A new European collaboration cluster, INVEST4CLIMATE, has been launched to strengthen innovative financing and investment strategies for climate adaptation and mitigation.
The initiative brings together three Horizon Europe projects, BLOSSOM, CLIMINVEST and RISE-IN, to bridge the gap between climate action, public policy, and financial investment.
By aligning research, testing innovative financial models, and working closely with cities and stakeholders, the cluster aims to accelerate the deployment of bankable climate solutions across Europe.
Funded from the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) and Horizon Europe, the collaboration aims to maximise the impact of European research and innovation funding by coordinating efforts across projects focused on climate finance, investment readiness, and the implementation of climate adaptation and mitigation solutions.
Climate action increasingly requires solutions that are environmentally effective but also financially viable and scalable. However, many promising climate initiatives struggle to move from concept to implementation due to gaps between public planning, technical innovation, and private investment. By working together as a cluster, the three projects will align methodologies, exchange knowledge, and strengthen connections between cities, financial actors, policymakers, and researchers.
The cluster brings together projects with distinct yet complementary approaches to enabling climate action through innovative financial and governance frameworks:
BLOSSOM focuses on creating a systemic approach to connect public authorities with private financial partners, including banks, insurers, and investors. Through Living Labs and Communities of Practice, the project develops and tests innovative financing schemes and investment models for climate adaptation and mitigation. Demonstrations will take place in Birmingham (UK), Lisbon (Portugal), and Kielce (Poland), with additional replication cases in other European regions.
CLIMINVEST contributes its expertise in mobilising sustainable finance for climate action. Focusing on bankable-by-design (BbD) solutions the project supports private investors and public authorities with the tools required to design climate adaptation projects that are both effective in impact and financially sustainable. CLIMINVEST demostrations will take place in Thessaly (Spain), Amathouda (Cyprus), with replicators in Asturias (Spain), Ventimiglia (Italy), and Trikala (Greece)
RISE-IN introduces a groundbreaking framework linking environmental resilience with financial viability. The project focuses on nature-based solutions for flood risk management and develops the Bankability Readiness Level (BRL), a novel metric designed to assess and enhance the investment potential of climate-resilient interventions. Using cities as living laboratories, RISE-IN will demonstrate its approach in Cesena (Italy), Christchurch (New Zealand), and Póvoa de Varzim (Portugal), with replication sites in Ghent (Belgium), Zhytomyr (Ukraine), and Kadıköy (Türkiye).
Through this collaboration, the cluster will promote joint knowledge exchange, coordinated outreach and dissemination activities, and shared engagement with stakeholders from the financial sector, local authorities, and innovation ecosystems. By aligning efforts across the projects, the initiative aims to support the development of practical pathways for financing climate solutions, helping cities and regions move from planning to implementation.
Ultimately, the cluster seeks to strengthen Europe’s capacity to deliver resilient, investment-ready climate solutions, ensuring that environmental innovation is supported by robust financial strategies and scalable models.