This Stories from the Regions video takes us to the Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, where a joint Czech-Austrian platform develops new technology for the recovery of rare earth elements (REEs) from electronic waste or water by microorganisms (bacteria, algae and cyanobacteria) in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner. Rare earth elements are metals that occur only in a small scale and are difficult to obtain. Their widespread use in modern technologies, especially the electronics industry, only confirms their enormous importance for the modern technology-driven society. This video was prepared with the help of the Interreg Volunteer Youth Volunteers Jiří and Josef Navrátil and features a former IVY Volunteer Natálie Vítová, who all got to experience first-hand and contribute to the work of this important project! Join IVY Volunteers initiative: https://www.interregyouth.com/placement-offers https://www.at-cz.eu/cz/ibox/po-1-posileni-vyzkumu-technologickeho-rozvoje-a-inovaci/atcz172_reegain https://www.alga.cz/en/c-737-interreg-v-a-at-cz.html For more information on EU regional policy, please visit our website: https://europa.eu/!Yy67HF Follow us on: – Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EUinmyregion – Twitter: https://twitter.com/euinmyregion – Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/euinmyregion/