29.06.2010 []

International Partnerships for Sustainable Technologies and Services for Climate Protection and the Environment (CLIENT)

The emerging countries are playing a decisive role in tackling global challenges such as climate change and shortages of resources, water and land. In the meantime, some of the states with the highest economic growth are among the world's biggest emitters of carbon dioxide. However, the emerging countries are increasingly recognizing their responsibility for ensuring a sustainable economy. Corresponding technologies or services must often be adapted to meet local conditions, or new ones developed.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is now launching the new research initiative "CLIENT - International Partnerships for Sustainable Technologies and Services for Climate Protection and the Environment". German universities, research institutions and companies may submit project applications in a first round of calls up to 31 August 2010. Projects should be aimed particularly at cooperation with Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and Vietnam. The BMBF is making a total of up to 60 million euros available in three rounds of funding.

As a leading exporter of technologies in the field of environmental and climate protection, Germany is accepting its share of responsibility for the UN Millennium Goals for Development. "By funding exemplary research projects, we are contributing towards establishing a worldwide partnership for development," said Federal Research Minister Annette Schavan. "Only thus can we secure prosperity and create a world worth living in for all people in the future, whilst at the same time limiting the consumption of natural resources and protecting the climate and the environment.

CLIENT is one of the first funding initiatives in the BMBF's recently published framework programme "Research for Sustainable Development". The projects offer German companies and research institutions the opportunity to enter into further cooperation projects with the emerging countries. The projects should boost and develop the economic competitiveness of both Germany and the participating partner countries and contribute to the creation of new jobs.

The aim of the funding measure is to introduce model projects to help establish and expand international partnerships in the research, development and application of environmental and climate protection technologies and services and to trigger the development of lead markets in this area. In addition to technological aspects, this also includes socio-economic issues, questions of good governance, and stakeholder involvement at an early stage.

The priority subjects of this call are technological or service innovations for sustainable development in the following areas:

  • Climate protection: Reducing emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in all industry areas; capturing CO2 and using it as a chemical raw material; increasing energy efficiency in production in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; environmental protection in products and production / cleaner production; business management; adaptation to climate change
  • Resource efficiency: Obtaining and managing resources, environmental protection in production / cleaner production, resource efficiency (resources, materials), resource substitution, closing material cycles, recycling
  • Land management: Innovative land use methods (e.g. precision farming), land recycling technologies, adapted technological infrastructure systems, applied remote sensing and geoinformation services for integrated regional planning
  • Water management: Regional / urban water resource management, improved water infrastructures in terms of energy and consumption (e.g. production of drinking water, wastewater treatment, extraction of substances in water and irrigation technologies), water remediation technologies, planning instruments for the water sector (e.g. GIS, remote sensing and DSS)

Submission of project outlines:

Submission of outlines for definition projects
http://www.pt-it.de/ptoutline/clientdef

Submission of outlines of collaborative R&D projects
http://www.pt-it.de/ptoutline/clientfe1

Further information is available at: www.fona.de/client

Contact:
Projektträger – Umwelt, Kultur, Nachhaltigkeit im Deutschen Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (PT-DLR)
Roland Keil
Tel.: + 49 228 3821-578
E-Mail: roland.keil@dlr.de

Sources: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)