In November 2018, the High-Level Panel (HLP) of the European Decarbonisation Pathways Initiative published a final report on research and innovation (R&I) needs in Europe towards the achievement of the objectives of the Paris Agreement as well as the R&I priorities that will put the EU at a competitive advantage in the decarbonisation race. The report draws on the expertise of members from different sectors. It has been published together with the Commission Strategy ‘A Clean Planet for All’ in accordance with the Paris Agreement and a few days before the start of the UNFCCC COP24 international climate change negotiation session in Katowice, Poland.

The Panel recommends that the European Commission:

• engage in a race to the top in innovation for decarbonisation, searching for new alternatives;
• give priority to zero-carbon solutions that have the potential to be developed and deployed within the 2050 timeframe;
• explore and develop portfolios of zero-carbon technologies, promoting diversification, and reducing the risk of too-early and risky choices;
• emphasise system-level innovation, promoting sector-coupling so that the individual elements of decarbonisation fit together in a coherent whole;
• focus investments in the high added-value segments of the value chains;
• engage in smart international cooperation for zero-carbon innovation.

In lieu of this report, the EU-funded DEEDS-project (DialoguE on European Decarbonisation Strategies) is facilitating a series of multi-stakeholder workshops during 2019, in order to enrich and embed the recommendations of the final report. The workshop on transport will take place on 17 September 2019 in Brussels. As part of the DEEDS stakeholder engagement series, it will focus on different innovations and solutions needed to achieve the long-term decarbonisation of Europe's transport sector, from transport technologies and system integration to new mobility demand patterns. Additionally, the workshop will address the knowledge gaps and the required policies in order to accelerate and scale up the deployment of suitable solutions. This will be done in collaboration with stakeholders of policy, academia, businesses and civil society.

Tom Kober and Kannan Ramachandran, scientists at the Laboratory for Energy Systems Analysis at PSI and members of SCCER Mobility Capacity Area B2, led the DEEDS contribution to chapter 3 of the HLP’s report, which deals with decarbonizing the European transport sector, and are involved in organizing the upcoming workshop.

To find out more, download the full report and register for the stakeholder workshop in September.