Researchers, industrial and institutional experts dealing with energy-related issues, have been working on improving the efficiency of energy sourcing, conversion and use, as well as on minimisation of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. As a major venue, dedicated to knowledge exchange and networking on these issues, the 19th Conference on Process Integration for Energy Saving and Pollution Reduction PRES 2016, took place in Prague, during 27-31 August 2016. Following the venue, in collaboration with the Energy Journal, 15 high-quality manuscripts have been selected in the current Special Issue (SI). This article analyses the challenges tackled by the published articles within the overall area of energy saving and pollution reduction, briefly discussing their key actions and pointing to the achieved results. Four key areas can be distinguished in these research articles, relating to renewable energy sources, energy saving during conversion and use, direct CO2 sequestration and regional supply issues. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.