A.Context/background: The EU Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) graduates provide the human resources needs of her manufacturing sector - the key driver of the economy, which provides about 20% of EU jobs and generates circa €7000 billion in 25 industrial sectors with over 2 million companies. Photovoltaic solar energy (PVSE) is becoming increasingly competitive and is accepted as a viable renewable energy (RE) source for actualising EU Energy ROADMAP 2050 targets and climate-neutrality goals. Solar Energy (SE) is a major contributor to global green energy production and PVSE continues to dominate all new RE investments globally, accounting for 48% of the $139.7Billion invested in 2018. Another report shows that the SE Power market was circa 680GW in 2019; and will reach 4767GW by 2026 (a CAGR of 30.7%). EU investment in 2018 was 11.3GW (up 21% from 2017) driven by the EU’s binding national 2020 targets. This very rapid growth in the EU SE sector led to corresponding increase in demand for STEM graduates to match the increasing EU SE sector needs. The growth imbalance in the EU SE sector and demand for STEM graduates represent another challenge to the EU as a 2018 Report shows that China is the major PV manufacturer, followed by Taiwan and then Malaysia - with no EU firm listed amongst the top 20 cell/thin-film PV manufacturers in 2017. Inadvertently, the finding implies that EU SE sector capacity is not globally competitive, which in turn limits job opportunities for EU STEM graduates. It is widely agreed that a key contributor to the low EU PV production capacity is the scarcity of STEM graduates with relevant SE sector specialist skills. The shortage, described as “the mismatch between the skills Europe needs and the skills it has”, was identified as a key challenge facing the EU’s HE system; and was also reported in IET’s (Institution of Engineering and Technology) Annual 2019 Skills Survey of Engineering Employers in the UK. Thus, urgent continental need to provide STEM undergraduates (UGs) better learning opportunities to facilitate acquisition of the industry specific skills for securing jobs in the EU SE sector on graduation is necessitated. SETechTra supports the production of industry ready STEM graduates to meet SE sector needs, growth of EU PV production capacity and contributes to achieving the EU climate change goals.B.Objectives, profile/participants: The objectives include to: a) Increases STEM UGs awareness on the trends and developments in SE sector and the specialist skills essential for securing employment in the SE Sector. b) Deliver a working curriculum for teaching SE module to STEM UGs in the Higher Education Instituting (HEI) partners, facilitating student and staff mobility and peer learning. c) Tackle skills gaps and mismatches in SE sector leading to STEM UGs acquiring specialist SE entrepreneurship/life-long-skills for employability and career progression. d) Support actualisation of EU climate change goals in the long run. The consortium comprises 6 partners, (4 Universities and 2 industry partners), drawn from 4 EU countries (UK, Finland, Greece and Norway). The partnership is purposefully built to complement each other in expertise, experiences and competences to ensure effective project delivery. The Universities have STEM degree programmes and demonstrate outstanding teaching expertise. All 6 partners have excellent expertise in SE and RE and huge competence in project management – having previously worked on EU funded RE projectsC.Methodology/Activities: These include a) Review of educational materials - Higher Education Qualifications Framework (HEQF), professional and statutory body requirement (PSRB) - for integration into the SE module. b) Consult the stakeholders - industrialist, researchers, sector employers - for integration of their advice into the SE module to develop research inspired and industry informed SE teaching materials. c) Develop E-delivery platform for smart online learning, teaching and assessment. d) Develop STEM SETechTra module to Science Technology Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) Training guide. D.Results/impact: It will provide STEM UGs in the partner HEIs: awareness on the industry specific skills required for employment cum current trends and developments information of the SE sector. It develops and delivers the curricula for SE module for STEM UGs across the 4 universities. E.Potential longer-term-benefits: The longer-term benefits include: a) Produced STEM graduates having both SE specialist and entrepreneurship skills tackles skills gaps and mismatches in EU SE sector. Their employment boosts uptake of the SE sector in EU. b) Significant number of the STEM graduates with entrepreneurial skills will establish their companies thereby increasing the EU SE sector global competitiveness. c) On module full adoption in EU, HE curriculum on SE is provided and STEAM graduate employment in the sector is increased

Water scarcity is a serious problem for many regions of Europe with some 45% of European territory expected to face water scarcity problems by 2030, where damages caused by floods may increase five-fold by 2050. This is driving growing attention and increasing regulation on water efficiency and water management across Europe, being particularly important in cities and buildings in general, given the estimated water savings of 30%, with consequent reductions on energy and CO2 emissions (“The Blueprint to Safeguard Europe’s Water Resources”). The implementation of water and energy saving measures requires adequate training, capacity building and qualification of construction professionals, sustained on reliable and independent accreditation schemes attesting technical knowledge and social competences, towards market recognition and confidence. The project “WATTer Skills” aimed to develop, implement and propose a common curricula, qualification framework and accreditation scheme at the European level, for training and skills upgrading of construction and green professionals on water efficiency and water energy nexus for construction and retrofit in buildings. The harmonised water efficiency and water-energy nexus competences in building construction and retrofit, was achieved with two proposed qualification frameworks: the water efficiency technician (WET) and the water efficiency expert (WEE). This was materialised in 4 intellectual outputs (in 5 languages: English, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and Greek): IO1 - Setting the Perimeter and definition of the WATTer skills map, IO2 - European Qualification Framework, IO3 - Training Courses Curricula, Contents and Pilots and IO4 - Accreditation System based on European Qualification Framework and European Credit System for Vocational Education and Training, supported by 2 Handbooks with the training contents (six competence areas corresponding to 100 lecture hours for the WET and 4 competence areas corresponding to 50 lecture hours for the WEE) 5 transnational meetings (3 in-person and 2 online), 9 multiplier events (7 training pilots with 144 attendees and 60 lectured hours, 1 Infoday with 28 participants and 1 Final conference with more than 100 participants), the presence at 10 dissemination events (oral communications, poster presentations and scientific publications) and numerous parallel dedicated meetings with the national advisory boards and stakeholder groups. As project outcomes, it can be highlighted the signature of the Memorandum of Understanding by all partners, with a Roadmap of the WATTer Skills follow-up activities, namely the compromise of all partners in continuing the work on the possible integration of the proposed accreditation framework into the national catalogues of the consortium countries (Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece. In Portugal, another project outcome already guaranteed is the approval of the “long term strategy for building renovation” (Resolution of the Council of Ministers No 8-A/2021 of 3rd of February 2021), where it is stated that the qualification frameworks produced by the WATTer Skills consortium will be promoted. In addition, ADENE is making the effort to include this topic in the agenda and events of the current Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

GOLD is organized in five work packages (see figure aside) and builds on the three pillars. The first pillar (WP1) aims to optimize selected energy crops for phytoremediation as well as to develop optimized phytoremediation solutions for decontamination purposes. In the second pillar (WP2) the contaminated feedstock of WP1 will be converted to clean biofuels by developing two thermochemical based conversion routes; the first on gasification and the second on pyrolysis. In both routes the main contamination constituents will be collected in a concentrated form: mainly in a vitrified slag with low leachability produced in the gasification in the 1st and in a form of high density biochar in the 2nd. In the third pillar selected value-chains for biofuels production and land decontamination will be modelled and analysed in terms of cost, sustainability and SDGs for the creation of win-win situations. Emphasis is being given on the international collaboration towards Innovation Mission Challenge 4 on Biofuels with the participation of three highly consuming countries (Canada, China and India) thoughtout the value-chains.

CARINA is built on a multi-actor consortium and participative decision-making process through mutual learning, transparent communication, and inclusive multi-perspectives and transdisciplinary engagement. From the proposal clearly emerges the importance of social innovation as the nerve center for the evolution of the whole project. Nine Lighthouses, 5 Living Labs, and 9 Policy Innovation Labs will be established across Europe playing a leading role in the co-creation of CARINA innovation actions. CARINA focuses on new sustainable and diversified farming systems including 2 new oilseed crops, carinata and camelina, able to provide multiple low iLUC feedstocks for the bio-based economy. We firmly believe that a participatory approach is necessary for successfully scaling-up innovative farming systems. Engaging farmers and other stakeholders in jointly developing solutions under specific environmental, technical, and social conditions has been highly considered in CARINA. We estimate about 3M farmers being potentially reached by CARINA thanks to the direct cooperation with its partners. To find a broad consensus by primary producers, a new crop should enable to promote and harness biodiversity, be easy-to-grow, and technically feasible within current cropping systems. Carinata and camelina fully meet these requirements, able to successfully grow almost everywhere in Europe and in northern Africa. Carinata and camelina provide high quality oils that will be transformed into innovative bio-based products (bioherbicides, bioplastics). The co-product from oil extraction is a protein-rich cake, which will be valorized as animal feed, and in a multitude of high added-value products, exploiting the mucilage and glucosinolates contained within. CARINA capitalizes on a highly experienced team of 20 partners, +6 affiliated entities, from 13 EU and Associated Countries (Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Greece, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Poland, UK, Serbia, Tunisia, Morocco, Switzerland).

The GEMex project is a complementary effort of a European consortium with a corresponding consortium from Mexico, who submitted an equivalent proposal for cooperation. The joint effort is based on three pillars: 1 – Resource assessment at two unconventional geothermal sites, for EGS development at Acoculco and for a super-hot resource near Los Humeros. This part will focus on understanding the tectonic evolution, the fracture distribution and hydrogeology of the respective region, and on predicting in-situ stresses and temperatures at depth. 2 – Reservoir characterization using techniques and approaches developed at conventional geothermal sites, including novel geophysical and geological methods to be tested and refined for their application at the two project sites: passive seismic data will be used to apply ambient noise correlation methods, and to study anisotropy by coupling surface and volume waves; newly collected electromagnetic data will be used for joint inversion with the seismic data. For the interpretation of these data, high-pressure/ high-temperature laboratory experiments will be performed to derive the parameters determined on rock samples from Mexico or equivalent materials. 3 – Concepts for Site Development: all existing and newly collected information will be applied to define drill paths, to recommend a design for well completion including suitable material selection, and to investigate optimum stimulation and operation procedures for safe and economic exploitation with control of undesired side effects. These steps will include appropriate measures and recommendations for public acceptance and outreach as well as for the monitoring and control of environmental impact. The consortium was formed from the EERA joint programme of geothermal energy in regular and long-time communication with the partners from Mexico. That way a close interaction of the two consortia is guaranteed and will continue beyond the duration of the project.