Demonstrating solutions to protect and preserve cultural heritage from the impacts of climate change

Overview

The HORIZON-MISS-2026-01-CLIMA-05 opportunity is part of the Horizon Europe funding framework, focusing on demonstrating solutions to protect and preserve cultural heritage from the effects of climate change. The call is aimed at a variety of organizations, including research institutions, cultural heritage authorities, universities, regional and local authorities, and non-profit organizations. Eligible applicants must demonstrate financial and operational capacity and must form consortia involving multiple partners from at least three different regional or local authorities located in different EU Member States or Associated Countries.

The funding type is a grant under the HORIZON Innovation Actions, with a total budget of 21 million euros designated for the call. Approximately three projects are anticipated to be funded, with each project receiving an indicative funding amount of around 7 million euros. The opportunity emphasizes the need for a collaborative approach and encourages participation from social sciences and humanities experts to address cultural and social aspects of heritage preservation in conjunction with climate resilience.

Applications are expected to propose innovative solutions that have been tested and are ready for demonstration in real-world settings. The call encourages the development of projects that include innovative environmental assessments, monitoring technologies, and risk management strategies, engaging stakeholders from diverse fields, including heritage scientists, policymakers, and local communities.

The application process is a single-stage open call that will open on February 4, 2026, with a submission deadline of September 23, 2026. The evaluation process will assess comprehensive proposals submitted by eligible consortia.

The demonstration activities must occur across at least three different territories, and parties involved in these regions are encouraged to explore potential co-funding opportunities to ensure sustainability and scalability of the proposed solutions. The focus of the initiative aligns with broader EU goals, as it aims to address urgent challenges posed by climate change while preserving Europe’s cultural heritage for future generations.

Overall, this funding opportunity represents a significant investment in addressing the intersection of cultural preservation and climate adaptation, facilitating large-scale initiatives that can be replicated across Europe and beyond.

Detail

This EU funding opportunity, HORIZON-MISS-2026-01-CLIMA-05, falls under the Horizon Europe (HORIZON) program and specifically supports the implementation of the Adaptation to Climate Change Mission (HORIZON-MISS-2026-1). It is a HORIZON Innovation Action (HORIZON-IA) with a HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based [HORIZON-AG] type of Model Grant Agreement (MGA). The call is forthcoming with a single-stage deadline model. The planned opening date is 04 February 2026, and the deadline for submission is 23 September 2026 at 17:00:00 Brussels time. The total budget allocated to this topic is 21,000,000 EUR, and it is anticipated that around 3 grants will be awarded, with an indicative contribution of around 7,000,000 EUR per grant.

The core objective of this funding opportunity is to support the preservation of cultural heritage, encompassing moveable, immoveable, and natural elements with cultural significance, in the face of a changing climate, aligning with the EU Adaptation Strategy and the EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change.

The expected outcomes of successful proposals are:

Demonstrated innovative solutions for protecting and preserving cultural heritage from climate change impacts, made widely available for upscaling and deployment across the European Union and beyond, including nature-based solutions.

Improved preparedness of regional and local authorities hosting cultural heritage to preserve it under a changing climate.

Co-created climate-resilient solutions by relevant stakeholders, including heritage scientists and managers, climate scientists, regional and local policymakers, civil society, and representatives from the tourism industry.

Engagement of citizens and local communities in the process.

The scope of the funding opportunity is defined by the following:

Rationale: Cultural heritage is particularly threatened by climate change, and dedicated solutions are required due to its specificities. This action aims to identify and demonstrate solutions that protect and preserve tangible (movable and immovable) heritage and natural heritage with cultural significance.

Solutions sought: Proposals should identify, test, and demonstrate innovative solutions to protect and preserve cultural heritage from the impacts of climate change, identifying possible trade-offs and co-benefits. These solutions may address various aspects of heritage protection and preservation, including but not limited to:

Innovative environmental assessment methodologies.

Monitoring technologies and systems.

Green conservation and restoration techniques. A green conservation approach is minimally harmful to the environment and humans, aligning with the circular economy by being decarbonizing, zero-waste, accessible, and available.

Risk management and disaster prevention.

All of the following aspects should be considered:

Co-design of solutions by all relevant stakeholders and engagement of citizens.

Exploration of nature-based solutions as a priority, when relevant.

Consideration of potential interactions and compound effects of different hazards.

Avoidance of maladaptation.

Effective contribution of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) disciplines and the involvement of SSH experts and institutions to enhance the societal impact of the research activities.

Demonstration sites and related activities: Demonstration activities must take place in the territory of at least 3 different regional or local authorities that host cultural heritage, each established in a different Member State or Associated Country, with the involvement of these regional or local authorities and of relevant heritage managers. Proposals should already identify at least 3 replicating regional or local authorities from 3 different Member States or Associated Countries, interested in reapplying the lessons learnt. The consortium could include partners to provide support for technical exchanges and knowledge uptake in the replicating regions or local authorities. Replicating regions should at least prepare the theoretical framework for replicating the successful solutions and explore means to fund their implementation.

Links to the Mission and to other projects and initiatives: Proposals should build on existing knowledge and adaptation solutions developed by previous projects and explore synergies with ongoing projects from EU and national programmes, such as the European Partnership for Resilient Cultural Heritage and the Joint Programming Initiative on Cultural Heritage and Global Change. Synergies with other funding sources (EU and national) are encouraged to scale up demonstrated solutions. Proposals should include a mechanism and resources to establish operational links and collaboration with the Mission Implementation Platform, participate in the Mission Community of Practice, and share knowledge to feed the work of the project stemming from HORIZON-MISS-2026-01-CLIMA-02. Proposals are encouraged to link their monitoring to the framework developed by the project UNDERPIN. Applicants should acknowledge these elements and account for them in their proposal, making provisions in terms of resources and budget to engage and collaborate with the Mission.

General conditions for participation include:

Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout are described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System and in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.

Eligible Countries: Described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific provisions may exist for non-EU/non-Associated Countries, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Other Eligible Conditions: Demonstration activities must take place in the territory of at least 3 different regional or local authorities that host cultural heritage, each established in a different Member State or Associated Country.

Financial and operational capacity and exclusion: Described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring, and thresholds are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes. Submission and evaluation processes are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Legal and financial set-up of the grants: Described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Specific conditions are described in the specific topic of the Work Programme.

Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA):

Application form templates are available in the Submission System, including the Standard application form (HE RIA, IA).

Evaluation form templates will be used with the necessary adaptations, including the Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA).

Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide.

Model Grant Agreements (MGA) include the HE MGA.

Call-specific instructions are available.

Additional documents include:

HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction

HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 12. Missions

HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes

HE Programme Guide

HE Framework Programme 2021/695

HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764

EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509

Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment

EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement

Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual

Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions

Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement

Partner search announcements are available, and LEARs, Account Administrators, or self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics after logging into the Portal.

The submission system is planned to be opened on the date stated on the topic header.

Support resources include:

Online Manual

Horizon Europe Programme Guide

Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ

Research Enquiry Service

National Contact Points (NCPs)

Enterprise Europe Network

IT Helpdesk

European IPR Helpdesk

CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk

The European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for their recruitment

Partner Search

In summary, this funding opportunity aims to foster innovative solutions for protecting and preserving cultural heritage from the impacts of climate change. It encourages collaboration among regional and local authorities, heritage managers, scientists, policymakers, and citizens to co-create and demonstrate climate-resilient solutions. The projects should build upon existing knowledge, explore synergies with other initiatives, and actively engage with the Mission Implementation Platform. The goal is to make these solutions widely available for upscaling and deployment across Europe, ensuring the long-term preservation of cultural heritage in a changing climate.

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Breakdown

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly defined in the provided text. However, based on the nature of Horizon Europe projects and the call for proposals, eligible applicants could include regional and local authorities, research institutions, universities, SMEs, large enterprises, NGOs, and other relevant organizations involved in cultural heritage preservation, climate change adaptation, and related fields. The call emphasizes the involvement of diverse stakeholders, including heritage scientists and managers, climate scientists, policymakers, civil society, and the tourism industry, suggesting a broad range of eligible entities.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, specifically a HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based [HORIZON-AG] under the HORIZON Innovation Actions (HORIZON-IA) funding scheme.

Consortium Requirement: A consortium of multiple applicants is required. The demonstration activities must take place in the territory of at least 3 different regional or local authorities that host cultural heritage, each established in a different Member State or Associated Country. The involvement of these regional or local authorities and relevant heritage managers is mandatory, preferably as beneficiaries or associated partners in the consortium.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States and Associated Countries to the Horizon Europe Programme. While non-EU/non-Associated Countries may participate, their funding is contingent on specific provisions made by those countries, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Target Sector: The program targets the cultural heritage sector, with a focus on climate change adaptation and preservation of tangible (movable and immovable) and natural heritage with cultural significance. It also involves the climate, environment, research, innovation, and tourism sectors.

Mentioned Countries: The text mentions EU Member States and Associated Countries to the Horizon Europe Programme. It also refers to non-EU/non-Associated Countries that may have specific provisions for funding their participants. The COP28 UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience is mentioned, indicating a connection to the United Arab Emirates.

Project Stage: The expected maturity of the project is demonstration and innovation. Proposals should identify, test, and demonstrate innovative solutions to protect and preserve cultural heritage from the impacts of climate change. The call emphasizes upscaling and deployment of demonstrated solutions across the European Union and beyond.

Funding Amount: The budget for the topic HORIZON-MISS-2026-01-CLIMA-05 is EUR 21,000,000. The indicative number of grants is 3, suggesting an average grant size of around EUR 7,000,000 per project.

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a grant to support their projects.

Application Stages: The application process consists of a single stage.

Success Rates: The success rates cannot be determined from the text.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly state a co-funding requirement. However, it encourages synergies with other funding sources (EU and national), which could imply that leveraging additional funding is beneficial but not mandatory.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call, HORIZON-MISS-2026-01-CLIMA-05, aims to support the preservation of cultural heritage under a changing climate. It seeks innovative solutions for protecting tangible and natural cultural heritage from climate change impacts. The call requires a consortium of applicants, including regional and local authorities from at least three different EU Member States or Associated Countries. The projects should demonstrate their solutions in these territories and identify replicating regions for future implementation. The funding is provided through HORIZON Innovation Actions, with a total budget of EUR 21,000,000 and an indicative number of 3 grants, each averaging around EUR 7,000,000. The call encourages synergies with other funding sources and collaboration with the Mission Implementation Platform. The application process is a single-stage open call. This opportunity is about developing and demonstrating practical, climate-resilient solutions for cultural heritage preservation, involving diverse stakeholders and ensuring the solutions are scalable and replicable across Europe.

Short Summary

Impact
This funding aims to support the preservation of cultural heritage from the impacts of climate change through innovative solutions that can be demonstrated and scaled across Europe.
Applicant
Applicants should possess expertise in cultural heritage preservation, climate adaptation, and interdisciplinary collaboration involving social sciences and humanities.
Developments
The funding will support projects focused on cultural heritage, climate adaptation, conservation, environmental sciences, and disaster risk management.
Applicant Type
This funding is designed for a diverse range of organizations including research institutions, cultural heritage authorities, local and regional authorities, universities, NGOs, and public-private partnerships.
Consortium
A consortium of multiple applicants is required, including representatives from at least three different regional or local authorities in different Member States or Associated Countries.
Funding Amount
The funding amount ranges from €1,000,000 to €5,000,000 per project, with an average of €7,000,000 per project expected to be funded.
Countries
The funding is relevant to EU Member States and Associated Countries to Horizon Europe, with a focus on projects demonstrating activities across at least three different Member States or Associated Countries.
Industry
This funding targets the cultural heritage sector within the broader context of climate adaptation and resilience initiatives.

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