Improving and integrating polar observation systems in response to user requirements at local, regional, and international level

The EU is offering funding opportunities under the Horizon Europe program, specifically within Cluster 6, focusing on improving and integrating polar observation systems. The call, titled "Improving and integrating polar observation systems in response to user requirements at local, regional, and international level," aims to enhance environmental observations in line with various goals, including the EU Green Deal and climate action strategies.

Successful proposals are expected to contribute to improved long-term coordination and governance of international environmental observing systems relevant to polar regions. This includes making advancements in the usability, accessibility, and interoperability of data systems to support Earth system models, while also focusing on sustainable management of polar areas. Projects should build on shared polar observation variables and develop a cohesive "system of systems" to address critical aspects such as carbon dynamics, sea ice changes, and biodiversity monitoring.

Proposals must target one of two areas: the Arctic Ocean and coastal regions where community-based monitoring is emphasized, or the Antarctic shelves and Southern Ocean. There's an expectation for projects to enhance the coupling between the polar regions through harmonized observation strategies and methodologies.

The program supports technological innovations including the use of AI, and emphasizes collaboration with ESA initiatives. A significant aspect of the call is to leverage Sentinel missions and ensure that projects synergize with the broader European Polar research strategy.

The funding amounts range from €3 million to €16 million depending on the specific topic within the call, with a single-stage application process. The overall success rates for similar Horizon Europe initiatives are generally between 10% and 39%. While co-funding is not explicitly required, leveraging complementary funding is encouraged.

Eligibility extends to diverse applicant types, including research institutions, universities, SMEs, and large enterprises, with a requirement for consortia involvement and potential collaboration with organizations such as the Joint Research Centre.

Overall, the call is designed to bolster Europe’s leadership in polar research and address pressing environmental challenges in these critical regions, aligning with international environmental policies and supporting global initiatives for enhanced climate understanding and sustainable practices.

The EU is offering funding opportunities under the Horizon Europe program, specifically within Cluster 6, Call 03, focusing on improving and integrating polar observation systems. The call, titled "Improving and integrating polar observation systems in response to user requirements at local, regional, and international level," aims to enhance environmental observations in line with the Green Deal, EU climate action and adaptation strategy, EU Arctic policy, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The expected outcomes of successful proposals include: a major European contribution to improved and long-term coordination, governance, sustainability, and resilience of international environmental observing systems relevant for polar regions, to better understand their evolution and role in the climate system and the related impact on biodiversity; enhanced usability, accessibility, effectiveness, interoperability, and exploitation of environmental observing and data systems, that help improving Earth System and prediction models, as well as digital twins (the European Digital Twin of the Ocean and Destination Earth, and in particular support the evolution of the relevant Copernicus services and the Copernicus Arctic Hub; support to sustainable management of the polar regions and to decision-making processes for civil society, local or national authorities and stake- and right-holders, as well as EU and international organisations, thereby supporting the related EU policies.

The scope of the projects should involve long-term, integrated, and sustained observations, building on shared polar observation variables, necessitating the development of a "system of systems." Proposals should address aspects such as carbon cycle, biogeochemistry, sea ice dynamics, ice shelves, freshwater flows changing marine waters and oceanic circulation, atmospheric composition and conditions, subsea permafrost, degradation of marine habitats and biodiversity.

Proposals should contribute significantly to: improving marine and cryospheric observing systems, in particular the non-space-based components, focusing on their optimization, integration, coordination, and governance, building on available technologies or technologies in development, including Artificial Intelligence; harmonized, standardized, and interoperable of FAIR and CARE Polar Data systems (e.g., data collection, processing and management, including also historical data), that are able to provide real time information when necessary; and make them openly available e.g. through the European Marine Observation and Data network (EMODnet); supporting the European polar science coordination efforts, including synergies with the objectives of the European Polar Coordination Office (EPCO) and through contributing to the implementation of its work plan; the development of strategies on the medium and long term to ensure the sustainability of the observing systems and of the delivery of products and services, taking into account, where relevant, the recommendations of Copernicus polar roadmap.

The proposals are expected to focus on one of the following regional areas: Area A: Arctic Ocean and coastal regions, where improvements should include community-based monitoring and local, traditional, and indigenous knowledge, co-designed with local communities and Indigenous peoples. The action should support the EU Arctic policy and the implementation of the Roadmap for Arctic Observing and Data Systems Sustaining Arctic Observing Networks (SAON-ROADS), strengthen Arctic Ocean observations and their coordination, and ensure complementarities with the activities on societal benefit assessment of Arctic observing systems undertaken by the Joint Research Centre. Area B: Antarctic shelves and Southern Ocean, where proposals should support the establishment of the UN Ocean Decade programme Antarctica InSync and contribute to the activities of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR).

In addition to the regional scope, proposals should strengthen the coupling between the polar regions themselves, through harmonized observing strategies, measurement methodologies, the development of Shared Essential Polar Variables, and interoperable Arctic and Antarctic data systems. Collaboration with other relevant projects such as HiAAOS, POLARIN, and other projects which are part of the EU Polar Cluster, as well as with relevant European research infrastructures, is expected.

The call also emphasizes the valorization of future Sentinel expansion missions (CIMR, CRISTAL, ROSE-L) and coordination with pre-launch campaigns like CRISTALair and CIMRair, as part of a coordination initiative between ESA and the European Commission on Earth System Science. Collaboration with relevant ESA activities, including projects selected under the ESA Polar Science Cluster and under the Invitation to Tender “ESA Sentinel User Preparation Polar Science Foundational Experiment” is required.

This action aims to enable Europe to continue its leading role in Polar research and knowledge provision, contributing to the implementation of various international initiatives such as the G7 Future of the Seas and Ocean Initiative priority on Arctic Ocean Observing, GEO Blue Planet Initiative, the All-Atlantic Ocean Research and Innovation Alliance, the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), and the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS). International cooperation is encouraged, also with a view to the 5th International Polar Year (2032-33).

The general conditions include admissibility criteria, eligible countries, financial and operational capacity, exclusion criteria, and evaluation and award processes as detailed in the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium. Projects using satellite-based data must utilize Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS. To ensure a balanced portfolio, grants will be awarded to at least one proposal that is the highest ranked within region ‘Area A’ and one proposal that is the highest ranked within region ‘Area B’, provided that the applications attain all thresholds. Activities are expected to achieve TRL 7-8 by the end of the project.

Application forms, evaluation templates, guidance documents, and model grant agreements are available in the Submission System and through links provided in the call documentation.

The call includes various topics with different budget allocations and indicative numbers of grants, all with a single-stage submission process, an opening date of May 6, 2025, and a deadline of September 24, 2025.

The available topics are:

HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-01: Budget 6,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 1, Type of action HORIZON-RIA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-02: Budget 12,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-IA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-03: Budget 12,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-RIA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-04: Budget 8,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-RIA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-05: Budget 9,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-RIA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-06: Budget 4,400,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 1, Type of action HORIZON-CSA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-07: Budget 4,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 1, Type of action HORIZON-CSA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-08: Budget 10,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-RIA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-09: Budget 15,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-IA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-10: Budget 16,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-RIA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-11: Budget 12,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 2, Type of action HORIZON-RIA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-12: Budget 3,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 1, Type of action HORIZON-CSA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-13: Budget 10,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 1, Type of action HORIZON-CSA
HORIZON-CL6-2025-03-GOVERNANCE-14: Budget 8,000,000 EUR, Indicative number of grants 1, Type of action HORIZON-RIA

Partner search announcements are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal, and various support services are provided to assist applicants in preparing and submitting their proposals.

In summary, this Horizon Europe call aims to bolster polar research by funding projects that improve and integrate environmental observation systems in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. It seeks to enhance data accessibility, promote international collaboration, and support sustainable management and decision-making in the polar regions, aligning with key EU and global environmental policies and initiatives. The call encourages projects that utilize advanced technologies, involve local communities, and contribute to the development of digital twins and Earth system models.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the nature of Horizon Europe calls, they typically include universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, and other legal entities capable of conducting research and innovation activities. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium. 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. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Funding Type: The funding type includes HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) and HORIZON Innovation Actions (HORIZON-IA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA), all of which are grant-based. The Model Grant Agreement is a HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based [HORIZON-AG].

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity requires a consortium, as the Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium selected for funding.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU member states, associated countries, and potentially non-EU/non-associated countries, as specific provisions may exist for funding participants from these countries, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Target Sector: The target sector is environmental observation, with a focus on polar regions. This includes climate action, adaptation, biodiversity, marine and cryospheric systems, Earth System modeling, digital twins, and space-based observation technologies like Copernicus and Galileo/EGNOS.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned, but the focus is on the Arctic and Antarctic regions, implying relevance to countries with Arctic or Antarctic interests or territories. The European Union, its associated countries, and potentially non-EU/non-associated countries are eligible.

Project Stage: The activities are expected to achieve Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 7-8 by the end of the project, but activities may start at any TRL. This suggests projects can range from development to demonstration.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call, ranging from €3,000,000 to €16,000,000.

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

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of grants to support their research and innovation activities.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned, but the indicative number of grants for each topic suggests a limited number of projects will be funded.

Co-funding Requirement: The co-funding requirement is not explicitly mentioned, but Horizon Europe grants typically fund a significant portion of the project costs, implying that some co-funding may be required.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call focuses on improving and integrating polar observation systems to enhance environmental monitoring and understanding of the Arctic and Antarctic regions. The call aims to support projects that contribute to long-term coordination, governance, sustainability, and resilience of international environmental observing systems in polar regions. It targets projects that improve the usability, accessibility, and interoperability of environmental observing and data systems, supporting Earth System and prediction models, as well as digital twins. The call encourages projects to focus on either the Arctic Ocean and coastal regions or the Antarctic shelves and Southern Ocean, while also strengthening the coupling between the polar regions themselves. Applicants are expected to form consortia and collaborate with relevant projects and European research infrastructures. The funding is provided through HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (RIA), HORIZON Innovation Actions (IA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), with a single-stage application process and varying budget allocations for different topics. The call supports the EU Green Deal, climate action, adaptation strategy, and Arctic policy, among other international frameworks.