ESEIA Releases 2024 Annual Report Marking 15 Years of Advancing Sustainable Energy Innovation
The European Sustainable Energy Innovation Alliance (ESEIA) has released its 15 Year Anniversary Report 2024, a comprehensive document reflecting on the 15 years of progress, collaboration, and impact in sustainable energy research and innovation. This 15-Year Anniversary Edition provides a detailed overview of ESEIA’s achievements, key milestones, and strategic direction for the future.
15 Years of Growth and Impact
Since its establishment in 2009, ESEIA has developed into a strong European alliance, bringing together leading academic institutions, research organizations, and industry partners. The alliance has maintained an average of 28 member organizations across 15 EU countries, supported by 300 partner organizations and a network of over 350 active experts.
A key highlight of ESEIA’s success over the past 15 years is its contribution to securing €17.7 mio in project income, distributed as follows:
- €6.4 mio for ESEIA members,
- €9.1 mio for ESEIA partners, and
- €2.2 mio for ESEIA itself.
Additionally, the alliance has demonstrated a strong commitment to fostering high-impact research and innovation, with a 1 in 4 success rate from a total of 88 EU-funded project proposals submitted.
Pioneering Research and Innovation
In 2024, ESEIA played a significant role in two major EU-funded research and innovation projects:
- EMERGE (funded under Horizon Europe, Call HORIZON-CL5-2022-D3-02) – A project dedicated to providing African policymakers, researchers, and investors with tools for clean energy production and sustainable resource use. ESEIA contributed to the development of knowledge communities in Morocco, Nigeria, and Mozambique, supporting Africa’s transition to green energy.
- INITIATE (funded under Horizon Europe, Call HORIZON-WIDERA-2023-ACCESS-03-01) – Aimed at empowering higher education institutions in widening countries to enhance their research and innovation capacity. As a consortium partner, ESEIA played a key role in knowledge transfer, policy engagement, and institutional reform.
Strengthening Education and Training
Over the past 15 years, ESEIA has built a robust Education and Training Programme (ETP), delivering over 42 training events and reaching 1,700+ students and professionals.
In 2024, key education and training activities included:
- ESEIA Lecture Series – Covering topics such as climate-neutral buildings, renewable energy and land use, circular bioeconomy, and energy system modeling.
- ESEIA International Summer School 2024 – Focused on Net Zero Solutions for climate-friendly energy production, hosted in collaboration with Savonia University of Applied Sciences and North Savo Energy Cluster.
- 6th ESEIA International Conference – Held in Kuopio, Finland, bringing together 70 participants and featuring 27 presentations on sustainable energy systems and pathways to net-zero emissions.
ESEIA’s Vision for the Future
ESEIA is committed to actively shaping the next EU Research and Innovation Framework Programme (FP10). The ESEIA FP10 Position Paper, adopted by the General Assembly in 2024, outlines five key recommendations:
- Enhancing the role of European thematic alliances in policy development, project implementation, and exploitation pathways.
- Fostering global innovation ecosystem partnerships to strengthen international cooperation in research and innovation.
- Prioritizing horizontal research and innovation topics, with a focus on deep-tech and sustainable solutions.
- Ensuring actionability of the EU framework programme by improving coordination across technology readiness levels (TRLs) and supporting multi-actor innovation approaches.
- Providing room for self-organization and entrepreneurship, enabling novel ideas to transition from research to market applications.
Recognizing Excellence in Sustainable Energy Innovation
In recognition of outstanding contributions to the alliance’s mission, ESEIA presented its annual awards during its 15-Year Anniversary Celebration in Brussels.
- Honorary President Award: Harald Kainz (Former ESEIA President, TU Graz)
- Coordinator of the Year: Michael Bongards (TH Cologne)
- Team of the Year: Goran Krajačić (UZagreb-FSB)
These awards highlight the dedication and leadership of ESEIA members in advancing collaborative research, education, and innovation.
Looking Ahead to 2025
As ESEIA enters its next phase, the alliance is focused on:
- Expanding collaborative research and innovation projects under Horizon Europe.
- Strengthening engagement with member organizations and external stakeholders.
- Enhancing global partnerships to drive sustainable energy innovation.
The 15 Year ESEIA Anniversary Report 2024 provides a comprehensive reflection on the alliance’s journey and a roadmap for the future.
