Behavioural Exposome, Climate Adaptation and Circadian Health: Partner for Horizon Europe Consortia

Our research group is interested in joining Horizon Europe consortia investigating how climate change modifies the human exposome and influences population health. While climate-related health research often focuses on direct physical and environmental exposures, our contribution centres on the behavioural exposome and the dynamic interaction between environmental change, human behaviour, circadian biology and health.

We are particularly interested in how climate-related changes alter sleep and circadian organisation, chronotype and social jetlag, natural and artificial light exposure, physical activity, meal timing, dietary habits, screen use, digital behaviour, psychosocial adaptation and daily social routines. Our working concept is that climate change affects health not only through heat, air pollution and other direct exposures, but also by reshaping everyday behaviour and the temporal organisation of life. These indirect pathways may contribute substantially to long-term physical and mental health outcomes and should be integrated into comprehensive human exposome models.

Our team has experience in population-based research among young adults, combining multidimensional assessment of sleep, lifestyle, digital exposure, nutrition, physical activity, environmental light, psychosocial factors and health outcomes. We can contribute to the development and harmonisation of questionnaires, cohort recruitment, observational and longitudinal study design, behavioural and circadian exposome assessment, clinical interpretation of findings, preventive medicine, public health, dissemination and stakeholder engagement.

We are especially interested in studying climate-sensitive behavioural adaptation, including changes in sleep timing and quality during hot periods, shifts in indoor and outdoor activity, increased screen exposure, altered eating patterns, circadian disruption and differences in resilience according to chronotype, social conditions and lifestyle. We are also interested in integrating environmental, climatic, behavioural and health data to identify population profiles of vulnerability and resilience and to support precision prevention.

Based in Ukraine, our group can provide access to young adult populations in Eastern Europe and a valuable perspective on behavioural adaptation under prolonged environmental and societal stress. We seek collaboration with universities, research institutes, public health organisations, municipalities, hospitals and SMEs working in exposome science, climate adaptation, digital health, epidemiology and preventive medicine. We are ready to contribute to, or potentially lead, work packages focused on behavioural exposome assessment, circadian health, cohort studies, prevention, education and dissemination.