Renovating the built environment through design for adaptability and disassembly.

The grant opportunity under the New European Bauhaus (NEB) Facility is part of the Horizon Europe initiative, focusing on sustainable renovation of the built environment. It emphasizes design for adaptability and disassembly, modular construction, and principles of a circular economy. Eligible applicants include startups, small and medium enterprises, research institutes, universities, public-private partnerships, and non-governmental organizations engaged in urban development and construction innovation.

The funding type is a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, allowing for simplified financial reporting. A consortium of at least three independent entities from different EU or associated countries is required to apply, catering to a collaborative and transdisciplinary approach. The grant supports projects within EU Member States and associated countries, with an agenda to revitalize neighborhoods through inclusive practices.

Target sectors include the renovated built environment, focusing on materials reuse, construction sustainability, and urban development. Specific mentions of project activities involve validation and demonstration, aiming to address barriers and market uptake of innovative renovation methods, and quantifying impacts through European sustainability frameworks.

The total budget allocated for this call is €118.4 million, with individual project funding likely ranging from €1 million to €5 million. The application process is single-stage, with submissions due by November 12, 2025. The nature of support provided is monetary, covering full project costs with no co-funding required. Expected success rates vary, typically estimated between 10 to 39%.

Overall, this initiative aims to transform renovation practices in Europe using circular design, collaborating across sectors to promote environmental, social, and economic benefits. Proposals should develop and validate renovation processes through pilot projects in at least two member states or associated countries.

The EU Funding and Tenders Portal presents a Horizon Europe call focused on "A research agenda for a beautiful, inclusive and sustainable transformation of neighbourhoods" under the New European Bauhaus (NEB) initiative. The call, designated as HORIZON-NEB-2025-01, aims to foster sustainable and inclusive renovation of existing buildings, common spaces, and infrastructures through design for adaptability and disassembly. The call encompasses various topics categorized under Business, Participation, and Regeneration (REGEN), each with its specific budget, action type (Innovation Actions, Research and Innovation Actions, or Coordination and Support Actions), and indicative number of grants. The submission process is single-stage, opening on May 6, 2025, and closing on November 12, 2025.

The core objective is to promote circular economy principles in the built environment, enabling easy adaptation and repurposing of spaces and structures to meet evolving needs and technological advancements. This approach maximizes the economic value of construction materials, reduces environmental impact by minimizing waste and resource extraction, and avoids demolition and new construction.

Key expected outcomes include:

More sustainable and inclusive renovation processes based on design for adaptability and disassembly.
Availability of methods and techniques for modular adaptation and repurposing, informed by historical knowledge and assessments.
Access for stakeholders (public authorities, investors, construction project owners, developers, architects, designers, and SSH actors) to evidence on the economic, environmental, social, cultural, financial, and regulatory impacts, along with a clear business case for the proposed renovation approaches.

The scope of the call emphasizes addressing design for adaptability and disassembly in the renovation of existing structures in urban, peri-urban, and rural areas. Proposals should:

Develop at least two renovation processes, methods, and/or techniques that enable future adaptation and repurposing with minimal disruption.
Demonstrate solutions through pilots in at least two Member States or Associated Countries, targeting both buildings and common spaces/infrastructures.
Assess and propose solutions to overcome barriers to market uptake compared to conventional methods.
Quantify environmental, economic, social, cultural, financial, and regulatory impacts, using indicators from the European framework for sustainable buildings ‘Level(s)’.
Follow a participatory and transdisciplinary approach, integrating diverse actors and disciplines, including SSH expertise.
Allocate at least 0.2% of the total budget to share results with the 'New European Bauhaus hub for results and impact'.

The call specifies several general conditions related to admissibility, eligible countries, financial and operational capacity, evaluation and award processes, and legal and financial setup, all detailed in the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. Eligible costs will be in the form of a lump sum.

Applicants are directed to use the application forms available in the Submission System and to consult guidance documents such as the HE Programme Guide, Model Grant Agreements, and call-specific instructions. Additional support resources include National Contact Points, the Enterprise Europe Network, the IT Helpdesk, and the European IPR Helpdesk.

The budget overview outlines the funding allocation for each topic, ranging from 2,500,000 EUR for Coordination and Support Actions to 16,000,000 EUR for Innovation Actions, with varying indicative numbers of grants per topic.

This Horizon Europe call is essentially a funding opportunity aimed at transforming the renovation sector by integrating circular economy principles and promoting sustainable, adaptable, and inclusive built environments. It calls for collaborative, transdisciplinary projects that not only develop innovative renovation techniques but also demonstrate their real-world applicability and assess their broader impacts, contributing to the goals of the New European Bauhaus initiative.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly defined in the provided text. However, based on the description of involved actors, eligible applicants could include public authorities, local actors from targeted neighborhoods, construction project owners, developers, investors, architecture or design firms, and civil engineering firms. The text also mentions the need for SSH (Social Sciences and Humanities) experts and institutions, suggesting that research institutes and universities are also eligible. SMEs are also mentioned in the context of the Enterprise Europe Network support.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, as indicated by the "Type of MGA: HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS]" and the mention of "Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum". There are also HORIZON Innovation Actions, HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions, and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity requires a consortium of multiple applicants. This is implied by the need for a participatory and transdisciplinary approach, the integration of different actors and disciplines, and the requirement to demonstrate solutions in at least two pilots in at least two Member States or Associated Countries.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States and Associated Countries. The text explicitly mentions "Demonstrate the developed solutions in at least two pilots in at least two Member States or Associated Countries." Additionally, "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 primary target sector is the built environment, specifically focusing on the renovation of existing buildings, common spaces, and infrastructures. This includes aspects of circular economy, sustainable construction, architecture, design, civil engineering, energy efficiency, and social sciences and humanities (SSH). The program also targets the New European Bauhaus (NEB) initiative.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity explicitly mentions "Member States" and "Associated Countries" within the EU framework. It also refers to "non-EU/non-Associated Countries" that may have specific provisions for funding.

Project Stage: The project stage encompasses development and demonstration. Proposals are expected to "Develop at least two renovation processes, methods, and/or techniques" and "Demonstrate the developed solutions in at least two pilots." This suggests a focus on moving from research to practical application and validation.

Funding Amount: The funding amount varies depending on the specific topic within the call. The budget overview provides the following ranges:
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-BUSINESS-01: around €6,000,000 (2 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-BUSINESS-02: around €4,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-BUSINESS-03: around €4,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-PARTICIPATION-01: around €3,500,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-PARTICIPATION-02: around €3,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-PARTICIPATION-03: around €5,200,000 (2 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-PARTICIPATION-04: around €2,500,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-REGEN-01: around €8,000,000 (2 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-REGEN-02: around €5,000,000 (2 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-REGEN-03: around €4,000,000 (2 grants)
HORIZON-NEB-2025-01-REGEN-04: around €8,000,000 (2 grants)

Application Type: The application type is an open call, as indicated by "Open For Submission" and the single-stage submission model.

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

Application Stages: The application process is single-stage.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned. However, the "Indicative number of grants" provides some insight into the number of projects that will be funded for each topic, which can be used to estimate the potential success rate based on the expected number of applications.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required. However, given that it is a Horizon Europe grant awarded as a lump sum, co-funding may not be strictly required, but it could strengthen a proposal.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call, part of the "A research agenda for a beautiful, inclusive and sustainable transformation of neighbourhoods" initiative under the New European Bauhaus (NEB), focuses on "Renovating the built environment through design for adaptability and disassembly." The call aims to promote more sustainable and inclusive renovation practices by integrating circular economy principles into the design of buildings, common spaces, and infrastructures. It seeks to develop innovative processes, methods, and techniques for modular adaptation and repurposing, supported by evidence of their economic, environmental, social, cultural, financial, and regulatory impacts.

The call encourages proposals that:
Develop at least two renovation processes based on design for adaptability and disassembly.
Demonstrate these solutions through pilot projects in at least two EU Member States or Associated Countries, targeting both buildings and common spaces/infrastructures.
Assess and address barriers to market uptake compared to conventional renovation methods.
Quantify the environmental, economic, social, cultural, financial, and regulatory impacts using the European framework for sustainable buildings ‘Level(s)’.
Follow a participatory and transdisciplinary approach, involving diverse actors and disciplines, including SSH expertise.
Dedicate a portion of their budget to share results with the New European Bauhaus hub.

The funding is provided as a lump sum grant, and the call is open to a wide range of applicants, including public authorities, local actors, construction project owners, developers, investors, architects, designers, and civil engineering firms. The geographic scope includes EU Member States and Associated Countries, with potential provisions for non-EU countries. The call has a single-stage application process, with the submission deadline on November 12, 2025. The indicative funding ranges from approximately €2,500,000 to €8,000,000 per project, depending on the specific topic and action type (Innovation Actions, Research and Innovation Actions, or Coordination and Support Actions).