JRC and Climate KIC sign collaboration agreement

News article |

Vladimír Šucha, Director General, Joint Research Centre (JRC), and Kirsten Dunlop, Chief Executive Officer, Climate-KIC, have signed a collaboration agreement between both organisations, for an initial two-year period starting from the end of July 2018.

The JRC and Climate-KIC are working together to support innovative climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies. By strengthening their cooperation, they will also help to identify scientific issues and disseminate findings in relevant areas.

The collaboration agreement provides the framework under which the JRC and Climate-KIC may conduct activities. This includes:

Similar positive collaboration already began in March this year, with a joint workshop organised in Slovenia by the JRC and Climate-KIC.

Public authorities of EU Member States and regions came to explore opportunities for synergies between the JRC-supported Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation (RIS3) and Climate-KIC in the context of the EIT-RIS scheme.

Opportunities for effective collaboration, including making use of different funding sources, were identified, with follow-up activities already under way.

The JRC helped to facilitate the discussions and provided tailor-made ground for the stakeholders to explore opportunities. The approach tested will also serve other KICs and other Member States and regions.

About Climate KIC

Climate-KIC is a European Knowledge and Innovation Community, working to accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon economy.

Supported by the EIT, Climate-KIC identifies and supports innovation to help society mitigate and adapt to climate change. Climate-KIC has more than 270 global partners spanning universities, businesses, cities and NGOs.

JRC – EIT relations

Established in 2008, EIT is Europe's largest innovation community.

Through its Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs), EIT gathers over 800 partners across disciplines, countries and sectors.

The EIT and the JRC are working closely together to support innovation, science and knowledge - and the sustainable economic growth they help to bring about.

On the basis of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in September 2016, the two organisations are committed to cooperating in areas of common interest, including Smart Specialisation and the EIT-RIS; education, training and skills; technology transfer; intellectual property;  new financing mechanisms; and knowledge management.