Featured projects

The Sun provides a steady source of power that could make solar energy a sustainable alternative to conventional sources of energy, provided that technological advances can actually reduce energy production costs. Prof. Michael Grätzel modified the composition of dye-sensitized solar cells to significantly increase their efficiency, including for indoor use. His result laid the ground for paradigm shifts that could revolutionise solar cells technology.

Adolescence is marked by significant physical, cognitive and socio-emotional changes. Despite these well-known developments, the neural mechanisms supporting this phase of growth in the life of human beings remain unknown. Prof. Eveline Crone has carried out for the first time a longitudinal study to investigate the brain processes underlying the behaviour of teenagers.

Cellular regeneration allows wound healing in humans but in other vertebrates such as salamanders, it goes a step further: they can regenerate their limbs in their full complexity of bones, nerves, muscle and skin and can do it over and over again. Prof. Elly Tanaka studies these amazing capacities and, mirroring the process, has successfully grown a piece of mouse spinal cord in vitro.

In industrial societies, consumption has traditionally been an end in itself. Growth is achieved by selling more products, but often also results in unnecessary waste, resource depletion, pollution and other environmental damage. It doesn’t have to be this way. Research by an EU-funded project indicates that a switch to a more service-oriented approach could be better for the environment and society as a whole, while boosting growth and competitiveness.

With transport demand increasing rapidly, an EU-funded network investigated how to ease the strain on Europe’s ageing roads, railways and bridges, while training a new generation of researchers at the same time. The team used the latest technologies to improve maintenance techniques and design methods.

EOPOWER, an EU-funded project that seeks to bring Earth Observation (EO) products into wider use among environmental decision-makers, is raising awareness of EO’s uses while building capacity. Strengthening the role of EO in environmental policy will contribute to sustainable economic development globally. Partners have published an online catalogue and pledged to keep up the awareness-raising after the project ends.

More than 40 young physicists have been given a flying start to their careers by an EU-funded programme of training and exchange visits between 12 European research centres.

The EU large scale research project AtlantOS aims to advance Atlantic ocean observation to become more integrated, more efficient and more sustainable.

Community-based health insurance schemes are often supported as a route to universal health coverage in countries such as India, with limited public funds. But without government subsidies or technical support, such schemes are unlikely to achieve their objectives, as EU-funded researchers have found out.

Today’s most ambitious planetary and lunar exploratory missions pin their hopes on rovers to capture scientific data. Getting the rover to move around is complex and can rely among other technologies, on a harmonic drive. Crucial to positioning, this special gear is light in weight, compact and accurate.

Some 10 years after its completion, the results of the EU-funded project VISIONS are conquering the world of dangerous goods road transport in the form of a real-time cargo monitoring system. The system has been installed in a 1 000 fuel tankers all over the world, facilitating inspections and thus improving safety and efficiency.

An EU-funded project is developing pan-European support mechanisms to help social entrepreneurs spread their innovations across Europe. With a new network of incubators and harmonised approaches to business support, the EU hopes to show the full potential of social innovation across EU countries.

EU-funded researchers are developing a highly accurate, cost-effective and simple-to-use test for malaria. The innovative diagnostic tool, which is being refined and tested in Africa and Asia, promises to save lives through early detection while advancing efforts to eradicate the deadly mosquito-borne disease.

Farming consumes around 70% of the world’s fresh water. Limiting irrigation to the actual water crops need – and no more – makes farming more sustainable and improves yields. An EU-funded project is developing a user-friendly precision irrigation decision support system for more accessible technology that saves water. A first interface will be available next year.

Europe’s smaller agri-businesses will soon be able to tell whether their products are within the EU’s strict limits for pesticide residues without having to send samples to the laboratory. This is because an EU-funded project has developed a rapid, easy-to-use portable biosensor that offers testing up to 10 times cheaper than conventional means.

Most of the food produced in Africa is supplied by small-scale farmers, many of whom are struggling. New knowledge could help to boost these micro-operations and their contribution to food security, but smallholders are rarely consulted when research agendas are set. An EU-funded project focused on stimulating the necessary dialogue.

The world produces enough food for everyone, and yet hunger and malnutrition endure. Why is this so, how will the situation evolve, and what can be done to achieve food and nutrition security for all? An EU-funded project is generating new knowledge and preparing recommendations for policy-makers.

Sustainable rural development can only be accomplished by empowering local people to participate in the development of new techniques themselves. In understanding the importance of irrigation for smallholder farmers, the EU-funded EAU4FOOD project has integrated locals within the innovation process.

Where water is scarce, it makes sense to make the most of what you receive for free. An EU-funded project is studying the different ways Africa’s farmers can increase the volume of rain and river water collected, to improve crop yields and bridge dry spells.

To stop the Mediterranean region turning into a desert, the EU-funded MENFRI project is establishing forest management strategies and solutions that address environmental concerns across the Mediterranean and create jobs. These include forest management training, support for women’s associations in North Africa to commercialise forest-based products, certification of sustainably sourced goods in the Mediterranean and promotion of rural tourism.