Energy intensive industries in Europe depend on the one hand on very large volumes of minerals and other raw materials (e.g. 70% of process manufacturing depends on minerals and metals). On the other hand, they heavily rely on imports from third countries (extraction in Europe covers only 29% of the demand). Specific Challenge The challenge […]
EU Sustainable Energy Week 2020
This year, the EU Sustainable Energy Week 2020 (EUSEW) will be taking place on 23-25 June 2020 in Brussels. It is organised by the European Commission, and it is the biggest event dedicated to renewable energy sources and efficient energy use in Europe. This events brings together public authorities, private companies, NGOs and consumers to promote initiatives to […]
EIC Horizon Prize for ‘Fuel from the Sun: Artificial Photosynthesis’
This call is under the work programme Towards the next EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation: European Innovation Council (EIC) Pilot Horizon 2020. Prize Challenge The challenge is to build a fully functional, bench-scale prototype of an artificial photosynthesis based system which is able to produce a useable synthetic fuel. Artificial photosynthesis is widely considered to […]
H2020. Innovative textiles – reinventing fashion
The main market driver in the textile sector is the fast-growing demand for products and the need to respond to it without a negative environmental impact. The proportion of bio-based textile fibres has been falling steadily for decades, mainly because of the environmental limits of cotton production and the progress made (e.g. in terms of […]
New survey: More than half of EU consumers have environmental impact in mind when shopping, new survey reveals
The European Commission has released its 2019 edition of the Consumer Conditions Scoreboard. It shows that the overall gap in consumer conditions is narrowing between the different regions of the EU; that consumers are more aware about their environmental footprint; and that consumer rules enable trust in the marketplace. Main findings Amid growing awareness of […]
European Commission launches infringement proceedings against the UK following its failure to name a candidate for EU Commissioner
The European Commission has sent a letter of formal notice to the United Kingdom for breaching its EU Treaty obligations by not suggesting a candidate for the post of EU Commissioner. Dead line The UK authorities have until Friday 22 November at the latest to provide their views. This short time period is justified by […]
EU makes 22 new commitments for clean, healthy and safe oceans
The European Union announced 22 new commitments at the 2019 edition of Our Ocean conference, in Oslo, Norway on 23-24 October 2019, for better governance of the oceans. In addition, the EU is also launching ‘The Ocean Tracker’, an interactive map to follow the over 10 billion euros commitments already made by governments, businesses and NGOs. […]
Zero hunger and sustainable growth for the fisheries and aquaculture sector
ClimeFish offers various prediction models and strategies for reconciling growing fish consumption with depleting stocks due to climate change. Europe currently accounts for 8 % of the world’s fish production in terms of volume. It imports 70 % of the fish and seafood it actually consumes. In fact, Europeans have never eaten so much fish. […]
New challenges facing Europe’s waste water treatment plants present opportunities for improving sustainability
More investment is needed to make urban waste water treatment plants fit to meet the difficult challenges posed by the impacts of climate change, as well as the presence of antibiotics and other micro-pollutants in waste water, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA). Current challenges Much has already been done in recent decades to […]