Asset Publisher

Newsroom News
Research

Project GOLIAT Sets Off to Investigate Potential Health Effects of Exposure to 5G

This 5 year project funded by the EU will monitor exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields, with a focus on young people and workers

15.07.2022
Photo: Aleix Cabrera / ISGlobal

Project GOLIAT officially kicked off with a meeting in Barcelona on July 6th and 7th. GOLIAT is aimed at providing responses to some of the questions raised by the new wireless technologies, with a special focus in 5G. This 5-year project will monitor exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) and their potential health effects, particularly among young people and workers.

GOLIAT is coordinated by Mònica Guxens, researcher at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and involves the participation of 21 institutions from 11 European countries (Austria, Belgium, France, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, UK,) and the United States. The project has a total funding of 9.3 million €, 7 of which have been provided by European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No 101057262.

The project will develop next-generation methods to estimate the exposure to RF-EMF in young people and workers and will identify effective means to reduce it. In parallel, the research consortium will assess neuropsychological effects of RF-EMF also in young people and workers and quantify potential health impacts of exposures at the population level. A series of in vitro, in vivo, human and in silico experiments will investigate the possible effects of 5G on brain function, thermoregulation, and radical stress.

A different line of work will aim at improving knowledge on risk perceptions to RF-EMF and 5G and engaging with society to codesign communication methods to address RF-EMF concerns and misconceptions. Finally, the project’s findings will be translated into policy recommendations.

EMF and Health Cluster

GOLIAT is one of the four projects that will integrate the EMF and Health Cluster, along with the SEAWAVE, NextGEM, ETAIN. These four projects, funded by the same Horizon Europe call, will work in a coordinated manner to create synergies and to generate a research network on EMF.

“GOLIAT and the rest of the projects of the EMF and Health Cluster will contribute greatly to bridge an existing knowledge gap by providing robust evidences on the effects of RF-EMF from new wireless technologies on human health”, said Mònica Guxens.