Environment | Research and Innovation

On a mission to bring nature back into cities

Polish geographer Dr Iwona Zwierzchowska is on a mission to develop green spaces in the city of Poznań with the help of EU funding and 30 partners ...

Researchers on a mission | Environment

On a mission to beat plastic pollution

German marine biologist Dr Tim Kiessling is on a mission to discover the true scale of plastic pollution in rivers across Europe, with the help of EU ...

Researchers and local communities team up to restore Africa’s land and water using natural solutions. © Georg Dehghan (TUM), 2024-2025

Environment | Science in society

Every last drop: the race to secure Africa’s water future

Across Africa, efficient use of water is increasingly crucial. Researchers and local communities have joined forces in six countries to restore land ...

Manufacturers of jet turbines have already shown interest in the new rhenium compounds identified by ProMine scientists, which are resistant to high temperatures. © Juha Kaija

Environment

Deep earth modelling to reveal vast EU deposits

High-tech 3D models of rock formations deep underground should reveal that Europe has vast concealed ore deposits, researchers believe, helping to ease Europe's dependency on imported metal.

Thanks to EU-funded research, the monitoring of bees in the hive is going wireless. © Shutterstock

Environment | Bioeconomy

How are the bees doing?

Innovative new EU-funded research aims to help tackle an alarming decline in Europe's bee population. At Nottingham Trent University in the UK researchers are developing new methods to transfer wirelessly information about the health of the hive to the beekeeper.

It is in atmospheric regions of so-called supercell storms that tornadoes may develop. © Shutterstock

Environment

300 tornadoes hit Europe every year

The deadly tornado that hit the city of Moore near Oklahoma City in the US on 20 May dramatically highlighted such extreme weather events and their dangers. In Europe, the same phenomenon is under close scrutiny.

Biomaterials in granular form are today used to make items such as mulching film or disposable tableware as well as different kinds of packaging. © Novamont

Environment | Industry | Bioeconomy

From plastic litter to high-quality compost

Early shoots for the bioeconomy have sprung up through innovative ideas in completely different businesses. And, at the same time, they raise some legislative initiatives.

During the PERPETUATE project, researchers used a huge shaking table from the Italian National Agencies for New Technologies and the Environment in Rome to test the vulnerability of model buildings confronted by a simulated earthquake. Here, a model of a vault from the Dey Mosque of Algiers is being tested. © Serena Cattari

Science in society | Environment

Earthquake projects try to preserve history

The Ottoman mansion of Hassan Bey in the seismically active medieval centre of Rhodes, Greece, does not worry civil engineers – even though the building is faulty because its floor isn’t very well connected to the wall.

Heracleum mantegazzianum (giant hogweed) has spread rapidly in a number of European countries after introduction as an ornamental from its native area. © Shutterstock

Environment

The aliens are here

They can burn and blister your skin, stop you from getting a mortgage, and even kill you.Plants and animals carried around the world by tourists and trade are costing the European Union over EUR 12 billion per year. Even these estimates are conservative as the data relates mostly to land-based invasive species.

A cross section of the tree trunk shows the symptoms of the ash dieback. ©Fera-Crown

Environment

The alien fungus attacking ash trees

Ash dieback is an invasive fungus that threatens to decimate stocks of European ash.

Bioeconomy | Environment | Industry | Agriculture

Bioeconomy: the new revolution

The industrial revolution made the world wealthy through a simple idea: to replace the physical labour of humans and animals with energy from fossil fuels. Two-and-a-half centuries after the revolution started, however, it is in trouble. The oil that powers much of the world’s economy is running out, and the greenhouse gases given off by the fuels are harming the planet.

The zeppelin's mission is to collect as much data as possible on air pollutants and climate-altering gases in the atmosphere © Pegasos

Environment

Aboard the Climate Zeppelin

It is about two in the morning and while most Europeans are tucked up in bed, the sleep-deprived crew members of the Pegasos Zeppelin are preparing for take-off. Weather conditions are perfect so they load the airship with their state-of-the-art equipment and get ready to start their day’s work.