School meals don't matter only to kids and their parents. Like other services within the scope of public sector food procurement, they also matter economically. Determination to source produce locally and sustainably can make all the difference to a region's farmers, as can labels protecting its specialities. An EU-funded project is connecting the dots.
If the arrival of spring is not enough to get you out walking and cycling, an EU-funded initiative is launching a number of mobile applications offering incentives to lead a more active lifestyle, reduce urban congestion and fight pollution.
Researchers at the Institute of Soil Science and Cultivation in the Polish town of Pulawy have set out to promote the bioeconomy and its benefits in the region. Their work is backed by funding from the EU's ERA Chairs initiative.
Businesses using robots for short-term manufacturing assignments will be interested in a service developed by EU-funded researchers that can custom-design affordable robots. Businesses will be able to either lease or buy the robots for quick installation.
EU-funded researchers have developed new planning techniques that will help ensure Europe's existing smart grid infrastructure can sustainably meet growing demand for plug-in electric vehicles - and they want to see these cars communicating with charging stations.
The more planners know about how people move around a city, the easier it is for them to develop sustainable transport policies. EU-funded researchers have used data from personal smart devices to shed light on urban mobility and improve transport planning tools and models.
We know that 3D printing is set to revolutionise manufacturing. But construction? EU-funded researchers are putting the building blocks in place with 3D printing technology enabling the construction sector to manufacture concrete building materials in a more efficient and cost effective manner. The technology is being combined with more traditional techniques to offer an all-in-one solution.
Remember when there were no satellites? Before your time, maybe, as the first was launched in 1957. Today, we would be lost without them - quite literally so, but satnavs are only one of many services these orbital outriders underpin. EU-funded research is helping to secure Europe's access to the carbon fibre materials needed to build them.
An EU-funded project is forging partnerships and networks on water-treatment technologies across the Mediterranean in a bid to protect the region from - and prepare it for - the very real threat of water scarcity.
Waste prunings from orchards, vineyards and olive groves could be a valuable source of biomass energy and help boost rural economies, say EU-funded researchers. The key ingredient is a sustainable supply chain.
