CLEVERFOOD will facilitate a society-wide mobilisation of European citizens, including children and youth, farmers, entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, educators, knowledge brokers and policy makers to transform the European food system in alignment with the EU Food 2030 Policy Framework, Farm to Fork Strategy and Fit for 55 Package. By providing targeted support for ongoing and emerging projects, partnerships and networks, implementing a pan-European Food 2030 multi-actor and public engagement mechanism and operationalizing an interlinked multi-level structure of connected Policy Labs and Living Labs, CLEVERFOOD will pave the way for a more regenerative, resilient and plant-based food system. Models for transformative multi-level food system governance and strategies for advancing food policies and legislation will be developed in the Policy Labs by launching a peer-learning program, organising inclusive multi-stakeholder dialogues and bringing together policymakers from all governance levels. Social and technological innovations to support sustainable food system transition will be accelerated in the Living Labs by co-creating strategies for removing lock-ins and building sustainable food value chains, mobilizing impact investors, promoting uptake of new technologies and measuring food system transition progress. Food system science competences of children and youth will be boosted by supporting food system science education activities in the Policy Labs and Living Labs and establishing a network to collaborate on transforming higher education teaching. Public engagement, citizen empowerment and mass mobilization will be maximised by supporting multi-actor, public engagement and citizen science activities in the Policy Labs and Living Labs, unlocking the power of influencers, deploying an interactive food systems exhibition, and designating and supporting permanent competence centres across Europe to ensure society-wide commitment to transform the food system.

The InvECAT project aims to mobilize voluntary energy efficiency and sustainable energy investment by companies and financial institutions through the development of standardized frameworks and tools and outreach by critical convening and marketing powers (UNEP FI, and Bloomberg). The project will thus enable credible, standardized non-state actor (NSA) energy and climate commitments that directly contribute to the achievement of EU and global energy and climate goals. At its core, InvECAT develops a “toolkit” for energy and climate target setting and monitoring that companies, financial institutions, regulators and policy makers can exploit to support domestic and global energy and climate goals. Policy makers and governments will have access to a framework and standard templates to define NSA pledges and a monitoring platform tracking alignment to such goals. Companies and financial institutions, reached by large corporate and financial sector networks at WRI and WWF will access target-setting tools that track progress toward existing commitments and the ability to set more ambitious ones. The project will further achieve broad market acceptance through the first international standard measuring the finance sector’s contribution to the Paris Agreement. The work done through InvECAT will address all types of energy-climate actions, thus covering both sustainable energy and energy efficiency. It builds on market leading data and tool initiatives (e.g. H2020 SEI Metrics project) and commitment initiatives (Science Based Targets initiative and UNFCCC NAZCA portal), while integrating an expanded focus on energy efficiency. The market uptake of the toolkit by all stakeholders (companies, financial institutions, policy makers, civil society) is supported by the extensive outreach and strong networks that consortium members have developed in over 20+ years of experience.