EU invests over pound 380 million in 133 new LIFE projects to support the green transition all around Europe
The Commission has granted today more than pound 380 million to 133 new projects across Europe under the LIFE Programme for environment and climate action. The allocated amount represents more than half of the pound 574 million total investment needs for these projects – the remainder coming from national, regional and local governments, public-private partnerships, businesses, and civil society organisations.
LIFE projects contribute to reaching the European Green Deal’s broad range of climate, energy and environmental goals, including the EU’s aim to become climate-neutral by 2050 and to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030, while ensuring Europe’s long-term prosperity. This investment will have a lasting impact on our environment, the economy and the well-being of all Europeans. The projects will cover all areas of the LIFE programme, mobilising:
pound 143 million (of which the EU will pro
vide pound 74 million) to contribute to circular economy and improving quality of life, with 26 projects reducing water use, industrial and household waste, air and noise pollution, as well as making the business case for reducing, reusing and recycling;
close to pound 216 million (pound 144.5 million EU contribution) for nature and biodiversity projects to restore freshwater, marine and coastal ecosystems, and habitats; and improve the conservation status of birds, insects, reptiles, amphibians, and mammals;
some pound 110 million (nearly pound 62 million EU contribution) for climate resilience, climate mitigation and governance and information;
pound 105 million (pound 99 million EU contribution) for governance and market solutions to accelerate the clean energy transition.
Examples of projects supporting sustainability, innovation and quality of life
Among the 26 projects selected to promote a more circular economy and quality of life, the pound 7.5 million project LIFE GRAPhiREC aims at recycling gra
phite from battery waste in Italy. It is projected to generate pound 23.4 million in revenue and save pound 25 million in production costs. The Spanish project LIFE POLITEX will invest pound 5 million in reducing the environmental footprint of the fashion industry by converting textile waste back into new textiles. The pound 9.8 million DESALIFE project from the Canary Islands aims to support water resilience by producing fresh water from the Atlantic Ocean. Off-shore wave-powered buoys deployed off the Canary Islands will pump 1.7 billion litres of desalinated freshwater to shore.
25 projects will support nature and biodiversity in a wide range of areas. Two projects, LIFE4AquaticWarbler and LIFE AWOM, involve Belgium, Germany, Spain, France, Lithuania, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, as well as Ukraine and Senegal, with a combined budget of nearly pound 24 million to save the rare aquatic warbler bird, in line with the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. Another example is Biodiverse City LIFE,
a pound 3.6 million project in Budapest to promote the ‘peaceful coexistence of nature and the urban lifestyle’.
IMAGE LIFE and LIFE VINOSHIELD are part of the 23 climate change resilience and mitigation projects announced today. With a combined budget of pound 6.8 million, the projects taking place in Spain, France and Italy will help world-renowned vineyards and the production of famous cheeses such as Parmigiano Reggiano, Camembert de Normandie, and Roquefort to become more resilient to the impact of extreme weather events. The projects showcase responses on how best Europe’s wider agricultural industry can adapt to climate change and water scarcity. Equally important is the pound 6.9 million LIFE BLUE 420 kV GIS project, taking place in Belgium, led by Siemens to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from electrical circuit breakers.
To ensure a clean energy transition, as part of the 59 new projects announced today, LIFE DiVirtue, a three-year, pound 1.25 million digital training scheme will build capacity f
or a more efficient and innovative building and construction industry sector. The project notably uses virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to help construction students and professionals deliver zero-emission buildings and renovations across Bulgaria, Czechia, Greece, Croatia and Romania. Meanwhile, with almost pound 10 million, the ENERCOM FACILITY project will provide direct grants to 140 emerging energy communities across Europe to trigger investments in sustainable energy. It will further support energy communities in developing their business models through trainings and capacity building material, paving the way for replicable business models with long-term sustainability.
Background
Over its 32 years of existence, the LIFE Programme has co-financed more than 6,000 environmental and climate action projects across the EU and associated countries. The 133 projects announced today were selected from more than 653 applications submitted under the LIFE 2023 call for proposals.
The Commission
has increased funding for the LIFE Programme by almost 60% for the 2021 – 2027 period, now standing at more than pound 5.43 billion. The grants financed under the LIFE Programme are managed by CINEA, the European Climate Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency.
For More Information
Project summaries
LIFE Programme for environment and climate action
EU at COP16
Commission study shows how to help cancer patients and people with a history of cancer to stay in and return to work
The Commission has published today a study mapping policies and good practices in the EU and EEA/EFTA that help cancer patients and those with a history of cancer to stay in and return to work. The study is one of the main outcomes of Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, which aims to support cancer patients and survivors to stay in and return to work.
The study presents several recommendations to address remaining gaps, barriers and challenges, such as the need to broaden and strengthen national policies and rules to include more
cancer-specific measures, to strengthen monitoring and enforcement mechanisms and to further increase awareness-raising. Key findings include the current lack of national legislative frameworks dedicated to job retention and/or reintegration, specifically for cancer patients and survivors in many countries. However, the study also found that many organisations have support measures in place and some countries have more general policies in place to support people with chronic diseases or disabilities. The report’s findings follow a broad stakeholder consultation. It includes factsheets on the situation in each country and on the good practices identified.
Stella Kyriakides, Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, said: “This study highlights the need to improve the quality of life of people whose lives have been affected by cancer, one of the key areas of action in Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan. It shows that, although we have made significant progress in cancer survival rates, many challenges remain in manag
ing daily life with cancer. We need to break the stigma that can affect people affected by this disease and protect the right to return to work, to keep their jobs and to ensure that there is no discrimination. This is the start of the discussion: we will now analyse the results and encourage stakeholders to engage in discussions on how to turn today’s challenges into tomorrow’s opportunities.”
(For more information: Stefan De Keersmaecker – Tel.: +32 2 298 46 80; Anna Gray – Tel.: +32 2 298 08 73)
Commission joins forces with venture capital to support deep tech innovation in Europe
Today, the Commission will launch a Trusted Investors Network bringing together a group of investors ready to co-invest in innovative deep-tech companies in Europe together with the EU. The Union’s investment comes from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund, which is part of the EU research and innovation programme Horizon Europe.
The first group comprises 71 investors from across Europe, including venture capital funds,
public investment banks, foundations and corporate venture funds. These investors collectively represent over pound 90 billion of assets, which positions the network as a key initiative to mobilise capital for Europe’s deep tech sector.
Iliana Ivanova, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth said:’With the launch of the Trusted Investors Network, we are making an important step forward in strengthening Europe’s innovation ecosystem and ensuring that our most promising companies have the capital and support they need to scale up. By joining forces with venture capital, we are responding to the urgent challenges laid out in the Draghi report that call for bold action to ensure Europe’s competitiveness in critical technologies.’
You will find more information shortly in our press release.
(For more information: Thomas Regnier – Tel.: +32 2 299 10 99; Roberta Verbanac – Tel.: +32 2 298 24 98)
EU to work towards implementation of Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework at COP
16 on biodiversity
Today marks the start of the COP16 Global Biodiversity Conference in Cali, Colombia – the first major stocktaking opportunity since the historic agreement at COP15. During the conference, the EU will work towards agreements on key issues including biodiversity mainstreaming in other policies until 2030, capacity-building and evidence-based policy making, and strengthening synergies between climate action and biodiversity. The EU will also push for advancement on sharing the benefits from genetic resources and mobilisation of resources for biodiversity. The recently submitted EU-specific Global Biodiversity Framework targets demonstrate the EU’s commitment to implement the framework domestically and to work with partners for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity globally.
The EU will host numerous side-events throughout COP16 at the EU Pavilion to showcase initiatives working towards ambitious GBF implementation and achieving ‘Peace with Nature’ in line with the Colombian Pr
esidency’s objectives. You can follow the events live and find the programme here.
Executive Vice-President for the European Green Deal, Maroš Šefcovic, said: ‘The decisions that the international community will make at COP16 will be essential in shaping the future of our planet. Only global action can reverse the destabilisation of our climate and the dangerous degradation of our environment. The EU has ground-breaking policies to lead the way and inspire others. But we cannot turn the tide on our own. We need to make tangible progress in Cali, to avoid crossing irreversible tipping points.’
You can find further information on the EU’s GBP implementation, EU financing for biodiversity globally, and on the role of nature-based solutions in a detailed news item.
(For more information: Adalbert Jahnz – Tel.: + 32 2 295 31 56; Maëlys Dreux – Tel.: +32 2 295 46 73)
Commissioner Johansson in Brazil to strengthen cooperation on the fight against organised crime and corruption
This week, the Commissioner for Ho
me Affairs, Ylva Johansson, will be in Brazil, where she will attend the G20 Anti-Corruption Ministerial on Thursday.
Today, the Commissioner will visit the National Institute for Criminology and the Center for Cooperation of Migratory Control of the Federal Police in Brasilia and meet with the Director of the Liaison and Partnership Office of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Brazil.
Tomorrow, the Commissioner will meet with the Minister of Justice and Public Security, Ricardo Lewandowski, the Minister of State, General Marcos António Amaro dos Santos, and the Secretary General of the Federal Police, Andrei Augusto Passos Rodrigues in Brasilia. They will exchange views on the fight against drug trafficking and trafficking in human beings, as well as the need for stronger cooperation with the European Drugs Agency, the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre (MAOC-N), Europol and Interpol. On Thursday 24 October, Commissioner Johansson will attend the G20 Anti-Corruption Ministerial in
Natal. The Commissioner is expected to endorse the G20 Ministerial Declaration on anti-corruption, the G20 High-level Principles against private sector corruption, and the new G20 Anti-Corruption Action Plan for 2025-2027.
Throughout the mandate, the Commission has reinforced EU cooperation with Latin America and Caribbean partners in the fight against organised crime, in the framework of the cooperation between the EU and CLASI the Latin American Committee on Internal Security. This partnership, promoting security and stability for citizens of both regions, is supported by the EL PAcCTO 2.0 programme, with a total of EUR 58.8 million from the EU budget.
(For more information: Anitta Hipper – Tel.: +32 2 298 56 91; Elettra Di Massa – Tel.: +32 2 298 21 61)
Commissioner Ivanova awards EU Cities Mission Label to 20 cities for their efforts towards climate neutrality
Tomorrow, Iliana Ivanova, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, will present the EU Mission Label to the third g
roup of cities that are part of the EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, at a ceremony in the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
The 20 cities that make up this new group are: Aachen, Mnster (Germany), Trikala (Greece), Miskolc (Hungary), Eilat (Israel), Bologna, Bergamo, Milan, Prato, Turin (Italy), Liepaja (Latvia), The Hague (Netherlands), Porto (Portugal), Bucharest, 2nd district, Suceava (Romania), Ljubljana, Kranj (Slovenia), and Gothenburg, Gävle and Umeå (Sweden).
These 20 cities will receive the label for their efforts towards climate neutrality. The label recognizes the successful development of their Climate City Contracts (CCCs), which outline the cities’ action and investment plans towards climate neutrality. Cities co-create their CCCs with local stakeholders, including the private sector and citizens.
The EU continues to support cities in their efforts to turn their ambitious plans into a series of projects. This label gives cities access to the Climate City Capital Hub, an inter
national financial resource created in June 2024. The focus is on engaging with private capital. Cities can also benefit from a pound 2 billion loan package set up by the European Investment Bank. The Commission announced for the first time that this group of 20 cities would receive the label on 8 October.
(For more information: Thomas Regnier – Tel.: + 32 2 299 10 99; Roberta Verbanac – Tel.: + 32 2 298 24 98)
CALENDAR
Monday 21/10
Mr Margaritis Schinas in Hanoi, Vietnam (until 23/10): delivers opening remarks at the Green Economy Forum and Exhibition 2024.
Tuesday 22/10
Mr Margaritis Schinas in Hanoi, Vietnam: delivers opening remarks at the Erasmus+ day; participates in the ceremonial signing with World Vision and Red Cross.
Friday 25/10
Ms Stella Kyriakides delivers a speech via videoconference at an event on the EU’s policies on child cancer organised by MEP Giorgos Georgiou; delivers a speech via videoconference to present Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan at the Breast Cancer Awareness event organ
ised by Ms Evanthia Savva, Mayoress of Aradippou.
Source: Cyprus News Agency