📆 This Friday, on 6 February, the European Citizens’ Panel on a new European budget fit for our ambitions closes its series of panels with an online feedback event! What a journey it has been – citizens from across Europe were at the heart of the conversation, sharing their priorities and shaping the debate on what the next long-term EU budget should prioritise. 💶 From education and skills to competitiveness, sustainability, and social cohesion, citizens’ recommendations fed into the proposal for the 2028–2034 EU budget. This upcoming feedback session will show how these ideas are being translated into policies, directly from the voices of EU experts. 💬 This event gives participants also a space to engage directly with EU experts and exchange reflections. 🌍 By listening to EU citizens from every corner of the Union, the EU Commission presented a budget that truly reflects their needs and aspirations, addressing both long-term priorities and emerging challenges.

What does green steel really mean? Look north.In Luleå, Sweden, steel is being made without coal.Blast furnaces are being phased out, replaced by fossil-free electricity and recycled materials. The goal isn’t only lower emissions — it’s also keeping skills, jobs and industry in the region.With EU support, workers are retrained and long-term investments become possible.The message from industry is clear: the transition is happening — and clarity on climate rules matters.This is what the green transition looks like in real life.

What if cities heated homes using industrial waste heat?That’s already happening in Hamburg.In Hafencity, excess heat from a copper smelter is captured, stored and reused to heat thousands of homes — instead of being wasted. The result: lower emissions, more efficient energy use and a smarter urban heating system.Backed by EU funding, this project shows how cities can decarbonise everyday infrastructure by connecting industry and urban development.Sometimes, the cleanest energy is the one we already produce.#EnergyTransition #DistrictHeating #SustainableCities #EUFunds #ClimateAction #CohesionPolicy

No radiators. Winter temperatures. €200 a year for heating.Sounds impossible?It’s real — in Aachen, Germany.Passivhaus homes use insulation, smart ventilation and heat pumps to stay warm with minimal energy. Researchers are now testing how people actually interact with these systems, because behaviour matters as much as technology.This is what the energy transition looks like when it enters everyday life.

Solar energy is cheap, clean and flexible, making it the EU’s fastest growing energy source 😎 ⚡DG Energy's latest 'in focus' article shines a light on ⬇️ ☀️ The range of 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 available: solar photovoltaic panels, solar thermal and concentrated solar power☀️ 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 in the EU ☀️𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 for consumers and the EU as a wholelink.europa.eu/bdgPHJ #SolarEnergy #EnergyTransition

Where does the electricity we consume come from? 🔌⚡ Recent Eurostat data shows that 47.5% of EU's electricity consumption came from renewables in 2024!Wind powered 38% of our renewable electricity consumption, followed by hydropower (26.4%), solar (23.4%) and solid biofuels (5.8%). Solar is the fastest growing source - up from just 1% in 2008! ☀️↗️In 3 EU countries, electricity generated from renewable sources accounted for more than 75% of total electricity consumption. These were - Austria (90.1%, mostly hydro)- Sweden (88.1%, mostly hydro and wind)- Denmark (79.7%, mostly wind)

Calling All #EUSpace Founders!Applications are officially open for Batch 7 of the CASSINI Business Accelerator!This 6-month, EU-wide programme is built to help ambitious space startups grow, scale, and succeed - across both upstream and downstream markets.Who can apply?Eligibility details & application form:https: https://lnkd.in/dFdchUTy Deadline: March 6, 2026Be part of Europe’s next generation of space entrepreneurs.#cassiniEU

Boosting security, prosperity, competitiveness, democracy ... These and other priorities have been the focus of the first year of the von der Leyen II Commission.Read the newsletter about it from @EULawandPublications and subscribe for future editions.

In 2025, global temperature hit the third highest on record.The 2023–2025 period was marked by extreme heat, devastating wildfires, and severe storms, all closely linked to rising greenhouse gas emissions.Other warning signs:🌍 Polar temperature anomalies, with a record high in Antarctica🌊 Global sea surface temperatures stayed historically highThe EU remains committed to becoming climate-neutral by 2050.This year, we will present a new European Framework for climate resilience and risk management to better prepare the EU for climate risks.Earth needs actions. Now. 🌍#CopernicusEU

Living near a border shouldn’t limit job opportunitiesIn many EU border regions, jobs exist on both sides — but skills gaps, red tape and mismatched training systems still make it hard for people to work across borders.That’s why the EU is launching consultations to listen directly to workers, employers and local actors in border regions. The goal: understand what blocks labour mobility and how skills systems can work better across borders.Because when borders stop people from working, learning or growing professionally, entire regions lose out.Supported by #EUFunds.#CohesionPolicy #BorderRegions #Skills #LabourMobility

🎉✨ Happy New Year! Start 2026 with a goal that opens doors: learn a new language with OLS! Learn at your pace, connect with communities and make progress while having fun.

Croatia: when historic castles become living places againWhat happens when heritage is not just preserved, but used?In Istria, two historic castles are showing how cultural heritage can drive local life and sustainable tourism. Once abandoned, Morosini-Grimani Castle in Svetvinčenat is now a lively community hub, welcoming around 45,000 visitors a year and hosting everything from concerts and medieval nights to food markets, escape games and family activities.Nearby, the more remote Petrapilosa Fortress, dating back to the 10th century, has also found a new role. Despite its isolation, it now attracts visitors through poetry festivals, treasure hunts, meditation workshops and music events — proving that even lesser-known sites can thrive when reimagined with care.Behind this transformation is KulTERRA, a project that combines heritage preservation with cultural tourism and local economic development. By keeping these sites active and meaningful, the project helps ensure they are maintained, respected and passed on to future generations.A reminder that heritage survives best when it remains part of everyday life — with EU support.

Faster diagnosis can save livesIn Lithuania, a new genetic test can diagnose tuberculosis — and detect drug resistance — in just four hours.Combined with the modernisation of a specialised hospital in Kaunas, this means patients start treatment earlier, outcomes improve, and transmission risks fall.Public health innovation that delivers real impact — with EU support.

Hungary and Serbia: when a shared river demands shared solutionsFloods, droughts and pollution are reshaping the behaviour of the Tisza River — the largest tributary of the Danube and a lifeline for communities across five countries.Through the ADAPTisa project, Hungary and Serbia are working together to better understand and anticipate these changes. Researchers, universities, water authorities and citizens are pooling data to build a shared digital platform for integrated river basin management. The goal is simple but ambitious: improve flood and drought forecasting and support faster, better-informed responses.On the ground, this cooperation takes many forms. Volunteers clean riverbanks, researchers collect water samples, and local memories of past floods are recorded — all feeding into models that combine historical data, real-time measurements and AI-based simulations.When climate risks don’t stop at borders, cooperation can’t either — with EU support.

Porto’s Bolhão market: when renovation keeps a place aliveSome renovations erase the soul of a place. Bolhão did the opposite. Reopened in 2022 after four years of work, Porto’s historic Bolhão market shows how a city can modernise infrastructure without losing what makes a place matter. Behind the restored Art Nouveau façade, everything has changed: better logistics, hygiene standards, cold storage, underground deliveries — all designed to make daily life easier for traders.And yet, the spirit is the same.The same voices, the same products, the same human connections that make Bolhão the heart of the city, visited by around 20,000 people every day. Financed with EU support, the renovation proves that investing in heritage isn’t about freezing the past — it’s about keeping it useful, welcoming and alive for the people who rely on it every day.

Keeping our drinking water safe. 💧EU countries must now monitor PFAS levels in drinking water. PFAS are long-lasting chemicals that can be harmful, if levels are too high.If that happens authorities must act and inform people until the water is safe again. Because everyone deserves access to safe drinking water.

🛡️💶 The Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) is expanding its reach to support EU defence technologies, thanks to the recent adoption of the Defence mini-omnibus Regulation! Key developments: · The Regulation, in force since 23 December 2025, extends STEP’s scope to include defence technologies alongside digital, clean, and bio technologies. · It aligns with the mid-term review of the cohesion policy framework, creating new incentives for EU Member States and regions to fund defence-related investments. · A second STEP Guidance Note was published on 23 December 2025, clarifying the scope of defence technologies and other implementation details. · Over EUR 27bn in EU funding has already been allocated to strategic technologies under STEP since its launch in March 2024. · All funding calls, including for defence, are available on the STEP calls dashboard: https://lnkd.in/eZ769bvX STEP is now a key driver for innovation in EU defence, digital, clean, and bio technologies, fostering competitiveness and security.

When the energy transition helps families make ends meetEnergy transition is often discussed in abstract terms.In Torreblanca, it’s something much more tangible: lower electricity bills, dignity and hope.This neighbourhood in Seville has long struggled with poverty. Today, families are part of a local energy community powered by solar panels installed on school rooftops — made possible with EU support.For parents, it means less anxiety when summer nights require air conditioning.For children, it means learning about climate action through real-life examples at school.For the neighbourhood, it means being known not for hardship, but for innovation and solidarity.This is what energy transition looks like when people are truly at the centre.#EnergyPoverty #SocialImpact #EUFunds #LocalEnergy #JustTransition

In Greece, where most residential buildings are old, poorly insulated, and still reliant on fossil fuels, accelerating the clean energy transition requires 👷‍♂️ training new professionals, and⚡ empowering energy communitiesby offering them the technical, organisational, and financial support needed to deliver high-quality renovations at scale.The #CitizenLedRenovation initiative supports projects that aim to build collectives capable of operating independently in the long term as community-driven renovation actors.