Social, economic and cultural drivers, and costs of land degradation

The Horizon Europe call HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-02 is focused on addressing the social, economic, and cultural drivers and costs of land degradation as part of the Soil Deal for Europe Mission. The goal is to enhance understanding of these factors to inform sustainable land management strategies and policies. The estimated budget for this specific topic is €11 million, and it is expected to fund two grants.

Eligible applicants include universities, research institutions, NGOs, and other organizations that can form consortia to collaborate on interdisciplinary research, engaging both environmental and social science disciplines. The application process is single-stage with a deadline of September 30, 2025, and funding is provided in the form of a lump sum grant.

The call emphasizes the need for applicants to identify key factors influencing soil management, assess the costs of land degradation, and conduct cost-benefit analyses of soil conservation measures. Proposals should also evaluate the socio-economic impacts of the EU Green Deal policies and explore methods for modifying current practices to implement sustainable land management.

Additionally, the grant encourages regular collaboration with policymakers and stakeholders while ensuring transparency and open access to knowledge and outputs. The evaluation process will look at proposal admissibility, compliance with eligibility requirements, and the financial and operational capacity of applying entities.

Although specific co-funding requirements are not detailed, lump sum grants typically do not require co-funding. General conditions for participation include proposal formatting, the eligibility of participating countries, and adherence to financial and operational guidelines.

Overall, the call aims to tackle the issue of soil degradation by demanding innovative research that not only identifies core drivers of degradation but also proposes actionable, evidence-based solutions tailored to various governance levels, thus supporting the EU's objectives for soil health and sustainability.

This is a Horizon Europe call focused on supporting the implementation of the Soil Deal for Europe Mission. The call aims to progress EU efforts to protect soils, achieve land-based climate neutrality by 2035, and contribute to the objectives of the Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’ and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15 on Life on land.

The call includes multiple topics, each with its own budget, type of action (Research and Innovation Actions RIA or Coordination and Support Actions CSA), and indicative number of grants. All topics share a common opening date of May 6, 2025, and a deadline of September 30, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time. The eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum.

The specific topic HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-02, titled "Social, economic and cultural drivers, and costs of land degradation," is a HORIZON-RIA action with a budget of 11,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 2 grants. This topic seeks to enhance the understanding of social, economic, cultural, political, and regulatory factors driving soil management and degradation. It aims to quantify the costs of land degradation and develop evidence-based strategies and policies for sustainable land management.

Proposed activities for HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-02 should:

Identify social, economic, cultural, political, and regulatory factors driving soil management and degradation.
Review existing socio-economic methods and models for assessing land degradation costs and conduct pan-European assessments.
Carry out cost-benefit analyses of soil conservation measures and sustainable land management approaches.
Evaluate the socio-economic impacts of EU Green Deal policies related to land degradation.
Explore how existing patterns of thought and action can be modified to implement sustainable land management.
Develop a toolbox of policy solutions for different governance levels.

Consortia should:

Work in an interdisciplinary way, bringing together environmental sciences and social sciences and humanities (SSH) disciplines.
Engage regularly with policymakers and stakeholders.

Proposals should:

Include dedicated tasks and resources for coordination with other relevant projects and initiatives.
Demonstrate a route towards open access, longevity, sustainability, and interoperability of knowledge and outputs.

General conditions for participation include:

Admissibility conditions related to proposal page limits and layout.
Eligibility of countries as described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Other eligible conditions as described in Annex B.
Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria.
Evaluation and award criteria, scoring, and thresholds.
Submission and evaluation processes.
Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement.
Legal and financial setup of the grants, with eligible costs taking the form of a lump sum.

Application and evaluation forms, as well as the model grant agreement, are available in the Submission System. Additional documents include the Horizon Europe Main Work Programme, the Horizon Europe Programme Guide, and various regulations and guidelines related to legal entity validation, financial capacity assessment, and grant management.

The Funding & Tenders Portal provides various support services, including an Online Manual, FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points, Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, European IPR Helpdesk, and CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk.

In summary, this Horizon Europe call aims to address the critical issue of soil degradation by funding research and innovation actions that enhance our understanding of the drivers and costs of land degradation and develop effective strategies for sustainable land management. The call encourages interdisciplinary collaboration, stakeholder engagement, and the development of practical policy solutions. The funding is provided as a lump sum, and applicants are advised to consult the various guidelines and support services available on the Funding & Tenders Portal.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the nature of Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Actions (RIA) and Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), eligible applicants can include universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, non-profit organizations, governmental organizations, and other legal entities capable of conducting research and innovation activities. The call is open to a wide range of stakeholders, including those from the social sciences and humanities.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, under the Horizon Europe Programme. This means that eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum contribution.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity requires consortia, meaning multiple applicants must collaborate. The call specifies that "In carrying out the activities, consortia should..." indicating that single applicants are not eligible.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes the EU and Associated Countries. The call also mentions that a number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries have made specific provisions for funding their participants in Horizon Europe projects, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Target Sector: The program targets the following sectors: environment, climate, agriculture/food, innovation, and research, with a specific focus on soil health and land management. It also involves social sciences and humanities (SSH) disciplines.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity explicitly mentions the EU and Associated Countries. It also refers to non-EU/non-Associated Countries that have specific funding provisions, without naming them individually.

Project Stage: The expected maturity of the project is research and innovation actions, as well as coordination and support actions. This suggests that the projects should be in the research, development, validation, and demonstration stages.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call:
HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-01: around €12,000,000
HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-02: around €5,500,000 (for 2 grants)
HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-03 to HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-08, and HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-11: around €6,000,000 each
HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-09: around €5,000,000
HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-10: around €3,000,000

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

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

Application Stages: The application process involves a single stage.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly mention a co-funding requirement.

Summary:

This Horizon Europe call, "Supporting the implementation of the Soil Deal for Europe Mission (HORIZON-MISS-2025-05)", aims to protect soils and achieve land-based climate neutrality in the EU by 2035. It seeks to enhance the understanding of social, economic, cultural, political, and regulatory factors driving land management and degradation. The call invites consortia to propose activities that identify these factors, review socio-economic methods for assessing land degradation costs, conduct cost-benefit analyses of soil conservation measures, evaluate the socio-economic impacts of EU Green Deal policies, explore modifications to existing patterns of thought and action for sustainable land management, and develop a toolbox of policy solutions. The call is structured around several topics, each with a specific budget and indicative number of grants, ranging from €3,000,000 to €12,000,000. The application process is a single-stage open call, with a deadline of September 30, 2025. Funding is provided as a lump sum grant, and eligible applicants include a wide range of organizations from the EU and Associated Countries, with some provisions for non-EU/non-Associated Countries. The call emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration, engagement with policymakers and stakeholders, and the demonstration of open access and interoperability of knowledge and outputs. The call is designed to support the EU Soil Strategy for 2030 and the objectives of the Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’, as well as the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15 on Life on land.