Dissemination in European Projects: How to Ensure Results Reach Those Who Can Generate Impact

A European project can generate scientific knowledge, develop new technologies, and validate solutions in real-world environments. But there is one question that largely determines its capacity to generate impact: what happens after achieving those results?

If no one outside the consortium knows about this knowledge, if it does not reach the professionals who could apply it, or if it is not brought into contact with organizations capable of developing it further, its potential impact remains limited. This is where dissemination comes in.

In the previous article, we explained how Communication manages to make a project visible and build a narrative capable of connecting with different audiences. Dissemination goes one step further: it carries the knowledge generated by the project toward the communities that can understand, use, and build upon it.

Communication ensures people know about the project. Dissemination ensures that the knowledge reaches those who can do something with it.

1. Identifying Results with Potential for Transfer

Not all results require the same dissemination strategy

A European project can generate dozens of results throughout its implementation. Some will be highly specialized, others will have a broader application, and others will be mainly linked to the execution of the project itself.

Disseminating does not mean putting all those results on all available channels. Before deciding whether a result should become a scientific publication, be presented at a conference, or be explained in a technical workshop, it is necessary to understand what knowledge the project has actually generated and why it might be relevant outside the consortium.

Results can take very different forms: scientific knowledge, technological developments, methodologies, tools, data, validation results, or policy recommendations, among others.

The key lies not in classifying them for purely administrative reasons, but in understanding what value each one can bring to the ecosystem surrounding the project.

A scientific result may be particularly relevant to other researchers, while a tool or methodology may hold more interest for sector professionals. A recommendation might be useful for a public administration, and lessons learned during a pilot project could be valuable for another European initiative.

Therefore, before deciding how to disseminate, we must ask: What knowledge is worth taking out of the consortium and making available to other people, organizations, or communities?

ENSNARE: Different results, different knowledge opportunities

A good example is ENSNARE (ENvelope meSh aNd digitAl framework for building Renovation), a Horizon 2020 funded project where R2M Solution Spain had a very active role as the leader of Communication, Dissemination, and Exploitation, which worked to accelerate deep building renovation through an industrialized and digital approach. The project combined solutions related to building envelopes, digital technologies, energy generation and management, and various demonstration scenarios.

Therefore, ENSNARE did not generate a single type of knowledge. The project developed, among other elements, modular envelope solutions, digital tools, data acquisition and processing systems, decision-support software tools, and a Digital Twin, alongside various developments related to energy generation and management.

This means there is no single correct way to disseminate its results either. Some knowledge may require scientific and specialized treatment. Other elements may be more relevant to energy renovation or construction professionals. Still others might be of interest to organizations working on the sector’s transformation.

The first step of dissemination is, therefore, to understand what we have in hand. The second step will be to identify who can find value in it.

Applying this prior identification process, R2M categorized and prioritized the results before launching any dissemination action:

• Technological and engineering developments: Prefabricated facade components, BIST solar kits, or decentralized heat pumps. We knew their value lay in proving their viability to manufacturers, construction companies, and architects.
• Digital tools: Use of BIM, the Building Digital Twin, and the Decision Support Tool (DST). Their target audience was concentrated among designers, engineers, and building software managers.
• Methodologies and validation data: Thermal performance data and lessons learned during installation in pilot buildings (in Spain, Italy, and Estonia). This knowledge was of high value to other researchers and European renovation projects.

Prioritizing and understanding the nature of each of these advances allowed us to avoid trying to communicate “everything to everyone,” allowing us instead to select which knowledge should leave the consortium and to whom it should be specifically targeted.

Prioritizing what is worth disseminating

This also involves accepting that not everything has to reach everyone. A dissemination strategy should concentrate efforts on the results that hold the greatest relevance for communities outside the consortium. Asking a few questions can help establish that priority:

• Does it provide new knowledge?
• Can it be useful to other researchers or professionals?
• Can it be applied or replicated in other contexts?
• Does it respond to a specific need in the sector?
• Does it generate insights that would be useful to share with other initiatives?
• Is there an external community that can benefit from this knowledge?

These questions are not yet attempting to determine how a result is going to be commercially exploited. That is a different topic, which we will address in the next article when we talk about Exploitation, Key Exploitable Results (KERs), and strategies to take results beyond the project scope.

Here, the objective comes earlier: identify which knowledge deserves to leave the consortium and find the right people to receive it.

2. Identifying Audiences That Can Generate Impact

Before selecting the channel, identify who can use that knowledge

Once the results worth disseminating are identified, the next step is determining who can find value in them. A European project can target researchers, companies, sector professionals, public administrations (such as city halls), associations, standardization bodies, or other European projects. However, each audience has different needs and may use the generated knowledge in a distinct way.

For this reason, the question shouldn’t just be: Who can we reach? But rather: Who can do something with this knowledge?

This shift in perspective is fundamental. Dissemination does not simply aim to maximize the number of people reached; it aims to connect each result with actors who have the capacity to understand, apply, replicate, or contribute to its evolution.

ENSNARE: Different results, different audiences

In ENSNARE, this diversity was particularly relevant. The project worked to accelerate deep building renovation through an industrialized and digital approach, combining envelope solutions, digital technologies, energy generation and management, and various demonstration scenarios.

A project with this scope could not address a single community. Researchers might be interested in scientific results and developed methodologies. Architecture firms, construction companies, and renovation professionals might find more value in practical applications and pilot outcomes. Tech providers might be interested in specific digital and energy developments, while administrations and sector associations could find the broader industry implications relevant.

The ENSNARE plan itself reflects this diversity, listing policymakers, researchers, industrial actors, and construction professionals among its main target groups. This demonstrates why stakeholder mapping is an important tool in dissemination: it allows for the identification of which actors are linked to each result and what role they can play in its spread or utilization.

And not all of them need to be direct users. A sector association, for example, can act as a multiplier, helping knowledge reach a much broader professional community. ENSNARE worked with organizations such as BuildUp, European Facade Network, Architects’ Council of Europe, ASEFAVE, GBC Italia, and RICS, among others.

The same applies to other European projects. ENSNARE carried out activities to find synergies between European projects and promoted clustering with initiatives like PLURAL, Step-Up, BuildUPspeed, Switch2Save, Greenest, DRIVE0, INFINITE, or SmartBuild4EU, creating spaces to share knowledge and generate synergies within the European ecosystem.

From audience to channel

Once relevant actors are identified, we can decide how to engage with each of them. A researcher does not necessarily need the same format as a construction professional. A public administration is not looking for the same information as a technology vendor. And a sector association may require materials it can pass on to its own community later.

Therefore, the audience must precede the channel. First, we decide who needs to know about the result and what we want to achieve with that interaction. Afterwards, we decide if it makes sense to use a scientific publication, conference, workshop, technical event, collaboration with an association, or any other format.

This is precisely the transition into the next step: designing a transfer strategy tailored to each audience.

3. Designing the Transfer Strategy

Each audience needs a different format to translate knowledge into action

Once relevant results and target audiences are identified, a third question remains: what is the best way to connect the two?

This is where dissemination tools come into play. However, their selection should not rely on a predefined checklist of activities. A paper, conference, workshop, technical webinar, site visit to a pilot, or collaboration with another project might be very different tools, but they all serve the same core logic:

If we want to share scientific knowledge with researchers, an academic publication or a specialized conference might be suitable. If we want professionals to learn about an applied solution, a workshop, demonstration, or pilot visit will generate a much more useful interaction. When the goal is conveying conclusions to policymakers, a technical document or policy brief can be more effective. And when sharing insights with initiatives working on similar challenges, clustering with other European projects can open new avenues for collaboration.

Therefore, it is not about using more tools, but about using the right tool for each objective.

ENSNARE: Combining channels to reach the right ecosystem

ENSNARE’s strategy clearly reflects this logic. The project combined different formats and touchpoints to bring its results closer to scientific, technical, and professional communities.

One example is the Prefab Cluster, a collaboration with other European projects at various maturity stages. Participating projects held regular meetings to share experiences and lessons learned, organizing joint activities from 2021 through the end of the project. This included co-organizing clustering workshops at the Sustainable Places conferences in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Furthermore, this collaboration resulted in two high-level publications:

• A special edition of the journal Journal of Facade Design and Engineering: “Multifunctional Façades for Renovation through Industrialization”.
• The Position Paper publication: “Boosting the Renovation Wave with Modular Industrialized Renovation Kits: mapping challenges, barriers and solution strategies”.

In this way, the cluster became a tool to exchange knowledge and generate synergies with other European initiatives.

Throughout the project, 18 publications were achieved in open-access peer-reviewed scientific journals, alongside 5 articles in technical magazines. Partners also participated in 32 conferences, trade fairs, and events related to construction and renovation.

These channels made it possible to share specialized knowledge while simultaneously establishing direct contact with industry professionals and organizations. Over the years, for instance, R2M participated in major industrialized construction fairs such as GENERA, MIPIM, REHABEND, ECOMONDO, and REBUILD—spaces bringing together profiles from energy, construction, investment, and real estate. Presenting ENSNARE at these events helped bring its solutions to stakeholders interested in new renovation technologies, stimulating conversations and potential ecosystem connections. Project stands, materials, and videos were utilized, alongside partner-led presentations in technical events.

In addition to sector events, ENSNARE sought visibility and recognition within the industry through specialized award initiatives. For example, partner Riventi participated in the FAE Innovation Awards 2024, receiving the FAE Innovation 2024 award for their work on ENSNARE. This type of action presented project outcomes directly within industry-focused environments, putting developed innovations in contact with potential industrial players.

To reach a broader audience beyond direct technical communities, ENSNARE also used digital channels like its blog and social media networks. The project published 10 blog posts, subsequently shared across channels, featuring content designed to explain ENSNARE’s progress and results accessibly. This broadened project visibility to audiences not necessarily involved in specialized scientific or renovation communities.

Furthermore, the project was disseminated across major external communication channels in the sector thanks to R2M’s outreach work. These included:

• European Facade Network
• Facade World
• RHC Platform
• BuildUP
• Empresa XXI
• Construible
• Interempresas
• Asefave 

Events can also spark key stakeholder conversations around project results. The final event, “ENSNARE Demo Day,” showcased project developments and brought together stakeholders crucial for future advancements. Attendees included public authorities, construction companies, architects, technology providers, and academics, creating a space to exchange views on results and applications.

Additionally, R2M created specific factsheets for the project’s Key Exploitable Results (KERs), serving as materials to support the future exploitation of each ENSNARE result. While exploitation belongs to a different phase of the impact strategy, these tools show how dissemination lays the groundwork for results to advance beyond the project lifecycle.

Combining these tools matters because each performs a different function: a publication deepens technical knowledge, an event facilitates direct professional interaction, digital channels expand reach, and clustering connects knowledge across communities.

Designing a dissemination strategy is not about deciding how many events to organize or posts to publish. It comes down to answering a much simpler question: What is the best way to bring this knowledge into contact with this audience?

Once that connection is made, the next question appears: how do we know if it actually worked? This is where dissemination and transfer indicators come in.

4. Measuring Whether Transfer Has Actually Occurred

Disseminating is not just about publishing results. It is about getting knowledge to generate a response.

A dissemination strategy cannot be evaluated solely by counting published articles, event attendees, or content shares.

While these metrics show an activity’s reach, they don’t necessarily prove that knowledge reached the right people. Therefore, beyond traditional communication indicators, a dissemination strategy must incorporate metrics that observe what happens after putting results into circulation to achieve knowledge transfer.

Examples of these metrics include:

• New collaborations with researchers, companies, or organizations
• Inquiries or information requests about specific results
• Downloads or views of technical documentation
• Attendance of key profile representatives at workshops or events
• Scientific publications and their subsequent citations
• Expressions of interest from companies or professionals
• Invitations to present results in new forums
• Reuse of methodologies, data, or materials
• Interest from other projects to adopt or build upon specific findings

The distinction may seem subtle, but it is fundamental. Having 10,000 views indicates reach, but receiving ten detailed inquiries from target organizations tells you far more about relevance.

The ENSNARE Case: 

In ENSNARE, tracking communication and dissemination went beyond counting outputs. The project registered indicators regarding its digital footprint, events, publications, associations, and clustering activities to evaluate whether the knowledge was generating a real industry response.

• Industry validation and interest: Winning the FAE Innovation Award confirmed that the value proposition of industrialized solutions was not only being spread, but was actively awakening corporate and industrial interest.
• Effective transfer between related projects: Instead of just recording event attendance, we evaluated engagement within the Prefab Cluster, where European projects like PLURAL or StepUP collaborated actively across 4 workshops at Sustainable Places and co-authored Joint Papers.
• Exploitation-oriented response: With the creation of the 10 KER Factsheets and the celebration of the Final Project Event, success was measured not by attendance numbers, but by the bilateral interactions generated with manufacturers, authorities, and managers interested in replicating solutions from real demonstrators (in Spain, Italy, and Estonia).

We thus proved that true transfer is not measured by how much content you put out, but by your capacity to generate meaningful connections and responses within the recipient community.

This is why dissemination KPIs should answer a broader question than “How much did we broadcast?”: Did we manage to create relevant connections around the knowledge we aimed to share?

That is the true difference between measuring activity and measuring transfer.

The Value of Having a Specialized Partner

Designing an effective dissemination strategy requires much more than knowing how to create content or manage media channels. In European projects, results are often highly technical and directed at communities with specific requirements. Therefore, the partner responsible for dissemination must understand the underlying science or technology behind each result while also understanding the destination ecosystem.

This requires combining several key capabilities:

• Understanding the technology to identify which aspects of the result are genuinely relevant.
• Selecting and prioritizing knowledge, avoiding one-size-fits-all communications.
• Translating technical content, adapting it to the knowledge level of each audience without losing accuracy.
• Knowing the ecosystem, identifying researchers, companies, associations, public bodies, and projects to connect with.
• Designing appropriate touchpoints, choosing formats and channels aligned with specific goals.
• Measuring engagement, differentiating raw reach from meaningful signals of transfer.

At R2M Spain, we view dissemination as a strategic part of the innovation process, not as a collection of activities performed at the end of a project.

Our experience in projects like ENSNARE allows us to bridge that gap: understanding the technology, identifying who can find value in it, and creating the necessary pathways for that knowledge to leave the consortium and reach the right ecosystem.

Because a result that stays inside the project is merely generated knowledge. When that knowledge finds the people capable of using, sharing, and building upon it, it begins to generate real impact. Yet one question remains: what happens to results that have the potential to become products, services, or new opportunities after the project ends?

That will be the next topic in our series: results exploitation and the role of Key Exploitable Results (KERs) in transforming knowledge into sustainable value.

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