Enhancing decision support system for disaster crises: leveraging emerging technologies for improved civil preparedness and crisis management

The EU funding opportunity, titled "Enhancing decision support systems for disaster crises: leveraging emerging technologies for improved civil preparedness and crisis management," falls under the Horizon Europe program, specifically the Civil Security for Society 2027 call (HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-DRS-03). It aims to allocate a total budget of €9,000,000 to enhance decision support systems for disaster crisis management through the integration of emerging technologies and artificial intelligence. The expected EU contribution per project is around €3,000,000, with an anticipated funding of about three projects.

Eligible applicants include a variety of entities, such as research organizations, technology providers, disaster management authorities, and innovation-focused entities. Notably, proposals must involve a consortium of at least two authorities responsible for disaster risk management and two representatives from local or regional authorities across a minimum of three different EU Member States or Associated Countries. Applicants from non-EU territories may participate under specific provisions, but entities controlled by China are ineligible.

The opportunity is structured as a single-stage open call with a submission period from May 5, 2027, until November 4, 2027. The funding model operates through lump sum contributions, and no co-funding is explicitly required. While specific success rates are not disclosed, historical rates for similar projects indicate a competitive application process.

Projects are expected to focus on demonstrative, innovative phases, involving the development of advanced decision support systems that enhance civil preparedness and crisis management capabilities. Key objectives include the integration of AI technologies for real-time data processing, improving operational efficiency for responders, and ensuring ethical AI applications aligned with EU standards. Expected project outcomes involve creating systems that prioritize transparency, collaboration among stakeholders, and usability across various disaster scenarios. Furthermore, the projects should adhere to FAIR data principles and leverage resources from European research infrastructures.

In summary, this Horizon Europe opportunity seeks to improve decision-making in disaster management through advanced technologies, with explicit requirements for cross-border collaboration and the development of ethical, efficient systems that enhance civil security and preparedness in the face of increasing natural disasters exacerbated by climate change.

This is a summary of multiple Horizon Europe funding opportunities related to civil security. These opportunities are part of the Civil Security for Society 2027 call (HORIZON-CL3-2027-01) under the Horizon Europe (HORIZON) program. The calls are single-stage, meaning that applicants submit a full proposal from the outset. The planned opening date for these calls is May 5, 2027, and the deadline for submission is November 4, 2027, at 17:00:00 Brussels time. The grants are HORIZON Lump Sum Grants [HORIZON-AG-LS].

The specific topics and their respective budgets and indicative number of grants are as follows:

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-BM-01: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions. Budget: 8,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 4,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-BM-02: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions. Budget: 8,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 4,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-BM-03: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions. Budget: 14,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 4. Estimated contribution per grant: around 3,500,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-DRS-01: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 7,670,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 3,835,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-DRS-02: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions. Budget: 6,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 3,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-DRS-03: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 9,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 3. Estimated contribution per grant: around 3,000,000 EUR. This topic, in particular, aims to enhance existing decision support systems for disaster crises by integrating emerging technologies to improve civil preparedness and crisis management. It focuses on making these systems more reliable, adaptable, and efficient through the incorporation of trustworthy AI technologies. The project results are expected to contribute to the development of decision support systems for disaster crises, utilizing near real-time data from the ground to enhance situational awareness and response, the creation of systems designed to bolster civil preparedness, that enhance operational efficiency and response times, ensuring timely and effective management of various disaster scenarios including from early warning to early action, and the integration of advanced data analysis and decision-making tools to support authorities and first responders in disaster situations.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-DRS-04: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 8,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 4,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-FCT-01: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 7,833,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 1. Estimated contribution per grant: around 7,833,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-FCT-02: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 6,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 3,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-FCT-03: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions. Budget: 6,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 3,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-FCT-04: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 9,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 4,500,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-FCT-05: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 8,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 4,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-INFRA-01: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 12,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 6,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-INFRA-02: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 7,670,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 3,835,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-SSRI-01: HORIZON Innovation Actions. Budget: 4,500,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 3. Estimated contribution per grant: around 1,500,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-SSRI-02: HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions. Budget: 2,000,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 2. Estimated contribution per grant: around 1,000,000 EUR.

HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-SSRI-03: HORIZON Pre-commercial Procurement. Budget: 5,830,000 EUR. Indicative number of grants: 1. Estimated contribution per grant: around 5,830,000 EUR.

Key elements across these opportunities include:

Focus on enhancing existing decision support systems for disaster crises.

Integration of emerging technologies, particularly AI, for improved civil preparedness and crisis management.

Emphasis on trustworthy AI, transparency, accountability, and ethical decision-making.

Creation of advanced systems for timely and effective disaster management.

Leveraging AI-driven tools for processing large data volumes and providing actionable insights.

Integration of advanced data analysis and predictive modelling.

Alignment with EU guidelines on AI ethics and resilience-building.

Encouragement to leverage data and services from European Research Infrastructures like the European Open Science Cloud, Copernicus, and Destination Earth.

Promotion of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Re-usable) data principles.

Specific eligibility criteria include the active involvement of authorities in charge of disaster risk or crisis communication and representatives of local or regional authorities in charge of disaster response from different EU Member States or Associated Countries.

Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum.

Applicants are encouraged to consult various guidance documents and support services, including the Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points, and the Enterprise Europe Network.

In summary, these Horizon Europe funding opportunities aim to bolster civil security by enhancing disaster preparedness and crisis management through the integration of advanced technologies, particularly AI, and fostering collaboration among key stakeholders. The focus is on creating reliable, adaptable, and ethically sound systems that can improve response times and decision-making during disaster scenarios. These opportunities are designed to support innovation actions, research and innovation actions, coordination and support actions, and pre-commercial procurement, with varying budget allocations and expected outcomes.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the requirements, they include authorities in charge of disaster risk or crisis communication, local or regional authorities in charge of disaster response, test centers, research and innovation community, and industry. The call is open to entities from EU member states and associated countries, and potentially non-EU/non-associated countries with specific funding provisions. Entities controlled by China may be ineligible.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Innovation Action (HORIZON-IA) and HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA) and HORIZON Pre-commercial Procurement (HORIZON-PCP) under the Horizon Europe Programme. The eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum contribution.

Consortium Requirement: A consortium is required. The topic requires the active involvement, as beneficiaries, of at least 2 authorities in charge of disaster risk or crisis communication and 2 representatives of local or regional authorities in charge of disaster response, from at least 3 different EU Member States or Associated Countries.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States and Associated Countries. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The target sectors include civil security, disaster risk management, crisis communication, artificial intelligence, data analysis, predictive modelling, emergency services, smart traffic systems, law enforcement, space (Copernicus and Galileo/EGNOS), and potentially other sectors related to disaster preparedness and response.

Mentioned Countries: China, EU Member States, and Associated Countries are mentioned.

Project Stage: The project stage appears to be development, validation, and demonstration, with an emphasis on creating advanced systems and integrating emerging technologies into existing decision support systems.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call, ranging from EUR 2,000,000 to EUR 14,000,000. The indicative number of grants also varies per topic.

Application Type: The application type is a single-stage open call.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant.

Application Stages: The application process appears to be a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned, but the indicative number of grants per topic is provided, allowing for a rough estimate based on the expected number of applications.

Co-funding Requirement: The need for co-funding is not explicitly mentioned.

Summary:

This Horizon Europe call focuses on enhancing decision support systems for disaster crises by integrating emerging technologies to improve civil preparedness and crisis management. The goal is to create more reliable, adaptable, and efficient systems using trustworthy AI technologies. Projects should develop advanced systems that strengthen civil preparedness, enabling authorities and responders to manage disaster situations effectively. This involves leveraging AI-driven tools to process data, provide actionable insights, and improve decision-making. The call emphasizes the integration of advanced data analysis and predictive modelling, ensuring systems are transparent, explainable, and built on ethical AI principles.

Eligible applicants include authorities in charge of disaster risk or crisis communication, local or regional authorities in charge of disaster response, test centers, the research and innovation community, and industry from EU Member States and Associated Countries. A consortium of multiple applicants is required, including specific involvement of disaster risk and crisis communication authorities and local/regional authorities in charge of disaster response from at least 3 different EU Member States or Associated Countries.

The funding type is a grant, with eligible costs taking the form of a lump sum contribution. The call is a single-stage open call, with funding amounts ranging from EUR 2,000,000 to EUR 14,000,000 depending on the specific topic. Projects should align with EU guidelines on AI ethics and resilience-building, complementing existing civil protection and crisis management initiatives. The call encourages leveraging data and services from European Research Infrastructures and ensuring data is FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Re-usable).