Lack of trust in health authorities, combined with the fear and uncertainty about the disease, created fertile ground for false rumours to spread about Covid-19 vaccines. Countering the rumours may be about attitude as well as facts. False assertions about Covid-19 vaccines have had a deadly impact – they are one reason why some people … Read more
Jean-Eric Paquet has been at the helm of the Horizon programme and DG Research and Innovation for the past four years. He will shortly leave to take up the role of the EU’s ambassador to Japan in September 2022. In his final interview with Horizon Magazine as Director General, Paquet reflects on European research and … Read more
Our consumerist economy constantly prompts us to buy new things to find happiness, even when it’s unsustainable. Sufficiency is a burgeoning idea that calls for buying less material goods and finding fulfillment in sustainability. Thinking of goods as circular and leaving a lighter environmental footprint are ideas that are moving from niche to norm. Growing … Read more
Data scientists and social scientists are examining the perceptions and expectations of migrants to the EU, as well as the attitudes of Europeans towards them. In 2015, more than a million people arriving in Europe applied for asylum, the biggest annual total since the Second World War. With the Syrian war forcing many families to … Read more
With the tourism industry on a high bounce following the lifting of pandemic restrictions, many holiday-goers are looking for ways to travel more responsibly and sustainably. But the annual surge of visitors at resorts and destinations can create environmental headaches for people living in the locality. Following two years of restrictions and with pent-up demand, … Read more
After water, concrete is the most widely used substance on Earth. With applications from housing and industry to coastal defence and infrastructure, concrete and cement are at the cornerstone of life, quite literally. Unfortunately, the construction industry also has a major environmental impact. Cement production alone generates up to 8% of global carbon emissions, more … Read more