As 2024 draws close, AE4RIA extends warm holiday greetings and best wishes for a prosperous New Year! This year has been one of collaboration, research, and innovation, aiming towards progress for a sustainable future.
We are excited to share some key highlights from 2024 and look ahead to a promising 2025.
Stay tuned—our Annual Activity Report for 2024 will be released in early January with a comprehensive overview of our achievements.
Advancing Research and Innovation
In 2024, the team published over 50 peer-reviewed articles, policy briefs and reports, and working papers covering topics like sustainable energy transitions, urban hazard mitigation, ecosystem service integration in water management, and decision-making under deep uncertainty. The Elgar Encyclopedia of Water Policy, Economics, and Management, edited by Prof. Phoebe Koundouri was also published, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration on water science and management. In 2025, we are preparing to release two books: Elgar Companion to the Economics of the Sustainable Development Goals and Elgar Companion to Europe and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Empowering Sustainability Projects and Initiatives
In 2024, we expanded our portfolio of competitively funded research projects, which already encompass 100 interdisciplinary projects, including theERC-funded Water Futures, spanning more than 120 countries. Our newly funded Horizon Europe projects focus on areas such as soil regeneration (SOILCRATES), circular bioeconomy strategies for startup villages (FoodCoP), climate resilience (SMARTER), and waterfront coalitions (CO-WATERS), with total funding 25 million. We launch groundbreaking initiatives such as the UNCC-GIH’s City Challenge during COP29, a decade-long competition offering a $1 billion prize to reduce 1 gigaton of greenhouse gas emissions. As an initiative for change, the SDSN Global Climate Hub (GCH) is the culmination of the cross-disciplinary work of AE4RIA. It is the response of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network to the multifaceted challenges posed by climate change. The GCH leverages science-based solutions for a holistic and equitable transition towards a more resilient, climate-neutral world. The GCH aims to integrate science-based modeling to develop comprehensive pathways for mitigation and adaptation across all major systems: energy, transport, land use, and marine use. Read our COP28 report on achieving net-zero emissions for each country in the EU-27, the UK, and the Balkans.
4ormulating Tools for Sustainability and Green and Digital Skills
In 2024, we developed tools such as the AE4RIA Metrix to align corporate sustainability strategies with ESG and SDG frameworks, and the SDG Tracker, a machine-learning application for analyzing SDG content in documents. Additionally, our report with Huawei, “Twin Skills for the Twin Transition: Defining Green Digital Skills and Jobs” focuses specifically on identifying the new set of Green Digital Skills, relying on well-defined competence frameworks. Over 500 startups supported by our three key accelerators: the BRIGAID Connect Association – Climate Innovation Window (CIW) which supports innovators across Europe in developing climate resilience innovations,the Black Sea Acceleratorwhich promotes innovative blue economy projects for sustainable growth in the Black Sea region and the MENA Maritime Accelerator which supports start-ups focused on sustainability in the maritime industry.
Representing Science-based Sustainability Transformations at Multilateral Global Scientific Events
In 2024, we actively participated in major global events, including the UN General Assembly, the Summit of the Future, and New York Climate Week, as well as prominent conferences such as the 29th Annual Conference of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE), where our director, Prof. Koundouri, served as President-Elect (2020–2021), President (2022–2023), and is now Past President. We are also involved in forums such as the Science and Technology in Society (STS) Forum and the Regional Action on Climate Change Symposium (RACC16), where Prof. Koundouri is a member of the International Advisory Committee (IAC). At COP29 in Baku, we had a robust presence, organizing five panels and actively participated in over 20 other sessions, contributing expertise on science-based policy and practical solutions for global sustainability challenges. In total, our team delivered speeches and presentations at more than 100 conferences and workshops, building partnerships and shaping transformative global sustainability dialogues.
Initiating the Education of the Workforce
In 2024, we successfully run two rounds of the UN SDSN ESG professional course, training over 80 professionals on ESG, SDGs, and sustainable finance. We also hosted interns as part of our collaboration with Huawei, SDSN, and other partners. Our educational research projects offer a wide range of courses and materials. The CATALYST Erasmus Project provides 70 free courses on business transformation, the circular economy, and sustainability. The IMPETUS Project, in collaboration with SDG Academy, launched the MOOC From Commitments to Action: Transformative Approaches to Climate Adaptation in Europe, featuring five modules on climate adaptation strategies. The EXCEED Erasmus Project offers training in advanced manufacturing, including teacher upskilling, 13 updated courses, and five new ones, such as shipping decarbonization. Similarly, the BuildSkills Academy has developed a methodology to upskill and reskill workers in the construction sector, focusing on updating six courses and creating six new ones. The TICHE Academy has advanced circular economy education through game-based learning events and sustainable management exchanges. Finally, the MariTech Talent Programme will deliver green and digital skills training for maritime professionals in 2025, focusing on five key topics.
Achieving Recognition and Growth
In 2024, we expanded our team by welcoming 15 new researchers to our growing group of 200. We also received notable recognitions, including the election of the Sustainable Development Unit as an EU Climate Pact member and the shortlisting of our Catalyst project for the QS Awards. We also celebrated Prof. Koundouri’s election as a Fellow of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE), the European Forest Institute (EFI), and the Academy of Engineering and Technology of the Developing World (AETDEW), alongside her inclusion in influential networks such as the EIB Climate Women’s Network and the G20 Heads of State – S20 Task Force 2 on Bioeconomy.
As we celebrate this year’s achievements, we remain dedicated to advancing sustainability and look forward to even greater accomplishments in 2025.
Thank You for Being Part of Our Journey!
Professor Dr. Phoebe Koundouri
Athens University of Economics and Business
Technical University of Denmark
Director, AE4RIA
Stay connected!