‘Researchers Square’ is designed to increase the awareness of research as a solution to the numerous challenges faced by people all around the world and mainly in Europe. The idea of the project, ‘Better Living through Science: from Social Sciences and Humanities to Maths and Technology’, has been conceived in times of crisis, a moment where becomes clearer that we must join efforts to find innovative solutions to encourage young people’s interest in research. It responds also to the challenge of building bridges between researchers and general public, showing that science could give answer to the societal challenges that we are facing in Europe. The project is the third experience of Andalusia in the ERN. Fundación Descubre will coordinate this project, based in its experience through the last 5 years working with relevant projects in Spain and in its consortium experience in the two editions of this project in Andalusia. The consortium is composed by eight Andalusian universities, the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), the Ministry of Economy, Innovation, Science and Employment (CEICE), the Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research and Training (IFAPA) and two of the most important botanical institutions, all dedicated to higher education, research and science popularization in Andalusia. The project's major strength is the high mobilization of researchers, the support and involvement of Municipalities and the numerous activities taking place on main busy streets and historical buildings of the eight Andalusian cities, which will have a high social impact in the region. Given the project’s dimensions, it will be developed with a high mobilization of personnel and technical resources and with the collaboration of the local institutions, NGOs, private companies, teachers and civil associations. The communication campaign aims at reach every third citizen of Andalusia, and with activities in city-center venues more than 53.000 attendees are expected.

MEISTER will deliver a set of tools to foster e-mobility large scale adoption by (1) demonstrating innovative, sustainable business models to lower installation and operation costs of charging infrastructure, (2) optimizing usage of infrastructure by the smart combination of charging and parking services, (3) integrating EV within urban SUMPs, including the establishment of EV sharing and the inclusion of EV within MaaS schemas to reduce CO2 emissions and optimize urban space usage, (4) providing interoperable platforms and services to users for an easy, convenient and barrier-free access to charging, billing and smart grid services, including an increase of the use of RES and self-generation to power EVs. Thus, MEISTER aims at creating the conditions for smart e-mobility market take up in cities, by means of developing integrated approaches, smart solutions and innovative, sustainable business models, which will be tested and validated in three urban areas in Southern, Central and Northern Europe: Malaga (Spain), Berlin (Germany), and Gothenburg (Sweden). These 3 sites are EU leaders in the field of e-mobility, have complementary contexts and share a common vision on EV deployment. The three MEISTER pilots will involve 51,500 users, 1,000 EV and 660 charging points. MEISTER expects to increase by 15% the demand for EVs, as well to reduce by 20% the installation costs of EVSE infrastructure. At the same time, the project expects to help reduce charging prices by 20% and increase by 30% the usage of RES to charge EVs. As a result of these figures, the project will also have a substantial impact in terms of a reduction of emissions and environmental sustainability, as described in section 2.1.4. Business models and public-private partnership frameworks developed and demonstrated by the project will be designed and documented to facilitate trans-European transferability and impact.

The aim of the EMERITUS project is to realize and implement a protocol for effective environmental crime investigation, leveraging on the integration of innovative monitoring and analysis technologies (drones, satellite data, virtual sensors, geo-intelligence data, etc.), and on a complementary training programme aimed at fostering environmental enforcement authorities (e.g. Police Authorities and Border Guards Authorities) intelligence and investigation capabilities, at national and cross-border level. In order to achieve this goal, the EMERITUS consortium has gathered 8 Police/Border Guard authorities from 5 countries, 4 security experts, 2 training specialists and 6 technological partners, that will be the core of the platform. The consortium will focus on the co-creation of an investigation protocol centered on environmental crimes investigation, that will orient to the creation of the geo-intelligence platform. This platform will integrate several monitoring and investigation technologies and data sources, in a single view to support Police Authorities and decision-makers. Secondly, a new training programme for Police Authorities and other security practitioners, focused on environmental (waste-related) crimes investigation and prevention, will be delivered combining both theoretical aspects and hand-on simulations to empower end-users to actually use the platform and related technologies. Such exercises will serve to validate both the platform and the protocol, via simulations based on 4 realistic use cases (heterogeneous and of growing complexity), taking advantage of the shared will of Police Authorities and Border Guards to focus on ad hoc demonstration sites, with the additional availability of partners’ simulation facilities. The validation of the platform and of the protocol will result in the successful elaboration of a set of evidence-based recommendations for policy authorities and decision-makers.

Four major Distribution System Operators (in Italy, France, Spain and Sweden) with smart metering infrastructure in place, associated with electricity retailers, aggregators, software providers, research organizations and one large consumer, propose five large-scale demonstrations to show that the deployment of novel services in the electricity retail markets (ranging from advanced monitoring to local energy control, and flexibility services) can be accelerated thanks to an open European Market Place for standardized interactions among all the electricity stakeholders, opening up the energy market also to new players at EU level. The proposed virtual environment will empower real customers with higher quality and quantity of information on their energy consumptions (and generation in case of prosumers), addressing more efficient energy behaviours and usage as through advanced energy monitoring and control services. Accessibility of metering data, close to real time, made available by DSOs in a standardized and non-discriminatory way to all the players of electricity retail markets (e.g. electricity retailers, aggregators, ESCOs and end consumers), will facilitate the emergence of new markets for energy services, enhancing competitiveness and encouraging the entry of new players, benefitting the customers. Economic models of these new services will be proposed and assessed. Based on the five demonstrations, while connecting with parallel projects funded at EU or national levels on novel services provision, the dissemination activities will support the preparation of the Market Place exploitation strategies, as well as the promotion of the use cases tested during the demonstration activities.