SNETP, the Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform, was confirmed in 2013 as one of the EC’s officially recognised European Technology Platforms, the only one in the nuclear fission sector. The SPRINT project aims at supporting SNETP in its roadmapping, networking, dissemination and communication activities. The essential purpose of the SPRINT proposal, in particular, is to support SNETP in the elaboration and wide adoption and use of its strategic roadmaps, as well as in strengthening its visibility and interactions with its members and external stakeholders. The project sets out four specific objectives: ensuring an inclusive and efficient process for producing strategic roadmaps; improving the ‘value proposal’ of SNETP for the fission R&D community in Europe; confirming SNETP as a key player within the international energy technology landscape; and enhancing the visibility and dialogue of SNETP towards a wider audience. Focusing on “value creation” and visibility for the Platform, SPRINT will pursue some of the activities initialised through the Euratom FP7 “SNETP-Office” and “SMILE” projects. SPRINT will support the platform, groups and members, with the development and dissemination of main strategic documents (i.a., the Deployment Strategy and the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda). SPRINT will also strengthen and improve the interactions between its pillars/activities and will increase SNETP’s interactions with stakeholders (EU institutions and initiatives, international agencies, other platforms). Finally, SPRINT will propose new added value services to its members and will strengthen SNETP visibility by participating in major international events and updating its communication tools.

NATURE-3B aims to make a significant contribution by developing (i) Nature-Protecting Benchmarks for investors such as pension funds or insurance akin to EU Paris-Aligned Benchmarks (EU PABs), (ii) a Nature-Protecting Bond framework particularly targeted at municipalities and corporates, and (i) six tools for central banks, ESAs & NCAs (see Outcomes 1-6 in the Consortium Overview below), As a consortium including three current members of the EU’s Platform on Sustainable Finance including the Head of its Data Science Hub and lead author of EU PABs, NATURE-3B is uniquely positioned to achieve real world impact. Following the success of EU PABs, which grew beyond €100 billion in assets within less than 3 years (European Commission, 2023), the consortium expects that Nature-Protecting Benchmarks can exceed €10bn within three years after the launch. Given the fortunate timing of the EU Green Bond Standard applying from December 21st 2024, and the 60+ corporate and municipality supporters already interested in the concept of Nature-Protecting Bonds, the consortium expects an issuance volume of €30bn within 3 years of launch. These could, for instance, fund marine ecosystem protection of Gozo (Malta), support the Pape Nature Reserve of Liepaja (Latvia) or encourage forest restoration near Sanok in southeast Poland. With considerable work experience with central banks, ESAs and NCAs, NATURE-3B is confident that 15 of them will use a relevant tool following the project. The tools include: (1) Nature Dependency Dashboard, (2) Asset level risk database, (3) Nature-related scenarios portal, (4) Nature-related stress test models, (5) Portfolio & financial system nature alignment tool, (6) Natural Language Processing (NLP) tools for SFRD biodiversity impact analysis and TNFD scoring.

Built on LEAP-RE programme implemented between 2020 and 2025, the LEAP-SE action will organize 2 co-funded calls steered by European and African funding organisations. The Calls Steering Committee (CSC), gathering all funding organisations involved in the action, will select the projects to be funded considering the specific national eligibility and funding rules of each funding agency (nationality of beneficiaries, TRL, nature of beneficiaries, thematic scope, etc.). It should be noted that, even if the overall scope of LEAP-SE enlarges to all sustainable energy fields matching the CCSE scope on energy (including the multiannual roadmaps of LEAP-RE and the enlarged to green hydrogen issues) it will still be possible for funding agencies to focus their specific action on their own priority lines, in term of thematic focus or on TRL level. LEAP-SE draws on the experience and partnership developed in LEAP-RE. This partnership is further strengthened by a much larger number of African organisations/countries participating to the co-funded calls and by previous collaboration between partners in other projects supporting the EU-Africa HLPD on STI, such as LEAP-Agri, ERAfrica, LEAP4FNSSA, RINEA, CAAST-Net Plus and FOSC. It will work with other European partnerships such as CETP and DUT. LEAP-SE will also ensure the follow-up and monitoring of the funded projects, the valorisation of the results and clustering activities will ensure a broad dissemination of projects outputs reaching a global coherence among funded projects and avoiding fragmentation. The high-level dialogue foreseen with policymakers and institutional stakeholders will ensure that LEAP-SE has access to the relevant instances to raise any policy or regulatory issue hindering the deployment of some innovative solutions.

The ambition of the Global Knowledge Exchange Centre (GKEC) for Urban Climate Neutrality is to mainstream actions towards climate neutral and net-zero urban developments on a global level. In this sense, the GKEC will provide support in terms of global outreach for the European Cities Mission as well as contribute to the Urban Transition Mission of Mission Innovation. It will provide effective support and knowledge for local governments and international stakeholders and through this, support European policy such as the European Green Deal and work towards the international commitments of the Paris Agreement. The GKEC will make available evidence and good practice for urban climate neutral and net-zero transitions globally and facilitate capacity building, knowledge exchange and moderated learning for municipalities and key stakeholders. In operational terms, the GKEC will set up actions according to the three impact pathways: 1.Mainstream knowledge and good practice to accelerate urban transitions: The mission platform will be extended towards global use, making available international solutions and good practices and promote financing and funding opportunities to implement integrated urban climate action and net-zero pathways. 2.Offer advanced frameworks and moderated learning across all governance levels to raise awareness of and capacities for CN and NZ policies: Policy advocacy for climate neutral and net-zero approaches will allow aligning of global policies. Capacity building measures for local and regional actors will provide guidelines and support mutual learning to drive systemic change. 3.Establish the GKEC as a forum for international exchange and cooperation on climate neutral and net-zero transitions: Global and regional events accompanied by comprehensive dissemination measures will raise visibility of EU and international good practice and strengthen international cooperation on climate neutrality and net-zero pathways.

The Information-based Strategies for LAND Remediation (ISLANDR) project is cross-disciplinary and multi-actor and aims to promote the delivery of Green Deal objectives, in particular achieving Zero Pollution by reducing soil pollution and enhancing restoration. ISLANDR will provide a series of tools and methods to support: (1) the delineation of soil pollution sources, (2) the assessment of risks, (3) the implementation of sustainable and risk-based land management (SRBLM), (4) the inclusion of wider valuation approach in financial and investment cases, (5) closer integration of land contamination and spatial planning decision-making and (6) key policy relevant findings related to the Soil Strategy, proposed soil health law and other areas of policy where soil is a crucial consideration. ISLANDR takes a carefully targeted approach in view of the large existing knowledge base, and has designed its outcomes be easily assimilated by multiple target groups (incl: policy interests, planners and regulators, site managers and their service providers). Care is taken to ensure support for capacity building and also to service the needs of long term repositories (e.g EUSO). Innovations include using CBA to provide robust valuation for parallel benefits to improve business cases; a technical basis for soil functionality as a “soil health” receptor, and operating window analyses of NBS and other low input remediation. ISLANDR makes use of 7 test areas across Europe to provide real world research context and road-test findings, including areas impacted by green transition consequences. Roundtables in these areas provide active local stakeholder dialogue and a basis for rapid implementation and new project roll-out. A key focus of ISLANDR is to facilitate soil remediation in situations where the case is economically marginal or negative, by providing a more thorough understanding of low input approaches and a wider value proposition for investment cases and financial planning.