Millions of people suffer from brain diseases. To better understand what happens in the brains of these patients, the EU-funded RobustSynapses project focused on synapses, where many brain conditions often first develop. By identifying key things that can go wrong, the project team has opened the door to potential new targets for life-saving treatments that would benefit everyone.
The EU is developing a dedicated cloud repository for all the scientific research happening in Europe. To ensure easy access to and reuse of this information, the EU-funded EOSC-hub project developed an intuitive user interface and other tools. Researchers can now take advantage of the wealth of information already stored on the cloud, ultimately benefiting citizens as science becomes more open.
Environmental justice is about making sure environmental laws, regulations and policies treat everyone fairly. The EU-funded EnvJustice project has developed an online tool to support the many environmental justice movements happening around the world. As a result, everyone now has easy access to up-to-date information about how environmental issues impact their part of the world.
By 2050, the world population may reach 10 billion people. Unfortunately, there’s not enough agricultural land available to sustainably produce the food needed to feed this many people. To help, the EU-funded FutureAgriculture project has designed a new type of crop capable of producing the amounts required to feed a rapidly growing population and to adapt to the effects of climate change.
Today’s silicon-based solar cells are limited in that they can only absorb energy from a single band of light. That’s why the EU-funded PERTPV project is using perovskite-based materials to build a new type of solar cell. This should lead to more powerful, efficient and sustainable solar panels that will benefit citizens as much as the planet.
Transitioning to a waste-free economy requires cities and regions across Europe to properly collect, recycle and reuse waste. Unfortunately, this is not the case in many places. Thanks to the EU-funded COLLECTORS project, policymakers have access to the information they need to implement fully integrated waste collection systems, making life cleaner and greener for EU citizens.
Europe needs more bio-based products to ensure future generations inherit a sustainable society, but the success of such products can only be built on trust. The EU-funded STAR-ProBio project are conscious of the challenges ahead. They built a new framework to help create better labels, standards and certifications that will allow for that trust to be built, ultimately benefiting all EU citizens.
The easier knowledge can be spread, the faster science can move forward. The OpenAIRE initiative has been spearheading this vision since 2008 with the goal of setting European science free. Most recently, the EU-funded OpenAIRE-Advance project went a step further by making open access to research the default option across Europe, bringing science truly closer to citizens.
Earth Observation data is information about Earth’s physical, chemical and biological systems, often coming from satellites. The EU-funded openEO project developed a new interface to help users access, process and compare data from different providers. This is an important step towards allowing communication between platforms from different providers, benefiting researchers and citizens.
While cement and lime are essential to modern life, unfortunately the manufacturing process unavoidably releases large amounts of CO2. The EU-funded LEILAC project has been developing cutting-edge technology to efficiently capture these emissions at a low cost. This will help to decarbonise a critically important industrial sector and contribute towards cleaner air for all citizens to enjoy.
