Aid to combat the heat and climate change in europe

In recent years, we have witnessed an alarming increase in extreme weather events, with heatwaves being one of the most prominent. In this article, we will explore how heatwaves are related to climate change, their impacts and how the European Union (EU), through policies and aid budgets, has put in place a strategy to reach climate targets.

Heatwaves: More frequent and intense

Heat waves, characterised by prolonged periods of extremely high temperatures, have increased in frequency and intensity around the world. This trend is aligned with global warming caused by the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Urbanisation and altered weather patterns have exacerbated this phenomenon, making heat waves a recurrent threat to public health, agriculture and ecosystems.

Impacts of heat waves and their link to climate change

The devastating effects of heatwaves are palpable in several ways:

• High temperatures increase mortality and morbidity, especially among vulnerable people.
• Agricultural systems are affected by drought and crop failure, which can trigger food crises.
• Fragile ecosystems suffer irreversible damage, impacting biodiversity and ecosystem services.

Climate change acts as a catalyst for these extreme events. Rising global temperatures are the driver behind the intensification of heat waves, as extreme temperatures that were once considered anomalous now become more frequent and predictable.

EU actions and funding programmes

The European Union has recognised the urgent need to address climate change in Europe and its impacts. Through its European Green Deal Strategy, the EU has committed to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. To support this ambitious goal, the EU has established several funding programmes that promote sustainability and environmental innovation.

Among the European funding programmes that have open calls to fight climate change we can highlight:

• Horizon 2020 (H2020): it has been the Framework Programme for research and innovation in the period 2014-2020 Among the challenges addressed is, unsurprisingly, climate change. Innovative projects that provide sustainable solutions using clean technologies have been funded. Knowing what has been funded can shed light on how to guide future projects.
• Horizon Europe: The successor to H2020, this programme continues to support research and innovation to address climate change and other global problems. It focuses on areas such as clean energy, sustainable mobility and climate change adaptation.
• Innovation Fund: This fund concentrates on supporting clean and sustainable technology projects. It will allocate some €38 billion until 2030 to finance Europe’s decarbonisation. Its focus on innovation and technology transfer contributes directly to the fight against climate change. Without the need to form a consortium, the programme offers two very distinct calls for proposals: Large Scale (large investment projects) and Small Scale.
• LIFE Environment and Climate Action Programme: LIFE funds projects that promote environmental conservation, energy efficiency and climate change mitigation. It also addresses awareness-raising and outreach to engage society in climate action.
• Erasmus and Interreg Europe: Although not directly focused on climate change, these programmes promote cross-border cooperation and education, which can result in significant advances in awareness and collaboration to address climate change at regional and global levels.

Budget allocated to climate change related calls for proposals by programme and year.

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Open calls for climate change projects

Kaila currently has 166 open calls for proposals for innovation projects related to the fight against climate change. You can consult these calls here:

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Conclusion

Heat waves represent a tangible manifestation of climate change and its adverse effects. The European Union, aware of the urgency, is taking significant steps to address this global challenge through funding programmes that promote innovation and sustainability. If you have an innovation project related to the fight against climate change, we invite you to try our platform Kaila to stay up to date on funding and collaboration opportunities that will allow you to boost your project.