[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/6940\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EBill Gates and European Commission launch \u20ac100 million clean energy fund\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESpeaking at the launch in Brussels, Belgium, on 17 October, Gates said that science and innovation hold the key to tackling climate change.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018My history at Microsoft made me an optimist, a believer in backing scientists to solve very tough problems,\u2019 he said. \u2018And here in Europe there\u2019s an incredible number of scientists who\u2019ve got good ideas.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe \u20ac100 million Breakthrough Energy Europe fund combines \u20ac50 million of public funding from the EU and \u20ac50 million in long-term risk capital from Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the Gates-led fund for energy startups. It will focus on technologies in the areas of electricity, transport, agriculture, manufacturing and buildings that reduce emissions by at least half a gigaton a year, as well as increase energy efficiency.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECarlos Moedas, the EU\u2019s Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, said: \u2018We are delivering on our commitment to stimulate public-private cooperation in financing clean energy innovation. Together, we are opening up a new way of working for the future, one that will really make a difference.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEurope\u2019s leadership in addressing the challenge of climate change is \u2018more important today than ever,\u2019 said Gates, who added that innovation was the answer to the question of how to double the amount of energy used over the next 50 years, while also getting emissions down to zero.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhen the Breakthrough Energy Europe team is up and running in 2019, they will sit down with universities and institutions across the continent to identify which research is ready to be turned into products. The aim is to invest the \u20ac100 million over the next two years and then potentially scale up the fund if it is successful.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u0026#039;Together, we are opening up a new way of working for the future, one that will really make a difference.\u0026#039;\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003ECarlos Moedas, European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHard-hitting\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe fund\u2019s launch comes in the wake of a hard-hitting \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.ipcc.ch\/report\/sr15\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003Ereport\u003C\/a\u003E from the UN\u2019s International Panel on Climate Change which said that \u2018unprecedented\u2019 changes would be needed in all aspects of society to limit global warming to 1.5\u02daC above pre-industrial levels.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn particular, the report said this would mean \u2018rapid and far-reaching transitions in energy, land, urban and infrastructure (including transport and buildings), and industrial systems\u2019.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMaro\u0161 \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d, the European Commission\u2019s Vice President for Energy Union, said: \u2018The IPCC (said) that every bit of warming matters and urgent action is needed to limit global temperature rise. Let\u2019s collectively act as clean energy innovation warriors to inspire others.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EScientists estimate that the world has already warmed by 1\u02daC since pre-industrial times as a result of human activities, and models show that, without action to cut emissions, global warming could exceed a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/horizon-magazine.eu\/article\/world-track-catastrophic-warming-forecasters.html\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003Ecatastrophic 4\u02daC\u003C\/a\u003E by the end of this century.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe fund forms part of the EU\u2019s commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union by at least \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ec.europa.eu\/energy\/en\/topics\/energy-strategy-and-energy-union\/2030-energy-strategy\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003E40% from 1990 levels by 2030\u003C\/a\u003E. The public-private financing model is a pilot project that could in the future be replicated in areas other than clean energy.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn 2015, representatives from 195 countries met in Paris, France, and signed a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/ec.europa.eu\/clima\/policies\/international\/negotiations\/paris_en\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003Ebinding agreement\u003C\/a\u003E to limit global warming to well below 2 \u02daC, and to aim for 1.5 \u02daC. World leaders are due to meet again in December in Katowice, Poland, to look at progress towards this goal.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe European Commission is also working on a proposal to decarbonise the European economy by 2050, which will be published in November and will feed into December\u2019s discussions in Poland.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EIf you liked this article, please consider sharing it on social media.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/textarea\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \u003Cdiv id=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 class=\u0022ecl-help-block description\u0022\u003E\n Please copy the above code and embed it onto your website to republish.\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cinput autocomplete=\u0022off\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022form-jp4yeq9u3mezuypgxqjlzuyl-kpau3j2axbr4i2xrsc\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_build_id\u0022 value=\u0022form-JP4yEq9u3meZUypgxQJLZuyl-KPAU3j2aXBr4I2Xrsc\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003Cinput data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_id\u0022 value=\u0022modal_form_example_modal_form\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003C\/form\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E","dialogOptions":{"width":"800","modal":true,"title":"Republish this content"}}]