This Policy Insight marks the official launch of the SSH CENTRE (Social Sciences and Humanities for Climate, Energy and Transport Research Excellence) project.

This project, supported by 13 leading organisations from across Europe, will engage directly with stakeholders, including researchers, policymakers, business representatives, as well as civil society and citizens, to strengthen social innovation, SSH-STEM collaboration and transdisciplinary policy advice to accelerate the EU’s transition to carbon neutrality.

In October 2022, EU lawmakers agreed to set a mandate for new cars and vans to be emission-free by 2035. In confirming the combustion engine ban, Brussels will face new challenges.

There will be implications for the funding of infrastructure, such as electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and public transportation. The shift to clean mobility also needs to avoid creating a two-speed Europe, where some countries ‘benefit’ from the combustion engine ban and others struggle to implement alternative solutions.

Digital technologies could revolutionise how we move, making our mobility smarter, more efficient and greener.

But we need more research on societal behaviours and a clear understanding of how people consume means of transportation, not only cities but also in rural areas, in order to help the private sector and governments provide the most efficient clean mobility solutions.

This debate will look at how to create the conditions for all European citizens to have access to clean mobility, regardless of their income and location.

This event will take place in Brussels and will also be available to a wider audience via livestream.