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Towards Privacy-Preserving Connected Vehicles: A Blockchain Approach for Vehicle Identity Management and Data Sharing
No full textAs vehicular connectivity and digitisation surge, escalating data transmission to Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and public authorities is vital for the digital transition, for applications from legal compliance to traffic management. Amidst burgeoning data-sharing ecosystems, ensuring secure, private data transmission and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) compliant user control over vehicle identity and data-sharing permissions becomes pivotal, barring legal and enforcement exceptions. This research explores employing blockchain technology to safeguard privacy and security within a Vehicle Identity Management system, using CO2 emissions monitoring as an exemplar. Utilising an emulation-based environment, replicating vehicle interactions with European authorities and the European Commission (EC), the study demonstrates that blockchain systems, specifically for CO2 emissions monitoring, can meet transaction rate and latency demands of large-scale transport applications, accommodating 280 million vehicles reporting annually. This inquiry not only amplifies understanding of blockchain’s applicability in connected transportation systems and secure data exchange among vehicles, authorities, and stakeholders but also lays groundwork for future advancements in trustful, efficient, and secure data interchange, potentially benefiting authorities, industry, and end-users alike.JRC.C.4 - Sustainable, Smart and Safe Mobilit
Parametric and distribution-based definition of climatic zones for photovoltaics
No full textThe definition of climatic zones for photovoltaics (PV) is critical for improving resource simulation, energy forecasting, and performance evaluation. Existing classifications provide valuable frameworks, but suffer from limitations in integrating relevant PV parameters into the classification pipeline and remaining technology-agnostic. This paper addresses these shortcomings by introducing a classification tailored to key PV performance metrics: annual energy yield (Eyear) and performance ratio (η), using the annual irradiance (Gyear) and a novel irradiance-weighted module temperature (Tw) as core climatic parameters. These parameters ensure a technology-independent yet performance-relevant classification for the two most widely used parameters in the PV community. The classification is backed by high-resolution climatic data (0.1º × 0.1º) and recent advancements in PV simulations and data science. Additionally, we explore a distribution-based approach to account for the increasing importance of variability in PV generation. Applying the theory of optimal transport to daily irradiance and self-sufficiency distributions, we devise a novel classification concept that groups locations with similar daily generation characteristics. This method is better suited for applications where the variability of the generation, rather than annual averages, are the main features of interest, such as firm power generation. We apply our framework to a global and pan-European classification to illustrate the effectiveness of our methodology.JRC.C.2 - Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Distributional and Economy-Wide Impacts of a Carbon Tax in Ethiopia
No full textThis study evaluates the macroeconomic, environmental, and distributional effects of introducing a US$20 per tome 〖CO〗_2 tax on fossil fuels in Ethiopia. We employ a top-down macro–micro framework that links the DEMETRA computable general equilibrium model with the ETMOD tax–benefit microsimulation system to evaluate alternative revenue-recycling strategies, income-tax reductions, sales-tax cuts, and lump-sum transfers to households. The carbon tax reduces fossil-fuel emissions by 5.89% while causing a modest GDP decline of 0.17%, with carbon-intensive sectors, particularly transport and water, experiencing the largest contractions. Revenue recycling strongly influences outcomes: sales-tax reductions minimize GDP losses and are the only strategy that lowers poverty. The carbon tax would be regressive, but recycling its revenues makes it progressive, with sales-tax reductions yielding the greatest equity gains. The findings indicate that a carefully designed carbon tax, accompanied by an effective revenue-recycling strategy, can facilitate Ethiopia’s low-carbon transition, promote equitable outcomes, and safeguard vulnerable households.JRC.D.4 - Economics of Food System
Ecological status in a changing climate
No full textEcological assessment under the Water Framework Directive has been ongoing for over 20 years. Climate change poses a threat to aquatic systems in Europe but also to the established approaches and methods used to assess them. This report arose from a workshop to review the current impact of climate change on status assessments, with a focus on use cases in Member States. The principle objective was to explore potential approaches to dealing with climate change in ecological assessment. Climate change was found to be influencing the ecological assessment of many aquatic systems. However, at the workshop, Member States adopted a cautious approach focused on a critical dichotomy: whether observed changes are temporary and avoidable through additional measures, or permanent and unavoidable, potentially necessitating a reassignment of water body typology or updated reference conditions. There was agreement that sufficient evidence and certainty should be a pre-requisite to implementing changes to maintain the integrity of assessment time-series and stakeholder confidence. Key recommendations include monitoring climate-relevant parameters, expanding the reference site networks to track long-term trends, and ensuring that measures to tackle other pressures (e.g., nutrients, abstraction) are exhausted before adjusting classification systems. Recording the degree of ecosystem change driven by climate change should be part of future frameworks to track changing sensitivity, resilience and ecosystem service loss in Europe.JRC.D.2 - Ocean and Wate
Chinese cars in the EU
No full textOver the past years, the presence of Chinese vehicles in the EU market has increased continuously. At the same time, the number of EU vehicles sold in the Chinese market, either produced locally or imported to the Chinese market, has consistently dropped from the record high volumes of the 2000s and 2010s, raising concerns on the competitiveness of the EU automotive industry.
In 2024, China replaced the EU as the world’s largest car exporter [1] and Chinese vehicles accounted for 17% of the total value of vehicles imported in the EU. This percentage reached 55% for Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) (Figure 1).
Moreover, the dependence of the EU's automotive industry on Chinese imports has more than doubled (2.4 times) from 2010 to 2022 and in 2024 China accounted 40% of the total vehicle manufacturing capacity compared to 15% of the EU and the US [1].
The media often indicate the ambitious EU climate policy as a root cause of this trend, however such statements are rarely corroborated by data.JRC.C.4 - Sustainable, Smart and Safe Mobilit
Transmission measurements on natCu samples at GELINA
No full textNatural copper is a key structural material in critical assembly configurations and fusion reactor systems. Discrepancies observed between experimental and evaluated data for neutron-induced total cross-section measurements of the two stable copper isotopes (63Cu and 65Cu) highlight the need for new neutron transmission experiments on copper. In this study, neutron transmission measurements were carried out at the GELINA facility of JRC-Geel using several samples composed of natural copper (natCu). The objective was to validate the Resolved Resonance Parameters and total cross section of copper within the energy range of 1 to 100 keV. Data analysis was performed using the AGS code and following the guidelines described in References. The obtained results were compared with the theoretical transmission factors, calculated using the JEFF- 3.3 evaluated cross-section data and the REFIT code. The results indicate notable discrepancies, particularly at higher neutron energies, emphasizing the necessity for updated and more precise experimental data using thick targets. Such improvements would enhance nuclear data libraries and benefit various applications, including reactor design, safety assessments, and benchmarking studies, especially in contexts where copper serves as a structural material. The analysis methodology and corresponding results are presented and discussed.JRC.G.6 - Nuclear Data and Measurement Standard
Recycling, recycled content and environmental impacts of electric vehicle batteries – The material circularity and carbon footprint nexus under the EU Batteries Regulation
No full textThis paper explores how recycling and the integration of secondary materials contribute to the reduction of the carbon footprint (CF) of different lithium-ion batteries under the current EU regulatory framework. It quantifies the net benefit of the default recycling process, and the possible benefit of (i) alternative, more advanced recycling processes and of (ii) increasing the use of secondary (recycled) materials for manufacturing. Under the current CF calculation method, we find the use of secondary material for battery cell production to have a very limited impact on the CF (decrease by only 0.4% with 30% secondary material), while the use of advanced recycling processes can reduce the CF by up to 16% compared to the default. As such, the findings highlight the need for a combined approach to advance the circularity of batteries via the CF, mandatory recycled content and recycling targets.JRC.D.3 - Sustainable Supply Chains and Bioeconom
Blue Mirror - One Water - One Health Monthly Chronicle - February 2026 - Vol. 2 Issue 2
No full textBlue Mirror marks the launch of a One Water - One Health Monthly Chronicle dedicated to advancing wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) as a vital instrument for public health intelligence. Building on the EU Wastewater for Public Health bulletin - now integrated as a dedicated section within Blue Mirror - it delivers timely, rigorous, and policy-relevant insights on pathogens and health trends at both European and global levels, to strengthen preparedness and guide decision-making. Blue Mirror establishes a platform rooted in scientific rigor and international cooperation, uniting science, art, policy, and lived experience, supporting strategies that enhance resilience and protect societal well-being.JRC.D.2 - Ocean and Wate
Call for action: Advancing research on virtual worlds, health and well-being
No full text- The European Commission has highlighted the need to investigate how the use of virtual worlds may affect users’ well-being.
- Concerns about this question coincide with practical and methodological barriers to the provision of high-quality evidence that can meet policymakers’ needs. To overcome them, researchers and funding agencies should capitalise on practical lessons learned from previous research efforts, in order to prioritise those initiatives with the greater chances of success.
- Future research in this area should take into account the multidimensional and bidirectional nature of potential impacts on users, considering the specific characteristics of the technology, how users engage with it, as well as individual user factors.
- Strategies should be developed to accelerate methodological innovation as well as the translation of research findings into actionable policies.JRC.S.4 - Centre for Advanced Studie
Doing more with less: Cutting food loss and waste in the EU and its impact on food security
No full textIn September 2025, the European Parliament and Council signed the law of the Revision of the EU waste framework directive, which includes also reductions for food loss and waste (FLW). This comes at a time of concern over the EU's strategic autonomy for its agrifood sector. Taking a cradle-to-grave approach, this paper combines official FLW statistics with recent advances in simulation modelling to quantify the impacts of two FLW cuts scenarios on EU food availability, affordability, and stability. Compared with a business-as-usual baseline, average EU household per capita food budget savings and self-sufficiency of up to €192 and 0.82\%, respectively, are observed, accompanied by falling average EU food production of up to 2\%. With the inclusion of FLW behavioural market adjustment costs (taxes), average EU food producer price falls of up to 1\% are lower than reported in previous studies, whilst in a handful of member states, consumer food prices rise marginally. This hitherto unforeseen outcome is a signal for anticipating and ensuring adequately tailored social protection schemes for the most vulnerable.JRC.D.4 - Economics of Food System