Safeguarding linguistic diversity in Europe

The EU grant opportunity titled "Safeguarding linguistic diversity in Europe" falls under Horizon Europe, specifically aligned with Cluster 2, which focuses on Culture, Creativity, and Inclusive Society. The call for proposals, HORIZON-CL2, will open on May 12, 2026, and applications must be submitted by September 23, 2026. It aims to enhance understanding of multilingualism and document effective practices for safeguarding linguistic heritage, particularly for lesser-used, endangered, and historically marginalized languages. Eligible applicants include diverse entities such as universities, research institutions, public research organizations, museums, and cultural heritage institutions from EU member states and associated countries. The call encourages transdisciplinary collaborations across various disciplines, including linguistics, heritage studies, and media studies. Funding is provided in the form of HORIZON Lump Sum Grants, with each project receiving between €5,000,000 and €5,750,000, totaling an indicative budget of €11,500,000 for two expected grants. The application process is a single-stage submission without preliminary selections, and projects are to be carried out over a period of approximately 3 to 4 years. The projects funded should aim to document the current state of linguistic diversity in Europe, promote successful multilingual practices, address socio-economic challenges affecting linguistic transmission, and investigate the role of digital technologies in language preservation. There is no explicit co-funding requirement, but synergies with existing EU-funded initiatives are encouraged. The evaluation process involves an independent expert review, and while specific success rates are not provided, competitive project selection is anticipated. Projects should engage local communities actively and aim to create educational resources and policy recommendations, making the opportunity pivotal in preserving Europe’s cultural and linguistic diversity.

This EU grant opportunity focuses on safeguarding linguistic diversity in Europe. It falls under the Horizon Europe program, specifically the Culture, Creativity, and Inclusive Society call for 2026. The action type is HORIZON-RIA, which stands for Horizon Research and Innovation Actions. The grant type is a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant. The deadline model is single-stage, with a planned opening date of May 12, 2026, and a deadline of September 23, 2026, at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The primary goal of this funding is to enhance the understanding of multilingualism in European society and to identify and document good practices that have effectively safeguarded linguistic heritage, particularly for lesser-used, endangered, and historically marginalized languages. The projects funded under this opportunity are expected to produce rigorous, policy-relevant evidence, strategies, and policy recommendations for promoting multilingualism and safeguarding linguistic diversity. These resources should be readily available to policymakers, with active involvement from users, especially the younger generation, in their development.

The scope of the projects should include:

Documenting and mapping the current state of linguistic diversity in Europe, considering existing frameworks, initiatives, and terminology established by organizations like the Council of Europe and UNESCO.

Identifying and promoting examples of successful practices that have enriched the use of languages in society and fostered multilingualism.

Investigating the demographic, socio-economic, and sociocultural challenges faced by multilingual regions, including the impact of aging populations, lower birthrates, housing crises, and migration patterns.

Exploring how digital technologies and language technologies can bridge the linguistic divide in the digital domain and aid in language preservation, especially for endangered regional languages. This includes documenting the availability of language data and examining the presence of different languages in various forms of media and cultural expression.

Examining the non-linguistic benefits of language maintenance, regeneration, and learning, such as the positive effects on people’s wellbeing, self-respect, and health.

Proposing ways to encourage and support multilingual education and intergenerational transmission of languages, with a focus on communities where formal education in the heritage language has been historically absent or discouraged.

Fostering transdisciplinary collaborations involving fields such as linguistics, heritage and museum studies, media studies, theatre studies, literary studies, socio-economic studies, socio-cultural studies, and migration studies.

Creating linguistic cartography, which involves meaningful representations of linguistic diversity, and addressing the challenges of assigning languages to specific geographic spaces.

Developing language maps as educational and research tools to illustrate linguistic and cultural diversity and promote cultural awareness.

Developing recommendations for promoting multilingualism and safeguarding linguistic diversity, empowering citizens to take ownership of their linguistic heritage and combating the marginalization of disadvantaged linguistic communities.

Building upon existing knowledge, activities, networks, and platforms, including past EU-funded initiatives like the 1996 Euromosaic study and the Mercator European Research Centre on Multilingualism.

Creating synergies with the European Data Space for Languages and the ALT-EDIC initiative.

Establishing links with related actions funded by Horizon Europe or Horizon 2020, particularly projects under the topics HORIZON-CL2-2022-HERITAGE-01-01 and HORIZON-CL2-2024-HERITAGE-01-05.

Engaging local communities, citizens, and civil society organizations in the development of project activities, using participatory approaches.

The general conditions for this grant opportunity include:

Admissibility Conditions:Proposals must adhere to the page limits and layout guidelines specified in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form. The page limit for Part B of the Research and Innovation (RIA) application using lump sum is 50 pages. A detailed budget table must also be submitted.

Eligible Countries:As described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. Certain non-EU/non-Associated Countries have provisions for funding participants in Horizon Europe projects, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Other Eligible Conditions:As described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Financial and Operational Capacity and Exclusion:As described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Evaluation and Award:The award criteria, scoring, thresholds, submission, and evaluation processes are detailed in Annex D and Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.

Indicative Timeline:The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Legal and Financial Set-up:Eligible costs will be reimbursed as a lump sum, as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021. Beneficiaries may provide financial support to third parties in the form of grants, with a maximum amount of €60,000 per third party. The granting authority may object to a transfer of ownership or exclusive licensing of results for up to 4 years after the end of the action.

The application and evaluation forms, as well as the model grant agreement (MGA), are available in the Submission System. Applicants should use the standard application form for HE RIA and IA actions. Evaluation form templates will be adapted as necessary.

Additional guidance and documents include:

HE Programme Guide

Lump Sum MGA

Call-specific instructions

Detailed budget table (HE LS)

Information on financial support to third parties (HE)

Guidance:"Lump sums - what do I need to know?"

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

HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 5. Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society

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

HE Framework Programme 2021/695

HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764

EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509

Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme

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

The budget overview for the year 2026 includes several topics related to Democracy, Heritage, and Transformation, each with its own budget, opening date, deadline, contribution amounts, and indicative number of grants.

This opportunity is about funding research and innovation projects that aim to protect and promote linguistic diversity across Europe. It recognizes that languages are a vital part of cultural heritage and that their preservation is essential for maintaining cultural diversity and knowledge systems. The EU is offering financial support to projects that can document, map, and safeguard linguistic heritage, especially for endangered and marginalized languages. These projects should also develop strategies and recommendations for promoting multilingualism and empowering citizens to take ownership of their linguistic heritage. By supporting these initiatives, the EU aims to ensure that linguistic diversity continues to enrich European culture and society for generations to come.

Eligible Applicant Types:The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but the call is open to entities eligible for funding under Horizon Europe, which generally includes universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, and other organizations. The call encourages engagement with local communities, citizens, and civil society organizations, suggesting these groups can be involved as partners or beneficiaries.

Funding Type:The funding type is a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, as indicated by the Type of MGA (Model Grant Agreement) being "HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS]". The actions are HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) and HORIZON Innovation Actions (HORIZON-IA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA).

Consortium Requirement:The opportunity requires a consortium of multiple applicants.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):The geographic eligibility includes EU member states and associated countries as defined in Annex B of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. 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 sector is culture, creativity, and inclusive society, with a focus on linguistic diversity, heritage, language technologies, education, and cultural preservation. Specific disciplines mentioned include linguistics, heritage and museum studies, media studies, theatre studies, literary studies, socio-economic studies, socio-cultural studies, and migration studies.

Mentioned Countries:The opportunity focuses on Europe, specifically EU member states and associated countries.

Project Stage:The project stage is variable, encompassing research, development, and innovation actions. The call includes both Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) and Innovation Actions (IA), suggesting projects can range from early-stage research to more mature projects focused on implementation and scaling.

Funding Amount:The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call, ranging from approximately €3 million to €6 million per project. For example, HORIZON-CL2 has a budget of €11,500,000 and aims to fund two projects with contributions of 5,000,000 to €5,750,000, while HORIZON-CL2-2026-01-TRANSFO-10 has a budget of €3,500,000 and aims to fund one project with a contribution of around €3,500,000.

Application Type:The application type is a single-stage call, as indicated by the "Deadline model: single-stage" in the general information.

Nature of Support:The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant. Beneficiaries may also provide financial support to third parties in the form of grants, up to €60,000 per third party.

Application Stages:The application process involves a single stage, meaning applicants submit a full proposal by the deadline.

Success Rates:The success rates are not explicitly stated, but the indicative number of grants for each topic provides some insight. For instance, a topic with a budget of €12,000,000 and an indicative number of 3 grants suggests a more competitive environment than a topic with a budget of €5,000,000 and an indicative number of 1 grant.

Co-funding Requirement:Co-funding requirements are not explicitly mentioned. As a Horizon Europe action, it is presumed that the funding rate is 100% of the eligible costs for RIAs and CSAs, while IAs may have a lower funding rate.

Summary:This Horizon Europe call, part of the Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society pillar, focuses on "Safeguarding linguistic diversity in Europe." It aims to fund projects that enhance the understanding of multilingualism, document good practices for safeguarding linguistic heritage, and empower citizens to manage their linguistic resources. The call encourages transdisciplinary collaborations and the use of language technologies and digital platforms for language preservation. The funding is provided as lump sum grants, with varying budgets and indicative numbers of grants depending on the specific topic. Eligible applicants include a range of entities from EU member states and associated countries, and the application process involves a single-stage submission. The call seeks to address the challenges faced by multilingual regions, including demographic shifts, socio-economic pressures, and the impact of migration and digital technologies on linguistic diversity.