Europe and the Arctic are the fastest-warming areas in the world. This is already putting pressure on food and water systems, infrastructure and public health, testing social cohesion, and leading to increased financial risks across the Union.

At the same time, Europe has entered the decisive phase of its clean industrial transformation. The direction is clear; what matters now is the capacity to deliver at scale and at speed so that climate ambition becomes a driver of competitiveness, resilience and long-term prosperity. 2026 must mark the turning point for aligning sustainability and security within a truly independent European industrial strategy.

This summit will bring together ministers, European institutions, industry leaders, investors and civil society to focus on the practical choices to make the transition both investable and competitive. 

Sessions will explore how clean industrialisation will strengthen energy security, competitiveness and resilience, how to meet AI's energy needs responsibly, how electrification can make the EU more competitive, how Europe can embed climate resilience across policy, investment and infrastructure, and how to make the EU more water efficient. 

The plenary session on critical raw materials: diversification and circularity for Europe's clean transition will take place at 10:00-10:45 CEST. It will ask what role Europe can play in the global supply chain of critical raw materials and whether circularity is a real option, the main barriers from a business, consumer and regulatory perspective, and the steps required to build a single market for secondary resources in Europe. Cillan Lohan, European Economic and Social Committee member who has been involved in the ECESP since it was set up, will be one of the speakers.

This event will take place at 09:15-16:00 CEST on 13 October. It will be livestreamed: watch it here. See the programme.