The year’s 9 best European clean energy projects to be recognized at the EU Sustainable Energy Awards 2020

Every year the European Commission recognises the most outstanding individuals and projects in the field of sustainable energy. This year, 9 finalists will compete in 3 award categories: Engagement, Innovation and Youth, and an additional category will recognise the achievements of Women in Energy.The EU Sustainable Energy Awards (EUSEW Awards) acknowledge the crucial role of the private and public sector, NGOs, national and local authorities for a climate-neutral Europe. 

This year, for the first time, the Award winners will be announced on 23 June during a live, online ceremony.

2020 EUSEW Award Finalists

Category Youth: A young generation of changemakers with creative ideas for the energy transition 

Croatia: Zagreb students conduct energy audits in more than 100 energy-poor households

Engineering students help tackle energy poverty in their local communities. The Fair (FER) Solutions for Better Community project has trained students to perform over 100 household audits to identify energy-saving solutions (e.g. installing insulated windows and doors, LED lamps and radiator reflection panels) with savings of around 200 kg CO2/year, per household, anticipated as a result.

Germany: 15 students set up a German-wide education project for sustainable development

The young team leading the Weltfairsteher project is making sustainability a core part of the German curriculum with 60 online challenges – available to students of all ages, free of charge – on topics including climate change, energy & mobility, production & consumption, and water.

Cyprus: Cypriot changemaker training young island professionals to join the clean energy transition

The Youth Employment Network for Energy Sustainability in Islands (YENESIS) project has engaged over 84 young professionals from islands in Greece, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Portugal, Spain and Italy, providing training, mentoring and apprenticeships in energy efficiency, renewables, sustainable tourism and mobility.

Category engagement:  Enabling citizens to drive change

Portugal: Coaching citizens to understand their energy expenses

Friendly Bill, a project from Portugal, is empowering citizens to become more energy efficient by coaching them to better understand their energy expenses. The project has reached a total of 100,000 consumers in Portugal and trained over 308 technicians to help consumers change their energy use habits.

Netherlands: Local communities take charge of their renewable energy generation

The cVPP project developed 3 community-based virtual power plants in Belgium, Ireland and the Netherlands. These virtual plants are coordinated by prosumer communities, like a small group of village-owned wind turbines or rooftop solar panels, via cloud-based systems. This allows the communities, themselves, to own, control and sell the power they generated via the national or regional electricity grids. 

Belgium: Belgian-based project popularises renewables for homes

The CLEAR 2.0 project, changes consumers’ energy use habits. The CLEAR 2.0 lab tested home-based renewable energy technologies (e.g. solar panel rooftops, heat pumps) for nearly 30,000 households in Belgium, Czechia, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain.

Category innovation:  Innovative ideas are key to drive a sustainable energy transition

Ireland: Irish breakthrough in tidal energy technology makes waves across European coastal communities

The Direct Drive Tidal Turbine (D2T2) project has made a breakthrough in a cutting-edge technology: tidal energy turbines. In 2016, the D2T2 project installed the world’s first offshore tidal device in Scotland. The project’s tidal energy technology is more efficient, reducing the total costs of producing tidal energy by 30%. Moreover, D2T2’s technology is popular among local communities because it has no impact on the environment.

Italy: Italian team helps isolated communities in Europe become self-sustainable

The Remote area Energy supply with Multiple Options for integrated hydrogen-based Technologies (REMOTE) is a project started in Italy, Greece and Norway. True to its name, in areas that face unique challenges when it comes to accessing and storing renewable energy, the project is rolling out its hydrogen and battery-based energy storage technology in test sites across Europe.

Greece: A team of European innovators make home improvements simple and green

In Greece, green innovators support homeowners to make home renovations easy and efficient. The Individual Building Renovation Roadmaps (iBRoad) project supports single-family houses in setting-up personalised renovation plans to make smart financial and energy-efficient plans for renovations to improve their home over the next 5-30 years.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------A special prize, the Eastern Partnership Award, will be given to one inspiring sustainable energy initiative in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova or Ukraine.

People from all over Europe will have the chance to vote for the 2020 Citizens’ Award by selecting their favourite project from among the finalists (vote closes on 15 June).

Registration is now open to take part in dedicated webinars for the press with the EUSEW Award finalists 2020.Don’t miss you chance to meet the finalists and learn more about their innovative projects!

·       Awards Press Talk: EUSEW Finalists Engagement - REGISTER

·       Awards Press Talk: EUSEW Finalists Youth - REGISTER

·       Awards Press Talk: EUSEW Finalists Innovation - REGISTER

·       EUSEW Talk: Women in Energy - REGISTER

·       EUSEW Awards Q&A session for the press - REGISTER

About EUSEW

EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) will take place 22-26 June 2020 under the theme: ‘Beyond the crisis: clean energy for green recovery and growth’. This year, participants will enjoy an online, interactive event experience. Highlights include a 3-day policy conference featuring a high-level opening session, the EUSEW Awards, networking activities and side events for participants as well as Energy Days, digital events taking place all over Europe. For the first time, a European Youth Energy Day will be organised on 22 June. 

For press inquiries please contact:   Media@eusew.eu