Diogo Morais, Timóteo Rodrigues, and Margarida Santos participated in the kick-off meeting of the European project TruthShield: Educating for a Resilient Future (2025-1-EL01-KA220-HED-000361161), held in Athens on 29 and 30 January.
The meeting brought together representatives from partner institutions to officially launch the project and to establish its main objectives, activities, and implementation framework. This first transnational meeting marked an important milestone in the development of a shared strategy to address digital manipulation and misinformation in higher education.
The TruthShield project is coordinated by the University of Peloponnese and brings together an international consortium that also includes Tartu Ülikool, Hochschule Wismar, and the Ukrainian Center of the Future. The project aims to provide higher education students with a strong theoretical foundation and practical examples to better understand manipulation techniques in digital environments. It also seeks to strengthen the ability of students and academic staff to identify and respond to misleading and harmful content, contributing to their personal development and to the well-being of society.
A central focus of TruthShield is the promotion of critical thinking, media literacy, and adaptability, enabling participants to engage with digital spaces in a responsible and informed manner. The project also supports the development of innovative training programmes for academic staff, which can be integrated into teaching practices, as well as practical activities that equip students with skills to produce content that counters false information and manipulative narratives. By promoting digital readiness, resilience, and responsible online participation, TruthShield aims to empower its target audiences to navigate digital environments safely, while addressing manipulative practices that may incite ethnic or cultural hostility.
The participation of Diogo Morais, Timóteo Rodrigues, and Margarida Santos in the Athens meeting reflects CICANT's commitment to digital literacy, international cooperation, and the promotion of responsible citizenship in higher education.