Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 3 - CARISMA (Coordination and Assessment of Research and Innovation in Support of Climate Mitigation Actions)

Teaser

Climate change mitigation consistent with limiting warming to 1.5 or well below 2C, as agreed in the Paris Agreement in 2015, requires major and coordinated efforts by a multitude of actors, in a world that in reality is deeply uncoordinated. For decades, the IPCC has been...

Summary

Climate change mitigation consistent with limiting warming to 1.5 or well below 2C, as agreed in the Paris Agreement in 2015, requires major and coordinated efforts by a multitude of actors, in a world that in reality is deeply uncoordinated.
For decades, the IPCC has been publishing widely-cited scenarios that show clearly that action needs to be taken sooner rather than later. The latest report on 1.5C is no exception. The urgency is clear, but in practice, it is difficult
to get climate mitigation going with the scope and at the speed needed. The question therefore is hardly which practices need to change or even which technologies ought to enter the mix. The question is how, in reality, we can get these
mitigation options implemented.

The CARISMA project’s first aim was to, through effective stakeholder consultation and communication, achieve improved coordination and assessment of climate change mitigation options, in order to benefit research and innovation efficiency
as well as international cooperation on research and innovation and technology transfer. Secondly, it sought to assess policy and governance questions that shape the prospects of climate change mitigation options, and discuss the results with
stakeholders and decision-makers to incorporate what can be learned for climate change mitigation.

Work performed

The project started in February 2015. The first year and a half have been used to get methodologies in place, consult with other FP7 and Horizon 2020 projects to build an information platform on EU climate change mitigation research results, and to consult
with stakeholders and Policy and Business Advisory Board members on what are the most relevant current questions.

A summary of the results in five areas are:
1) Research and innovation: The top-3 technologies that the EU has funded in its R&D programmes since 2007 seem to be bio-energy, CO2 capture and storage (CCS), and electric vehicles. The CARISMA project flagged that other key enabling technologies
include the use of hydrogen and electricity in industry, as well as renewable energy and heat.

2) Assessment of technology: We looked at four technologies that are key for staying below the 1.5C and assessed economic, life-cycle and social acceptance aspects. We conclude that the environmental, economic and social performance for bio-energy
with CCS, offshore wind, smart grids and carbon dioxide removal through direct air capture is location- and place-specific and provide insights into what best to do where.

3) Policy: What can telling case studies teach policy-makers about effective and context-relevant policy? A meta-study on policy databases identified great differences in relevant policy information across EU countries and across sectors and limited attention
to specific contextual factors.

4) Governance: What can decision-makers do to reduce or exploit the impact of contextual factors on the outcome of mitigation actions? Contextual factors include existing standards and regulation, cultural aspects, or the macro-economic environment at
a specific moment in time. We assessed decision-makers’ options to make policies more robust in a dynamic and even volatile environment.

5) International cooperation: How can climate change mitigation benefit from international transfer of technologies and policies? International cooperation on climate mitigation, whether it’s on R&D cooperation for capacity building and international
market development, offshoring R&D by EU private sector or global ‘policy transfer’, is key for limiting warming according to the Paris Agreement goals. Good practices include transparency and agreement on the goals of such international cooperation,
and long-term investments in people, good working relations, and local knowledge.


In a final conference, these results were discussed with public and private sector stakeholders. A summary can be found here: http://carisma-project.eu/News-Events/Events/CARISMA-Final-Conference

Final results

After the Paris Agreement materialised in December 2015, the CARISMA project has reoriented towards focusing on implementation of national and sub-national climate mitigation policy, including efforts on innovation, and on implementation of international
cooperation on mitigation technology. The results on technology assessment, contextual factors, policy meta-analysis and international cooperation are novel in serving the policy and private sector community in their efforts to keep the 1.5C limit within reach.

An added aim of the CARISMA project is to assist other FP7 and Horizon 2020 projects in the field of climate change mitigation to disseminate their results more effectively, by giving them access to stakeholders, advising on events, translating research results to
decision-makers in the online research platform which is taken over by CARISMA’s follow-up project, DEEDS. Finally, CARISMA has provide insights on how the science-policy interface in climate change mitigation can be navigated effectively from both a researcher’s
and a policymaker’s perspective.

Website & more info

More info: http://carisma-project.eu/.