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.
Akpan, bissap, jujube fruit and monkey bread are part of Africa’s rich food heritage, but are relatively unknown to European palates. Thanks to the EU-funded AFTER project these exciting flavours, and others, could soon be available here, boosting the competitiveness of small food manufacturers on both continents.
Through better understanding exactly how our brains deal with memory, EU-funded research has taken scientists one step closer to effectively diagnosing and treating degenerative brain diseases.
Ageing is a complex process. It happens in every part of the body, not just specific cell or tissue types. Even psychological factors and stress can play a role. The EU-funded project NINA took a multidisciplinary approach to improving our understanding of how age-related changes interact, ultimately helping us age more healthily.
EU-funded researchers are developing innovative tools and ‘liquid biopsy’ techniques to improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer by targeting the detached tumour cells that cause the vast majority of deaths. Once validated and commercialised, their approach promises to lead to more effective and personalised care for cancer patients.
Developing numerical models for analysing the stability, efficiency and feasibility of floating wind turbines, the future of offshore wind power generation, was the remit of the EU-funded ICFLOAT project. Its innovative techniques are already being used to analyse other types of wind energy devices.
Electric vehicles are quiet — too quiet, possibly. Pedestrians and other vulnerable road users don’t always hear them coming. An EU-funded project has developed a solution. This innovative accident prevention system detects persons at risk and warns them by emitting a sound directed at them and them alone.
Tweaking breeding methods could allow European fish farming – or aquaculture – to produce more efficiently. An EU-funded project is studying how hi-tech breeding techniques can promote disease resistance and fast, efficient growth in six commonly farmed fish species, improving fish welfare, impacts on wildlife and farm productivity.
Elderly people with walking difficulties are often intimidated by busy public places. This led an EU research project to develop a robot walker to guide them around shopping centres, museums and other public buildings, thus enhancing their autonomy.
Correcting imperfections in wood is a costly and laborious process which is prone to human error. A new robot promises to boost the productivity, accuracy and quality of wood patching, with massive benefits for the timber industry.
Prof. Michael Schneider is a leading authority in the field of cardiac molecular biology. In 2008, he obtained an ERC grant to identify the mechanisms governing self-renewal of cardiac progenitor cells, a population of stem cells located in the heart itself that might be exploited to play a key role in regenerating this vulnerable organ in heart disease.
Under your feet is something very ordinary but essential to life – soil. It grows the food we eat and regulates the water, carbon and nutrient cycles that shape our environment and climate. To help keep farming sustainable, EU-funded researchers have mapped out the long-term impacts of how farmers use soil, and developed a tool and guidelines to support best practices in farms.
Heart attacks leave scars on the cardiac muscle — and if the scar is large, it can gradually weaken the organ’s ability to pump blood. Stem cell therapy can help to regenerate the damaged tissue. An EU-funded project has set out to advance the state of the art.
