The challenge we aim to address in this project is the lack of investment in sustainable energy and energy-efficient assets from public and private financial institutions. The core approach of the project is to define what a sustainable asset and a sustainable investment portfolio is, and to develop an assessment framework in order to allow financial institution to measure their ‘performance’ and set progress targets vis-à-vis energy-climate goals. This approach builds on the research done over the past few years by various organizations. The project will develop an assessment framework allowing investors to measure and manage their ‘climate performance’ (i.e. their exposure to sustainable energy and energy efficiency investments). This framework will include a translation of climate-energy investment roadmaps into targets for the finance sector, an assessment methodology for assets (e.g. equity shares in companies), and an assessment methodology for investment portfolios. The project will embed the framework into the standard toolbox used by investors to inform their asset allocation strategy, which will include an upgrade of databases used by investors; the integration of Sustainable Energy Investment performance metrics into portfolio optimisation tools, in order to allow investors to optimize climate and financial performance at the same time; and SEI benchmark indices in order to allow asset owners to integrate climate goals in the mandates of asset managers. The project will lead to several publications and a series of workshops with practitioners on Sustainable Energy Investment Metrics including a study on the risk-adjusted returns of SEI strategies; a study dealing with the implications of SEI metrics for financial policy-makers; and various workshops across Europe involving experts and financial institutions, to discuss methodological options, train practitioners on the assessment frameworks, and get feedbacks from road tests.

In recent years an unprecedented number of voluntary climate commitments have been made by a wide array of non-state and subnational actors. These voluntary climate actions aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build climate resilience and are crucial for lowering risks of exceeding warming limits. However, the full potential of voluntary climate action can only be realised when integrity-related concerns are overcome. ACHIEVE aims to identify opportunities to strengthen and scale up high-integrity voluntary climate action towards achieving net-zero emissions by mid-century. The project will generate transformative and timely scientific insights on the role, effectiveness and integrity of voluntary climate action including carbon credits; assess the integrity and impacts of such action; analyse how policies and regulations, and high-integrity voluntary climate action can strengthen each other; and use scientific findings to support the scaling up of high-integrity voluntary action. This will be achieved through a highly inter- and transdisciplinary consortium that, from the start, actively engages policymakers and other societal stakeholders in co-creating outcomes that respond to end users’ needs. ACHIEVE is aligned with the Work Programme of Cluster 5, Destination 1 “Climate sciences and responses for the transformation towards climate neutrality” as the project directly contributes to advancing knowledge and providing solutions for climate change specifically on high integrity voluntary climate action. ACHIEVE will develop transition pathways to climate neutrality that integrate voluntary climate action by cities, regions and companies; it will develop novel social science insights for climate action; contribute to better understanding sustainability co-benefits and trade-offs; and increase transparency and trust in voluntary climate action by strengthening integrity and making scientific results easily accessible for different stakeholder groups.

The FairFuture project addresses the pressing need for climate adaptation, with a particular focus on vulnerable communities. The objective is to develop and test inclusive adaptation measures that are tailored to local vulnerabilities, with a particular emphasis on just resilience in order to prevent an exacerbation of existing inequalities. In collaboration with local and regional authorities (LRGs), national governments, and community-led initiatives, FairFuture will integrate climate risk assessments into local plans and policies. The project will operationalise Resilience Action Labs with the objective of co-developing equitable adaptation actions, measuring effectiveness, and promoting a broader understanding of just transformation in climate resilience. The FairFuture project aims to enhance local resilience, well-being and equity, providing a framework for inclusive decision-making and scalable adaptation strategies.

OCEANIDS aims at building user-driven applications and tools, which act as an enabling technological layer for regional authorities & stakeholders in order to achieve a more resilient and inclusive systemic pathway to a Blue Economy in coastal regions. Brining spatial and non-spatial data & services under a single-access window platform for Climate-Informed Maritime Spatial Planning (CI-MSP), the project will allow a more integrated seascape management of coastal regions. The project delivers a Decision Support tool (the OCEANIDS Decision Support Platform - O-DSP), with an over-arching target to collect, harmonise and curate existing climate data services, making data accessible, reusable and interoperable for the development of local adaptation strategies. OCEANIDS facilitates access to knowledge, data & digital services critical for better understanding and managing climate risks, enhancing adaptive capacities and sup-porting transformative innovations. In addition, OCEANIDS sees inclusivity as an enabling, and required, factor towards a Blue Economy. The project has a strong focus on behavioural change, both on individual as well as on a systemic level, en-abling participating regions and communities to better understand and use potential social tipping points and systemic leverage points to accelerate transformative changes towards climate resilience. To achieve this, it promotes inclusive and deliberative governance through meaningful engagement and dialogue between citizens and stakeholders. This will be achieved using case-specific tools (i.e. ephemeral social networks) leveraging local citizens assemblies for bot-tom up deliberation, cultivating a culture of civic engagement, thus empowering individuals to take action in their own communities. Finally, the project will contribute to mobilising sustainable finance and resources towards adaptation at scale and closing climate protection gap.

EuPOLIS aims to: (a) replace the traditional perception in which engineering systems are built to protect the environment at significant costs. We aim to deploy natural systems to simultaneously enhance Public Health (PH) and Well-Being (WB), and create resilient urban ecosystems at lower Life-Cycle Costs; (b) propose a structured approach to activate the hidden possibilities and services of existing Natural and Engineered urban systems, integrate them and define their joint social, cultural and economic effects, as a main vehicle for Ecosystem Business Services and Investment; (c) regenerate and rehabilitate urban ecosystems, while in parallel addressing key challenges such as low environmental quality, fragmentation and low biodiversity in public spaces, water-stressed resources, undervalued use of space in deprived areas and therefore we improve urban livability; (d) improve urban resilience (operational, social and economic) through interventions designed using a set of proper urban planning matrices, which catalyse stakeholder participation, with a special attention to gender, age and disability perspectives within the process; (e) create inclusive and accessible urban spaces by systematically implementing gender mainstreaming strategies and novel participatory tools into all phases and processes of project development to ensure that the needs of diverse groups are considered. We aim to stimulate active communities’ participation throughout the process; (f) to improve citizens’ quality of life providing them with pleasant socializing open areas that stimulate social exchange and inclusivity; (g) monitor and validate the impact of all interventions to PH and WB of citizens. EuPOLIS solutions will be demonstrated in 4 European cities: Belgrade, Lodz, Piraeus and Gladsaxe. We have also included some follower cities (Bogota, Palermo, Limassol and Trebinje) in order to replicate and demonstrate the advantages of our innovations via mentoring and coaching.