Sustainability

Technological and innovative entrepreneurship program in Girona. Benestar i Salut Girona Hub supports entrepreneurs through specialised training and mentoring to promote the creation and growth of companies based on innovation, technology and new business models in the field of well-being, which includes food, health and sports. This progam promotes entrepreneurship in the wellness sector, based on innovation and technology and supports the creation of new companies and/or new products and services through levers, platforms, support and training that help to respond to challenges, needs and opportunities present in the territory. The program offers 100 hours of [...]

Technological and innovative entrepreneurship program in Lleida. EMPRÈN BIO 4.0 promotes technological and innovative entrepreneurship as a driver of new sustainable business models in Lleida. The project boosts the economic and business fabric through the bioeconomy and its value chains: agri-food, biomaterials, bioenergy, biofertilizers, biofuels, bioproducts, bioplastics and the economic and social valorisation of ecosystem services. EMPRÈN BIO 4.0 supports entrepreneurs through specialised training and mentoring to promote the creation and growth of companies based on innovation, technology and new business models in the field of bioeconomy. The objective is to promote the valorisation of renewable [...]

Current state and action plan for Blue Carbon in Catalonia. BlauCat analyses the state of blue carbon in the coastal ecosystems of Catalonia to assess its potential as CO₂ sinks and design conservation and restoration strategies. These ecosystems, which include wetlands and seagrass meadows, are fundamental for carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation, coastal protection, and marine biodiversity. BlauCat quantifies blue carbon reserves, identifies threats, and establishes monitoring tools that enable management based on scientific evidence. Additionally, the project lays the groundwork for its inclusion in carbon offset mechanisms and environmental policies in Catalonia. Through mapping, [...]

Resilience 4.0 of infrastructures and crops against invasive species. INVASOR-ES develops advanced technological solutions to combat invasive alien species (IAS) in hydraulic infrastructures, especially in irrigation systems. These species, such as the zebra mussel, the apple snail and bryozoans, generate serious problems in infrastructures: obstructions, breakdowns, high maintenance costs and loss of agricultural productivity. INVASOR-ES implements new technologies where the use of advanced monitoring sensors, combined with artificial vision and deep learning, will allow the precise and efficient identification and classification of different larvae of invasive species. The main result of this project is the creation [...]

Fair transition for the fashion sector. Just Fashion drives the climate transition in the fashion industry, promoting circular, sustainable, inclusive and resilient business models. With the collaboration of several European regions and actors, the project prepares companies in the sector for the demands of the Green Deal, transforming their production methods, internal processes and end products towards more sustainable practices. The main objectives of the project are: Research and innovation: Generate practical and transferable knowledge through six pilots to accelerate the transformation of the fashion sector. Sustainability and circular economy: Promote sustainable and circular practices to [...]

Ecological implications of restoring sediment flows in regulated rivers. The ECOSEDRIV project understands and quantifies the interactions between suspended sediments, flow regime and biological communities in highly regulated rivers to design new reservoir management schemes to restore sediment flow towards the coast in a sustainable way. ECOSEDRIV takes the lower Ebro River as a model of highly regulated river systems with a strong sediment deficit and where large floods were suppressed, to test the hypotheses raised by the project. Deltas are among the most vulnerable coastal systems and require sediment inputs for their progradation and vertical [...]

Protection and restoration of  marine protected areas in the Mediterranean. The EFFECTIVE project develops a comprehensive scientific knowledge base and practical guidance, combining science, technological, nature-based solutions, digitalization, and social engagement, for the application of the ecosystem-based management to the protection and restoration of the EU’s Mediterranean Blue Natural Capital. The development of the project is divided into the three fundamental pillars of ecosystem-based management: First, the development of protection and restoration tools and the establishment of a policy framework, which aims to implement technological and nature-based solutions for the restoration and protection of marine biodiversity, [...]

Identification, classification and catalogue of nature-based solutions in Spain that allow planning and maximizing benefits in the fight against climate change. The Systematization of Nature-Based Solutions in Spain (E:SBN) project establishes a system for identifying, classifying and cataloguing Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) created in different types of ecosystems in Spain, from parks, green corridors, coastal restoration and wetlands or climate refuges, so that their planning and implementation, both in urban and rural environments, is carried out with a global perspective and in a coherent, effective and adapted way to each territorial reality within the framework of climate [...]

Transformation in territories and the activities developed in them to make them less vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The Life eCOadapt50 project raises awareness of climate change adaptation (CCA) at the local level, through the involvement of regional governments, research centres and socioeconomic actors. In particular, Life eCOadapt50 increases the resilience of the economic sectors most vulnerable to climate change in four economic activities: tourism, fishing, forestry and agriculture/livestock. The project carries out at least 76 actions between 2023 and 2030 in 19 territories across Catalonia covering around 60% of the region's territory (around 19,400 [...]

Reliability and effectiveness of integrated alternative water resources management for regional climate change adaption. The RECREATE project improves the resilience of water supplies and protects the status of natural water resources by facilitating the assessment and inclusion of Alternative Water Resources (AWR) in water management planning for water-scarce regions. RECREATE will compile existing information and will use existing and newly developed models and tools to support the evidence-based, quantitative assessment of different water management strategies under different socio-economic scenarios and climate change projections. The project will improve the cost efficiency of selected AWR solutions by demonstrating [...]

Optimizing the charging process for electric vehicles, from power generation to end-user experience. The XL-Connect project creates an accessible and on-demand charging solution based on an optimized charging network, taking into account human behaviour, technical aspects and economic aspects. By 2030, the European Union is expected to have between 30 and 40 million battery electric vehicles on the road. This increase poses challenges and opportunities for the energy system by testing system capacity, but also presents the possibility of using V2G, V2H and V2X technologies, as parked electric vehicles can function as energy storage. The objectives [...]

Reuse of batteries through characterisation, smart logistics, automated pack and module dismantling and repackaging and a blockchain-enabled marketplace. The RECIRCULATE project addresses the needs of the European recycling sector by overcoming current challenges relating to automated dismantling and sorting; safe logistics; fast, cost-effective, and reliable characterisation of the states of charge, health, power, energy and safety (SoX). Combining these advances with a blockchain-based platform, that integrates the data collected during dismantling and recycling and the battery provenance, enables a unique battery passport and a virtual marketplace for e-mobility, consumer, and stationary Battery Energy Storage Systems. This [...]

Co-creation of a citizen science toolkit for climate assemblies in living labs. The CLIMAS project aims to support a transition to climate resilience by co-designing an innovative problem-oriented climate adoption Toolbox, which relies on the application of a value-based approach, design thinking methods and citizen science mechanisms. CLIMAS will test the Toolbox in Climate Assemblies and Living Labs and formulate scientific-based guidelines for policymakers on how to shift Climate Assemblies from expert technically based deliberations to multi-stakeholder value-based dilemmas from a bottom-up and more societal perspective. The use of the Toolbox will anticipate possible tensions, points [...]

Design of stabilisation and recovery technologies for metallic soil pollutants by means of native microorganisms. The BiMeSOIL project has the objective to revalue contaminated soils through a tailor-made in situ treatment design by using specialized native microorganisms in order to improve the leaching or stabilisation processes of problematic metals, such as lead, arsenic, chromium, cadmium or mercury. Soil characterization and directed biological research will lead to tailored in situ treatment processes through bioremediation (biomagnification and bioaugmentation) or mixed techniques (combined biological and physicochemical). These are some objectives of the project: Soil physical characterization. Contaminant identification. Biological [...]

Development of technologies to remove pollutants from soils, sediments, surface- and groundwater, that can be harmful to human health. The PROMISCES project develops, tests and demonstrates in the field, under real-life conditions, key technologies and innovations to monitor, prevent and remediate industrial persistent and mobile and potentially toxic pollutants in the soil-sediment-water system. At this sense, PROMISCES project identifies how industrial pollution prevents the deployment of the circular economy (CE) in the EU and which strategies help overcome key bottlenecks to deliver the ambitions of the European Green Deal and Circular Economy Action Plan. PROMISCES considers [...]