With the pending Winter Package, including an Accelerating Clean Energy Innovation strategy, the European Commission has a chance to show that the EU has reached a crossroads, write Oliver Rapf and Julia Reinaud. The Commission can now choose between continuing on the bumpy road of fragmented and shallow renovations or getting on the ‘renovation autobahn’, where rapid and deep renovation unleashes the real potential of the construction sector.

As the European Commission elaborates its Energy Union strategy, and as national and local governments plan their contribution to the union’s aims of energy security, decarbonisation and cost-efficiency, they need to create an environment that nurtures innovation in policy, technology and business models, write Pascal Lamy and Philip Lowe.

Martin Porter outlines how industrial innovation aimed at solving some of the world’s most pressing issues, including climate change, is already happening in Europe but needs to be scaled up and accelerated. He then presents principles for an ambitious European industrial strategy designed to support these innovations.

Transformative innovation in the construction value chain can be leveraged to deliver on both climate benefits after COP21 and economic gains. To deliver on this potential, policy has a key role to play especially to enable the emergence of challenge-driven innovation ecosystems involving all actors of the value chain.

Transformative innovation in the construction value chain can be leveraged to deliver on both climate benefits after COP21 and economic gains. To deliver on this potential, policy has a key role to play especially to enable the emergence of challenge-driven innovation ecosystems involving all actors of the value chain.