A record-breaking summer has pushed Europe’s grids to their limits, while war, drone attacks on Ukraine’s power network and gaps in gas infrastructure are exposing the blind spots in how Europe plans its energy future.

As resources grow scarcer and mountains of construction waste pile up, Europe is rediscovering an old idea: the city itself can become a source of materials.

After seven years, the EU-funded project POCITYF is coming to an end. But its legacy could live much longer: “Heritage and decarbonisation can go hand in hand,” says its coordinator.

One in eight electric cars charging in Europe already carries a Chinese badge, while many European brands still rely on Chinese-made batteries.

As electric vehicles become "batteries on wheels", hotels and airports could be only the beginning.

Construction remains Europe's deadliest sector, despite decades of regulation. A new generation of interconnected sensors, autonomous machinery and digital platforms can communicate and respond collectively to risks before accidents happen.

As EU rules require more recycled plastic, consumers still have no way of knowing whether a bottle really contains recycled material. Researchers are developing a blockchain-based traceability system to improve transparency.

As extreme heatwaves expose the limits of active cooling, architects and researchers are looking back to vernacular materials, passive designs and invisible retrofits to build our carbon-neutral tomorrow.

One field, two harvests: crops and clean electricity. Agrivoltaics promises to transform farmland into a powerful climate solution, while autonomous robots reduce labour and optimise operations.