## 4 Case Studies  
NextGEM results will be applied and validated through three case studies, covering different groups of geographical and socio-economic conditions, as well as vulnerable people exposed to different signals (i.e., multiple RF-EMF exposure, including 4G and 5G signals, focused on FR1 or FR2): (1) potential effects of indoor levels of RF-EMF exposure of vulnerable people on reproduction and development, (2) optimised outdoor urban planning and 5G design architecture and investigations for public awareness of cancer-related health hazards, and (3) health effects of exposure to RF-EMF in indoor and outdoor environments. Case Study 1--Potential Effects of Indoor Levels of RF-EMF Exposure of Vulnerable People on Reproduction and Development  
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the general public's indoor exposure to RF-EMF radiated by multiple sources, such as wireless personal communication devices (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth) or other applications (security scanners, smart meters, and medical equipment) in conjunction with ambient environmental exposure. The effect of RF-EMF exposure on the health of vulnerable people, such as pregnant women or children, has not been studied sufficiently. In addition, the potential exposure to RF-EMF and other physical or chemical agents has increased concerns regarding fertility and children's development. The main scope of NextGEM in Case Study 1 (Figure 5) is to investigate potential RF-EMF effects on vulnerable people by analyzing the existing literature and developing an exposure modeling approach to establish possible thresholds for safe/unsafe situations of single and multiple exposures and the potential risk on fertility and children's development. To this aim, the review of scientific evidence on RF-EMF and adverse reproductive outcomes will be undertaken. Appraisal of the evidence regarding potential hazards of RF-EMF exposure for pregnant women and children (health agencies, risk assessors) is an important and often overlooked issue for the community. Therefore, the field distribution will be simulated numerically inside the body of fetuses, pregnant women, and children (ERMES software). In addition, _C. elegans_ will be evaluated as a simple in vivo organism fulfilling 3R requirements. The collection of electromagnetic property values of _C. elegans_ tissues and their growth medium will be obtained from own measurements and the literature. The exposure of _C. elegans_ to different RF-EMF frequencies and modulation patterns, along with simultaneous numerical simulations, will be carried out to obtain the field distribution in critical parts of the body (eggs, reproductive system). The potential cross-generational health effects on reproduction and development will be investigated experimentally during the life cycle of _C. elegans_ after RF-EMF exposure. The results of both numerical simulations and _C. elegans_ experiments performed will be evaluated separately and fed into the models. Figure 5: Case Study 1—Potential effects of indoor levels of RF-EMF exposure of vulnerable people on reproduction and development. Case Study 2--Optimised Outdoor Urban Planning and 5G Design Architecture and Investigations for Public Awareness on Cancer-Related Health Hazards  
5G is considered the key technology for enabling a wide range of application scenarios and the effective spreading of the smart city concept. In total, 50 billion devices are foreseen in such a scenario by 2023, with a connection density of 1 million/km2 ([[https://www.accenture.com/_acmmedia/PDF-146/Accenture-5G-WP-US.pdf](https://www.accenture.com/_acmmedia/PDF-146/Accenture-5G-WP-US.pdf)]([https://www.accenture.com/_acmmedia/PDF-146/Accenture-5G-WP-US.pdf](https://www.accenture.com/_acmmedia/PDF-146/Accenture-5G-WP-US.pdf)) (accessed on 1 March 2023) spread over different outdoor and indoor locations, from underground to sky coverage for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) applications.