and poster sessions. Among them was the presentation by Seán Schmitz on behalf of Saskia Drossaart van Dusseldorp: “Continuous Monitoring of Lung Deposited Surface Area (LDSA) Across 11 European Cities: First Results from the Net4Cities Project”, which highlighted the first results from coordinated LDSA monitoring activities across the 11 Net4Cities partner cities. The work contributes to a better understanding of ultrafine particle exposure in urban environments.
Several poster presentations further highlighted different aspects of the Net4Cities project and its research activities across Europe. Erika von Schneidemesser, Himanshu Setia and colleagues presented “Black Carbon Trends and Source Apportionment in Berlin: A Multi-Year Analysis”, focusing on long-term black carbon measurements and source characterization in Berlin. Archita Rana and co-authors presented “Characterizing Urban Traffic Emissions Across Europe: Insights from Canister Sampling in Net4Cities”, showcasing work on traffic-related emissions and air pollutant characterization across multiple European cities. In addition, Himadri Sekhar Bhowmik, Robert Wegener and colleagues presented “High-Time-Resolution Analysis of Organic and Inorganic Trace Gases and Particles in a Major European Port Using Mobile and Stationary Measurements”, highlighting measurements carried out in port environments using both mobile and stationary monitoring approaches.
Together, these contributions showcased the breadth of Net4Cities research on urban air pollution, traffic-related emissions, monitoring methodologies, and source characterization across diverse urban and transport environments.
Additional Contributions from Net4Cities Partners
Beyond the dedicated session, Net4Cities partners also contributed to additional EGU sessions addressing urban air quality and environmental management Martine Van Poppel presented: “Urban Air Quality: Challenges and Future Directions” and Nikos Kalivitis contributed with the presentation: “Air Quality Management on the Island of Crete: A Collaborative Initiative Between Academia and Regional Authorities”. These presentations further highlighted the broad expertise within the Net4Cities consortium and the project’s links to ongoing research and policy discussions on urban environmental health.
Strengthening Collaboration Across Projects
EGU26 also provided an important opportunity to strengthen collaboration and exchange between European research initiatives working on urban air quality, emissions, and health impacts.
Throughout the week, researchers from Net4Cities and related Horizon Europe projects exchanged ideas through presentations, poster discussions, and informal meetings, reinforcing the value of interdisciplinary collaboration for addressing complex urban environmental challenges.
Net4Cities would like to thank everyone who attended the session, contributed to the discussions, and shared their perspectives and research.
We look forward to continuing these collaborations and advancing knowledge towards cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable cities across Europe!
