ERA-GAS Cofund

The aim of the ERA-GAS Cofund is to strengthen the transnational coordination of research programmes and provide added value to research and innovation on greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation in the European Research Area. ERA-GAS will organise a single joint transnational call for proposals with cofunding from the European Commission (EC). In addition, ERA-GAS will undertake additional joint activities including at least one other joint call without EC cofunding. By pooling national money and funding projects at a European/international level, ERA-GAS will achieve a critical mass for funding GHG research, thereby reducing duplication, harmonising research effort and making more efficient use of limited resources. Greater cooperation will enhance innovation capacity in the European Research Area and encourage the development of enabling solutions to reduce GHG emissions and improve inventories. ERA-GAS will work closely with other ERA-NETs and reinforce existing collaborations between actors in the research area (e.g. via FACCE-JPI and the GRA). A plan will also be drawn up for future collaborative actions to ensure that enhanced cooperation will be maintained past the lifetime of the ERA-NET. Through collaboration in this ERA-NET and additional joint activities, partners in the consortium will exchange experience and gain insight into other national/regional research programmes. This will help managers to follow best practice in terms of implementing international funding calls and harmonise research and policy agendas across nations. The objectives of ERA-GAS will directly address the scope of the Work Programme by incentivising participating countries to commit resources towards the development of a sustainable, innovative and more GHG efficient bioeconomy in Europe. This transnational effort is urgently required to develop mitigation solutions, refine reporting mechanisms and design policy instruments necessary to tackle this key global environmental challenge.

ERA-GAS Cofund has launched a call for transnational research projects in Europe and New Zealand. The joint call is under the ERA-NET Cofund scheme of Horizon 2020 of the European Commission. The scientific scope of the present call for proposals addresses collaborative projects in the following four research themes:

• 1) Improving national GHG inventories and monitoring, reporting and verification of emissions
• 2) Refining and facilitating the implementation of GHG mitigation technologies
• 3) State of the art production systems that are profitable and improve food and forest biomass production while reducing GHG emissions
• 4) Assessment of policy and economic measures to support emissions reductions across the farm-to-fork and forest-to consumer chain.