The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has published proposed methods how to certify hybrid or electric air taxis (VTOL). Therefore, the Agency invites stakeholders and other interested parties to review the plans and provide their comments. This is the latest milestone in EASA’s roadmap to enable safe VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) operations and new […]
Read MoreComplex network of European and global developments impacts sustainability
A wide variety of rapid and long-term societal developments in Europe and globally have important effects on the environment in Europe. A European Environment Agency (EEA) report analyses these ‘drivers of change’, providing insights on their impacts on EU sustainability ambitions. The EEA report ‘Drivers of change of relevance for Europe’s environment and sustainability’ provides […]
Read MoreEUROPEAN AGENDA: tourism and transport
Tourism and transport is one of the sectors most affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. What is the EU doing to protect businesses, workers and passengers? 13th May, European Commission: how to safely resume travel and restart tourism in Europe The Commission has presented a set of guidelines and recommendations to help Member States gradually […]
Read MoreThanks to COVID-19, it’s time to flatten the curve on climate change
“Whilst COVID-19 has caused severe international health and economic crisis, failure to tackle climate change may threaten human well-being, ecosystems and economies for centuries,” the UN’s World Meteorological Organization Secretary-General Petteri Taalas said in a conference on the occasion of Earth Day. “We need to flatten both the pandemic and climate change curves.” Combat climate change […]
Read MoreNew R&T project to improve resilience of cold weather operations
EDA’s Steering Board has green-lit the launch of a new research project aimed at studying ways and means of improving the operational outfit and equipment of Armed Forces operating in extreme cold and icy weather conditions. Military missions and operations in cold climate are particularly challenging as they demand from the troops a great deal […]
Read MoreEnergy security in the EU
How does the EU contribute to assure energy security to its nearly 500 million citizens? And what happens if the security of that energy supply is threatened? A key role is to encourage cross-border cooperation and inter-connections to make energy flow more smoothly across the whole of the EU. When there is no sun or […]
Read MoreBSO – Tracking energy in our buildings
The building sector is the single largest energy consumer in the EU, and 75% of the EU’s buildings are not energy efficient. An improved and refurbished building stock, therefore, has the greatest potential for achieving the EU’s energy and climate goals of transitioning to a smarter and decarbonised energy system. The EU Building Stock Observatory (BSO), […]
Read MoreGEOTHERMICA, the new European initiative
Europe aims to increase the share of renewable energy for direct heating and cooling, industrial processes, power generation and energy storage. Geothermal energy today is only utilised in a few niche market sectors and a few regions but has the potential to be much more widely utilised. The EU-funded GEOTHERMICA project promises to play a […]
Read MoreA New Circular Economy Action Plan for a Cleaner and More Competitive Europe
The new Action Plan announces initiatives for the entire life cycle of products, from design and manufacturing to consumption, repair, reuse, recycling, and bringing resources back into the economy. It introduces legislative and non-legislative measures and targets areas where action at the EU level brings added value. The Action Plan is at the core of […]
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