From Mary Poppins to urban farming: innovative solutions to safeguard the future

Keeping you up to date with our recent activities in Europe and around the world.

EIB at a glance

Stockholm: The Tale of the Unicorn Factory

Once upon a time there was a city in a cold place a long way to the north. One day the city started to tell a story about itself. Here’s how Stockholm built its own narrative.

Our podcast on Europe’s future

From vaccines to electric cars, environmental clean-up to online learning and laser technology, Future Europe is a road map for the future that you can listen to right now.

Healthcare investments that are supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

Tunde Szabo, a senior economist at the Bank, explains that we do not have the powers of Mary Poppins, but we can finance healthcare projects with the highest economic value.

Innovative retooling in Europe: several reasons to be worried about the future

“A technology transformation in the European Union is needed to boost the economy through innovative finance, better regulation and a stronger single market,” says Debora Revoltella, head of the EIB Economics Department.

European elections May 2019: This time I’m voting

It's not enough to just hope for a better future. This time we all need to take responsibility for it. So we're not just asking you to vote, we're also asking you to persuade others to vote. When everybody votes, everybody wins.

The Investment Plan for Europe at a glance

The next food revolution starts in cities

Infarm of Berlin has developed hardware and software that brings “in-store farming” to supermarkets, restaurants, bars and warehouses. Leafy greens, herbs, lettuces and microgreens can be grown in an urban setting using advanced “vertical farming” techniques.

See it on the map

Take a look at a selection of projects that show how the Investment Plan for Europe is making the European Union more competitive.

The latest results

The Investment Plan for Europe continues to mobilise investment to boost the European economy in a sustainable way.

The European Investment Fund at a glance

Making money do good things: Drole de Pain, a social enterprise in Montpellier

“No matter how small your impact may be, you have to try,” says Antoine Soive, a baker in Montpellier, who is firmly committed to social responsibility and environmental sustainability.

Helping Baltic small businesses meet their high-growth potential

The EIF launched a fund-of-funds initiative with Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to boost equity investments in the Baltics for small businesses with high-growth potential.

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Latest publications

The Advisory Hub in 2017: Yielding results

The future of the European space sector

Space is an important driver of innovation in Europe. While space used to be synonymous with government spending, many new private actors are pursuing commercial opportunities in the sector.

Big Ideas essay series: The virtuous circle

Imagine an economy in which our products are transformed into tomorrow’s resources and nothing is thrown away. Ellen MacArthur, who works to accelerate the transition to a regenerative economy, writes that we need to stop the “take, make, dispose” lifestyle.

Burgas: Planning a Black Sea smart city

Burgas is one of the top destinations in Bulgaria during the tourist season. The city’s key challenge, however, is to extend this popularity to the off-season. The city aims to transform tourism with a smart city agenda.