Sustainable, inclusive, affordable and beautiful solutions for thermal comfort in buildings

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all the following expected outcomes: Advance in the achievement of the Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan’s research and innovation priorities and targets for wind energy; Efficient and effective support to wind energy research and innovation through alignment and cooperation among different actors, avoiding fragmentation of efforts; Energy producers and consumers benefit from increased performance of wind energy technologies with the focus on efficiency and flexibility, reduced cost, improved reliability and sustainability, operation and maintenance, safety, robustness and security during all stages of the lifetime of a wind energy farm from installation, operation and maintenance to decommissioning; Increased contribution of wind energy to the energy system, with minimal impacts on health and the environment (notably biodiversity and pollution) and at the lowest possible cost. Scope: The action contributes to address the Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan’s research and innovation priorities and targets for wind energy, as defined by the Implementation Working Group (IWG) on wind energy, the European…

Expected Outcome: Successful proposals will contribute to the implementation of the EU initiative on Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing and the EU Life Sciences Strategy as well as the updated EU Bioeconomy Strategy, the upcoming EU Biotechnology Act and EU Circular Economy Act. Projects’ results are expected to contribute to the following expected outcomes: Full industrial scale biorefinery and related value chain(s) for the production of nutritional food ingredients. Resilience and strategic autonomy of EU food sectors via diversification of nutritional food ingredient sources. Increased environmental sustainability of food sectors (e.g. addressing issues like land use, water use, energy consumption, nitrogen cycle, other nutrients, etc.). Improved consumers awareness and acceptance of nutritional food ingredients from alternative sources, contributing to sustainable healthy diets. Scope: Human nutrition is a key area where the bio-based industries can play an important role in addressing the present societal and climate challenges. Considerable attention is given to the utilisation of alternative sources of proteins, fibres and oils/fats, due to the increasing world population…

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Increased evidence of factors such as physiological, behavioural, social, environmental and cultural that influence how different user and demographic groups perceive and use smart, secured, integrated energy efficient building systems, and how it affects the building whole-life cycle and energy savings, as well as occupant satisfaction, health and well-being; The design and operation of smart building systems and smart buildings are improved making them more user-friendly and effective. Scope: Significant investments have been made in developing hardware and software for smart buildings. There is still limited understanding how smart buildings solutions impact the energy performance of buildings and users’ comfort in practice. Research is required on the technical, social, and economic factors that influence how different groups – defined by their social, educational, age, and financial status – use and interact with smart buildings and systems. The whole-life cycle impacts of smart building have to be better understood, from design and construction to operation, maintenance,…

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Better understanding of the factors and interdependencies that influence levels of renovation of rental properties in the affordable housing sector; Increased number of policy makers revise policies, regulations, instruments and business models to increase the rate of renovation of rental properties in the affordable housing sector. Scope: The Renovation Wave strategy sets out measures across the whole renovation chain that aim to increase the rate and depth of renovations. One of the key principles for housing renovation towards 2030 and 2050 is affordability, i.e. making energy efficient, comfortable, healthy, sustainable and climate-resilient buildings widely available, in particular for medium and lower-income households and vulnerable people and areas. A better understanding of the impact of current policy frameworks on the affordable housing sector and on energy poverty is needed. Proposals are expected to address all of the following: Research the effectiveness and implications of existing policies at different levels of governance (from local to European), regulations,…

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Implementation of the NWRSA methodology for secondary rural roads; Innovative and effective enforcement strategies, incentive mechanisms and measures raising risk awareness for fostering safer behaviour; Prevention strategies for reducing road fatalities and serious road traffic injuries on rural roads along with the respective implementation guidelines and policy measures tailored to the responsible stakeholders (regional authorities, police, healthcare professionals, national governments, etc.); GIS-based application to assist local and regional authorities in identifying and mapping the impact of extreme weather phenomena and other natural disasters (such as floods, fires, storms, heavy snowfall etc.) on the safety and resilience of the road network in their jurisdiction. Scope: With more than 50% of all EU road fatalities occurring in rural areas along with evidence suggesting that crashes and crash-related fatalities in rural roads vary from those in urban roads or motorways, it is imperative to understand and mitigate the safety risks in rural roads in view of the EU’s…

Expected Outcome: Projects should contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Provide policymakers, education practitioners and citizens with a solid understanding of how social media, video gaming and other leisure uses of digital tools relate to the educational outcomes of young people, including through their impact on well-being and mental health. Generate rigorous, policy-relevant evidence about policies and practices aiming to inform and regulate young people’s use of digital tools for non-educational purposes, such as smartphones, at school. Develop actionable advice for policymakers and citizens about how to promote young people’s healthy use of digital tools for leisure, both at school and outside school. Describe and quantify the relationships of using digital tools for leisure and communication with students’ motivation, study habits, attention span and concentration, time management, engagement, social integration and overall well-being. Scope: The increasing prevalence of digital devices in young people’s life has raised concerns about the potential impacts of the use of digital tools for leisure and communication on primary-, secondary- and higher education…