At the UN climate conference (COP28), countries around the globe reached consensus on 13 December 2023 to move away from fossil fuels for the first time in history. To not leave any region or group behind in this energy transition, citizens need to be heard and involved in policy-making. Interreg projects, like JETforCE, offer meaningful approaches and solutions for this and presented these to the negotiators in Dubai.
Our Interreg CENTRAL EUROPE project JETforCE develops innovative digital solutions to democratize the energy transition process. On 12 December, project partners presented their activities at the COP28 Digital Innovation Pavilion, in which digital solution providers and climate-focused communities met to explore and share ways to use emerging technologies (like blockchain, AI, IoT) for widespread climate action aligned with the Paris Agreement goals.
Highlight of JETforCE’s session was the presentation of their upcoming app for mapping transition challenges. The new digital solution will allow citizens to get directly in touch with policy makers and raise their awareness on specific transition challenges. The relevance of such a tool was pointed out by policy-makers at the COP28, who confirmed that there is a lack of data and citizen engagement in the ongoing transition processes.