OPINION: To fix Europe’s food system, start with the school lunch

Treating school meals as a logistical burden is a wasted opportunity. New data shows they are a strategic lever for the EU Green Deal and European Child Guarantee.

Horizon Europe 🇪🇺 (@HorizonEU) on X

EU-funded projects are providing cities with practical solutions to adapt to climate risks, from heat maps in Athens to flood models in Rotterdam. This #WorldCitiesDay explore their impact in a new report from the #EUGreenDeal Project Support Office: https://t.co/byU0NV4uHD

Horizon Europe 🇪🇺 (@HorizonEU) on X

EU-funded projects are providing cities with practical solutions to adapt to climate risks, from heat maps in Athens to flood models in Rotterdam. This #WorldCitiesDay explore their impact in a new report from the #EUGreenDeal Project Support Office: https://t.co/byU0NV4uHD

Eurodoc Statement in Support of the European Commission's Suggestion to Suspend Israel from Parts of Horizon Europe

Taking stock: Reflections on Horizon 2020

<p xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" class="first" dir="auto" id="d1525753e64">Horizon 2020 was the European Union’s Framework Programme for research and innovation that ran from 2014 to 2020. With a budget of nearly €77 billion, this was, at the time, the EU’s largest ever research and innovation funding programme. An interim evaluation of Horizon 2020 was performed in 2017, which involved more than 1,000 interviews with stakeholders, a survey of applicants and the use of combined quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods. Final findings were presented by the European Commission in January 2024. Horizon 2020 was built around three key pillars: excellent science; industrial leadership; and societal challenges, with emphasis on interrelated themes of gender equality, open science and international cooperation. A key goal was investment in the skills, knowledge and infrastructure needed to advance scientific advancement and adapt to a changing economy. It supported 33 Nobel Prize winners spanning breakthroughs in medical sciences, quantum mechanics, chemical engineering and composite materials. The programme facilitated cross-border collaborations and a number of key breakthroughs, including the development of the first vaccines against COVID-19, advances in DNA dating and capturing the first image of a black hole. The programme had a keen eye on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a focus on fighting climate change. Indeed, 64.4% of Horizon 2020’s budget was invested in sustainable development. Additional foci were health research, climate action and digital technologies. </p>

Designing Microbial Communities For Enhanced Biohydrogen Production

Phototrophic microbial communities – groups of tiny organisms whose energy for growth comes from light – play a significant role in global primary production by absorbing carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas. With the growing challenges of energy demands and environmental concerns, researchers are exploring scientifically designed (synthetic) phototrophic communities as a promising alternative to traditional energy generation methods. These consortia can efficiently convert CO₂ and N₂ gases, along with water and solar energy, into bioenergy products, offering a potential solution to today’s energy and sustainability problems.In this context, the development of synthetic phototrophic communities has attracted increased attention due to their ability to divide tasks among different species, allowing them to function more efficiently and remain stable. However, challenges remain, particularly in maintaining balance among strains and ensuring stable performance in environments that do not replicate the complex natural conditions in which these consortia typically thrive.To address these challenges, recent PROMICON studies have focused on how cyanobacteria interact with purple nonsulfur bacteria (PNSB). These bacteria, including Rhodopseudomonas palustris (R. palustris), have shown potential in producing biohydrogen and lipids by capturing nitrogen in oxygen-free environments. Nevertheless, a key limitation is that they need a carbon-based food source (e.g., acetate) to produce energy. A promising approach to overcome this issue involves growing R. palustris with cyanobacteria, which can pull carbon dioxide from the air and turn it into the organic carbon that R. palustris needs to thrive.