The UFO project is based on two main assumptions. First, business opportunities lie in the combination of space data with digital technologies and other sources of data. Embedded Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) into small flying objects (SFOs - drones, small satellites, high altitude platforms) represent a great opportunity to collect additional aerospace data, especially to drive the Artificial Intelligence revolution for various global applications. Second, the value added applications in Europe are mostly driven by SMEs. Thus, the UFO project aims at fostering the development of cross-sectoral industrial value chains between 6 emerging industries (Mobility technologies, Environmental, Blue Growth, Digital, Experience and Cultural and Creative industries), SFOs, embedded KETs and data analysis and exploitation solutions stimulating the development of new products and services by SMEs. To achieve this, the consortium provides a systemic and strategic vision. Clusters, which gather SMEs, large groups, R&D actors, and other innovation entities, are crucial to create links between different value chains, basically the data providers and the information product providers that turn raw data into valuable information. The UFO consortium and associate partner consisting of 8 emerging industry clusters including 5 SFOs, embedded KETs, ICT clusters, representing more than 1000 SMEs throughout 6 different EU countries and sectors. The partners have the capacity to carry such actions as they will foster partnerships between the different links (their members) of value chains and provide them incentives through the launch of call for proposals providing Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP) and innovation services provided by clusters. They represent some of Europe’s most dynamic clusters including Gold and Bronze labelled ones with a history of cooperation, a track record of supporting innovation actions for SMEs.

FINE aims to create more inclusive and connected networks between Fintech ecosystems on a local and international level, by promoting collaboration between investors through coinvestment for Fintech startups, thus creating a richer investment climate that will support innovation and company scale-up across borders. FINE will conduct a mapping of key ecosystem players in target countries, ranging from developed to less-developed Fintech environments, to create a KnowledgeBase containing information relevant to investing in that country including key players, regulatory frameworks, and up-to-date news articles covering local investment trends and opportunities. FINE will promote an inclusive investment ecosystem, by creating educational material on an online InvestorAcademy that empowers new investors, young investors, and women and minority investors to learn investment fundamentals and case-specific knowledge about investing in Fintech. FINE will actively manage community-building activities between investors and local networks across countries by developing a matchmaking tool and animating introductions, events, workshops, webinars and other activities. FINE will also set up a Fintech Ambassador Network to support international investment and provide expertise to local and foreign actors. Policy recommendations will be formulated concerning strategies to attract investors in emerging ecosystems, and how to attract new investors, young investors, women investors and other underrepresented groups. Moreover, recommendations on incorporating ESG principles in the investment screening process will be created. Hence, FINE aims to bring new investment and capital to less-connected ecosystems, enabling late-stage growth of local start-ups, by facilitating and animating increased investor deals with local actors, and improving investor knowledge on regulatory frameworks and opportunities, while supporting more inclusive and gender-equal measures in investment.

Entrepreneurship is crucial for economic growth and societal progress, yet women remain underrepresented in the field, accounting for less than a third of entrepreneurs in EU. This under-representation not only highlights inequality but also limits EU's potential to tackle pressing challenges, such as the digital, green, resilience transition, and recovery from the pandemic. Deep tech sectors are even less balanced, and investment for women-led companies remains less than 2% of the total To address this gender gap, Women TechEU will bridge collaboration between the European Commission and pan-European deep tech women-led startups to create a more gender-balanced entrepreneurship ecosystem. Built on the exisisting foundations of the EIC Women TechEU initiative, our consortium will scale this iniatiative with a clear perspective towards long-term sustainability We will invest 12M€ in equity-free grants to 160 women-led deep tech companies and additional support services in a programme enhancing current EIC BAS to which we will link The consortium is comprised by partners covering all the expertise and geographies needed to reach over 15000 women entrepreneurs in deep tech from all over Europe. Led by EIT Manufacturing, it is strengthened with the participation of other KICs from EIT like Health, Food and Climate, leveraging the power of their network and landmark events. We also count with the expertise from Sploro in cascade funding programmes. Across Limits will guide the communication and dissemination activities as well as link in the service delivery with Awaken Hub, who will coordinate an effort to evaluate over 1500 experts in 4 different open calls. The consortium is complemented by major networks of investors and women entrepreneurs like EBAN, AFAEMME, or FI Values and purpose driven we will search for sustainability and major impact of the initiative during the project and beyond even proposing a PPP structure to further exploit the project results.

CLIMINVEST is joint effort of sustainability experts and finance/investing experts to improve the bankability of climate adaptation solutions. In this direction, the project will develop, integrate and validate tools and techniques that will empower climate adaptation stakeholders to develop “bankable-by-design” (BbD) projects with a positive ROI, including projects that are continually assessed in order to proactively identify and remedy issues that can affect their bankability. Moreover, CLIMINVEST will facilitate private investors to assess them, and to include them in their portfolios and ESG strategies. Based on the project’s BbD framework, local/regional governments and operators of climate-adaptation solutions will greatly benefit from CLIMINVEST techniques and blueprints for developing and deploying bankable solutions that can be integrated with broader projects and deliver co-benefits in conjunction with other climate mitigation efforts. Furthermore, CLIMINVEST will provide investors with risk assessment and ESG reporting tools for projects with climate adaptation elements towards lowering the barriers that hinder their engagement in climatic adaptation projects. CLIMINVEST will develop and offer a marketplace of bankable climate adaptation projects and solutions, which will boost the discoverability of “best practice” solutions, while also facilitating their replication, repurposing and wider use. The project will build a vibrant ecosystem of interested stakeholders around this marketplace, including local/regional governments, sustainability experts, private investors, and policy makers. The project’s platform and associated ecosystem will serve as a basis for the exploitation, sustainability and wider use of the project’s results. In this direction, the project will devise and validate models for the monetization of services of the project’s marketplace.

Urgent accelerated action is required to adapt to unavoidable and ongoing climate change. Climate-resilient investments must be substantially scaled up. Public budgets will not be able to address the adaptation financing challenge alone, financing from the private sector will also be necessary. CLIMATEFIT contributes to bridging the resilience financing gap by providing critical insight and building the capacities of Public Authorities (PAs) to attract and orchestrate various public and private funding & financing sources, and of Financing and Investment Entities (FIEs) to discover and access resilient investment opportunities. CLIMATEFIT will experiment on a mix of 20 territories in Southern, Eastern and Northwestern Europe in their transformational pathways towards climate resilience. The journey will start by taking stock of funding & financing barriers and enablers gathered in the Financing Landscape taxonomy. CLIMATEFIT will create an ingenious Manual for leveraging finance to, 1) co-design 20 innovative investment strategies allowing to identify sources of funding 2) develop 10 credible and scalable investment plans to help better negotiate and articulate financing streams and define investment concepts, and 3) pilot 4 bankable, tailored investment cases. CLIMATEFIT will build a Pathway for FIEs to accelerate finance, test refined methods to reward climate-resilient investment and apply smart adaptation funding and financing solutions. It will establish Local Resilience Taskforces (LRTs) composed of PAs and FIEs that propose a catalytic and systemic approach to resilience financing. Led by WCF, the high-level consortium will build capacity, co-create solutions with PAs and FIEs, and inform EU adaptation and sustainable finance policies. Finally, CLIMATEFIT aims to boost resilience financing in Europe by consolidating the dynamics in LRTs, and to promote and scale its research findings through the European Network of LRTs and its user-oriented One-Stop Shop.