Climate Solutions
European Climate Moonshot
CONCEPT NOTE
Proposal. Europe should consider a €7–10 billion European Climate Moonshot anchored in Horizon Europe 2028–34 and coordinated, where appropriate, with the European Competitiveness Fund and Euratom, supporting additional high-risk, high-leverage R&D over five to seven years. The Commission has proposed a €175 billion Horizon Europe 2028–34 program that includes science-driven “moonshot” projects. The initiative would focus on R&D that could materially reduce climate risk or the cost of low-carbon energy.
Current status. The objective now is for European institutions to evaluate the concept and, if warranted, design, govern, and fund the program through open competition. This is not a funding request for any particular organization.
Suggested Partnerships. Possible partnership areas include low-cost clean energy, CO2 removal, climate decision-making, and sunlight-reflection research. For details, see Suggested Partnerships.
Getting Started. A roughly $1M Climate Moonshot Development effort could recruit experts, independently review the open-source portfolio, develop competing technical approaches, revise budgets and timelines, and produce detailed R&D proposals. The effort could culminate in a Climate Moonshot conference where proposal teams present their work to researchers, funders, industry, and policymakers. For details, see Climate Moonshot Development Proposal.
Portfolio summary. A set of eight $1B open-source proposals already exists and is available for download. The portfolio covers SAI and MCB research, nuclear power site-construction automation, nuclear-powered industrial processing, economic fusion, and global climate model experimental research. A Common Framework addresses governance, procurement, open data, independent review, and stage gates. The existing portfolio is a strawman for European review—not a package to adopt unchanged. Atmospheric-intervention research would build evidence, not authorize deployment.
What Europe would do.
• Establish a small European-led steering group to convene leading scientists, engineers,
economists, and independent reviewers.
• Red-team the portfolio; add, delete, combine, or re-budget according to evidence & priorities.
• Define milestones, gates, safety/governance requirements, open-science rules, and budget.
• Publish a European Climate Moonshot Roadmap and, if warranted, launch competitive calls.
Implementation mechanism. Europe should determine the appropriate structure. Possibilities could include a Horizon Europe scientific moonshot, European Partnership, Joint Undertaking, a Commission-level initiative involving multiple DGs, or another EU mechanism. No large execution team is needed now. The immediate need is a small European-led convening group to organize the independent review and Roadmap process; an eventual program would fund many performers and consortia.
Why now. Horizon Europe 2028–34 is being negotiated, and the Commission is determining the future architecture of Joint Undertakings and European Partnerships. The current planning cycle creates an opportunity to consider whether additional large-scale climate and energy R&D partnerships should be developed.
Immediate ask. We are looking for: (1) a credible European institution or group that could convene the effort, (2) scientists, engineers, economists, and independent reviewers who could help develop and assess the R&D programs, and (3) potential funding partners for an initial design phase. The immediate question is: who in Europe should lead this work, who should participate, and who might help fund it?