Transnational shared common themes for environmental and sustainability research and innovation

Sustainability research and innovation are essential for addressing the pressing environmental, economic, and social challenges that Europe faces. The Collaborative Action for Sustainability Research and Innovation (CASRI) project, funded by HORIZON Europe, brings together environmental agencies and similar partners from 14 European countries as well as the European Environment Agency (EEA). The project aims to enhance the coordination and impact of sustainability research across the continent.

In a systematic bottom-up approach, the CASRI project gathered information on knowledge needs and gaps from a wide range of sustainability experts in each country, totaling in over 600 proposals for priorities. Based on content analysis and a transnational workshop with 60 experts from 47 countries, the project team synthesized the proposals. Priorities across four predefined themes were identified – considering net-zero production systems, biodiversity and climate, sustainable urbanization, and an environmentally friendly energy transition.

To expand Europe’s environmental and sustainability R&I beyond sectoral silos, the CASRI project identified four cross-cutting priorities for the above-mentioned themes:

• Security and resilience: For example, energy and resource security should be addressed through integrated, cross-sectoral approaches that consider both local vulnerabilities and global interdependencies.
• Participation and democratic innovation: A key need is to ensure social justice and equity, particularly as sustainability solutions like electric vehicles remain inaccessible to many.
• Regulatory efficiency and competitiveness: A strategic rethinking of governance structures, tools, and incentives is required. At the core is the need for smart, adaptive regulation that supports innovation while reducing unnecessary administrative burdens.
• Digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence: Digitalisation raises questions of equity and accessibility. Tools, monitoring and data must be designed with users in mind — ensuring they are not only technically robust but also fair, transparent, and inclusive.

This report of the third CASRI work package, Deliverable 3.1, thus enhances the understanding of shared transnational demands by providing an enriched, updated, and prioritized overview of environmental and sustainability research and innovation priorities. The report represents a significant step forward in shaping the project's Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA).

From Switzerland, the Federal Office for the Environment and the SCNAT Sustainability Research Initiative are involved in the project and have attended the transnational workshop.