CIRAN project

CIRAN project Kick-off, Brussels, January 2023

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The recently started CIRAN EU-funded project held its Kick-off meeting in Brussels, Belgium, and the LPRC team was present to meet project partners, discuss the objectives and map the many implementation aspects of CIRAN, especially the ones that are most relevant to LPRC.

CIRAN – CrItical RAw materials extraction in enviroNmentally protected areas – is an EU-funded Horizon Europe project that aims at reconciling two societal objectives and needs: protecting environmentally sensitive areas and increasing socio-economic resilience. The project that just started on the 1st of January 2023 and that will last until 31st December 2025, counts with 13 partners from 11 European countries. The project partners met for the first time in Brussels, Belgium, on the 10th and 11th of January 2023 for the Kick-off meeting, organised by INTRAW, the project coordinator. The total list of consortium members includes:

  • International Raw Materials Observatory (INTRAW)
  • MacCabeDurneyBarnes (MDB)
  • Geologian tutkimuskeskus (GTK)
  • Telos Aleff (TAL)
  • Sveriges Geologiska Undersökning (SGU)
  • Association of Local Democracy Agencies (ALDA)
  • Regione Emilia-Romagna (RER)
  • La Palma Research Centre (LPRC)
  • Geologia e Geotecnia Consultores (GGC)
  • Generator (GEN)
  • Proman Consulting (PRM)
  • Petronavitas (PN)
  • Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale (ISPRA)

The agenda of the meeting focused on connecting and engaging with project partners, generating trust and a collaborative environment for the project implementation. From this perspective, the work plan for the project was detailed and discussed. LPRC attended to present the planned work for Task 3.3 – Nexus between policy decisions and drivers of change and Task 7.1 – Communication and outreach. LPRC leads these two tasks where it will implement foresight-based exercises to collect data from experts on the connection points between policy and drivers of change that affect policymaking and develop, create and implement communication tools such as the website, social media, brochures and other material to connect the project with the relevant stakeholders.

Project work will now continue and more news will follow.

LPRC joins four new Horizon Europe projects

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Together with the start of the year, La Palma Research Centre is also starting its participation in four new innovative and exciting Horizon Europe-funded projects in the fields of natural sciences, social sciences, engineering and technology. These four projects are:

  • CIRAN (CrItical RAw materials extraction in enviroNmentally protected areas) – CIRAN will develop, test and validate processes to arrive at systemic policy-making, balancing environmental protection and societal needs for accessing critical raw materials (CRMs).
  • FIREFLY (FlexIble, predictive and Renewable Electricity powered electrochemical toolbox For a sustainable transition of the catalyst-based European chemicaL industrY) – FIREFLY rises to the sustainable evolution of the catalyst-based chemical industry, towards its electrification and reduced third-party dependence on metals and fossil energy.
  • AIRSHIP (Autonomous Flying Ships for Inter-Island and Inland Waters Transport) – AIRSHIP envisions an innovative use of a known transportation mean: flying ships. Such vehicles are designed and built to take advantage of the ground effect, that allows these crafts to fly with enhanced lift and reduced drag.
  • TRIDENT (Technology Based  Impact Assessment Tool for Sustainable, Transparent Deep Sea Mining Exploration and Exploitation) – TRIDENT aims to contribute to a sustainable exploitation of seabed mineral resources, by developing a reliable, transparent and cost-effective system for prediction and continuous environmental impact monitoring of exploration and exploitation activities in the deep sea.

These projects will have their first meetings throughout January 2023. Once they happen, there will more news to share!