Support to the operation and further development of soil-health science-policy interfaces and national soil-health hubs

The grant opportunity HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-08 is part of the EU Horizon Europe program and aims to enhance soil-health governance by strengthening the science-policy interface and developing national hubs. Eligible applicants include research institutions, universities, public-private partnerships, and NGOs engaged in soil science or policy, with exceptional participation from legal entities in non-associated third countries allowed. The funding type is classified as a Coordination and Support Action, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, with financial support typically ranging from €1 million to €5 million.

Proposals must involve a consortium, emphasizing collaboration across different institutions and countries. The beneficiary scope includes EU member states, associated countries, and potentially third countries, all of which need to maintain a focus on soil health, environment, and agriculture. The projects will be in the implementation and scaling stage, focusing on operationalizing existing interfaces and expanding national soil-health hubs.

The application process is a single-stage call, with a deadline for submissions on September 30, 2025. Although success rates for these grants are not specified, they tend to be competitive due to high demand. While explicit co-funding requirements are not detailed, there may be expectations for financial contributions or in-kind support based on precedent.

The main objectives include improving access to scientific knowledge on soil health, reinforcing coordination at national and regional levels, and addressing the weak linkages between various science-policy interfaces across Europe. Proposed activities should involve assessing existing structures, facilitating interactions among mechanisms, and developing tools for managing soil-health knowledge. Proposals are expected to leverage past and ongoing projects, coordinating closely with other Horizon Europe initiatives and relevant stakeholders, including the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre.

Overall, this initiative seeks to create effective policies to combat soil degradation and promote sustainable land management, underpinning critical EU environmental and climate objectives. The initiation of national soil-health hubs is central to translating scientific insights into actionable policies. The funding is framed as a lump sum and emphasizes integration with international efforts addressing soil-health policies.

This EU funding opportunity is part of the Horizon Europe program, specifically under the call "Supporting the implementation of the Soil Deal for Europe Mission" (HORIZON-MISS-2025-05). The focus is on strengthening science-based policies for soil health across various levels of governance. This includes supporting the implementation of the proposed EU Directive on Soil Monitoring and Resilience (Soil Monitoring Law) and improving the integration of Research and Innovation (R&I) activities of the EU Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe” (Mission Soil) at national and regional levels.

The expected outcomes of projects funded under this topic are:

Improved access to and use of up-to-date, policy-relevant scientific knowledge on soil degradation drivers, soil health status, and sustainable soil management practices by EU and (sub-)national decision-makers across different sectors.

Strengthened national- and regional-level structures for coordinating soil-health research and policy within the context of Mission Soil in all EU Member States and interested Horizon Europe Associated Countries. This includes facilitating exchanges with similar structures supporting other EU Missions at national and international levels.

The scope of the funding opportunity includes addressing the relatively weak linkages between different science-policy interfaces in the European and international landscape. It aims to systematically assess the strengths and weaknesses of existing interfaces, improve their results, and ensure their effectiveness across different contexts and governance levels. This will support the transposition and implementation of the forthcoming Soil Monitoring Law.

Proposed activities should:

Take stock of past, present, and planned soil-health related science-policy mechanisms and activities across different policy areas (agriculture, forestry, environment, climate, spatial planning) and governance levels. Analyze their purposes, tools, and assess their performance in terms of effectiveness, efficiency, and long-term sustainability. This should include case studies and identification of success/failure criteria.

Facilitate better connections among existing mechanisms and structures for science-policy dialogue on soil health across sectors and governance levels to reduce overlaps and gaps and increase overall effectiveness.

Identify and evaluate options for setting up and operating a functioning science-policy interface for soil health across the EU, its Member States, and interested Horizon Europe Associated Countries. Options should include the establishment of a dedicated science service as a central entry point for support requests.

Develop tools for managing existing and emerging soil-health knowledge, particularly from EU-funded R&I projects, with a view to integrating these tools into a future EU-wide science-policy interface.

Support the creation or further development and improved operation of national soil-health hubs in all Member States and interested Associated Countries, and coordinate the creation of a functioning Europe-wide network. The hubs should involve public administrations and stakeholders from outside the R&I sector, liaise with relevant authorities, and address the full range of land uses impacting soil health. They should function as science-policy interfaces and provide opportunities for developing research agendas aligned with policy needs.

Proposals should build on previous and ongoing projects addressing science-policy interaction and knowledge management in Mission Soil and other parts of Horizon Europe. They should include tasks and resources for close coordination with other Horizon Europe projects and contribute to relevant cluster activities in the Mission Soil Platform. Regular exchanges with hubs set up by other EU Missions should be facilitated to share best practices. Support and collaboration with Soil Mission Board members are expected to engage new stakeholders, mobilize funding, and promote hub development.

Proposals should work closely with the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) to contribute to efforts on soil monitoring and the development of the European Union Soil Observatory (EUSO), and with international institutions and initiatives addressing science-policy interaction for soil health, such as the Global Soil Partnership’s Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils and the Science-Policy Interface of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Active engagement with national soil-health hubs in relevant OECD initiatives is also expected.

This action supports the follow-up to the July 2023 Communication on EU Missions assessment.

The general conditions for this funding opportunity include:

Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout as described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form.

Eligible Countries: As described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific provisions may apply to non-EU/non-Associated Countries.

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: Award criteria, scoring, and thresholds are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes. Submission and evaluation processes are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.

Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement: As described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Legal and financial set-up of the grants: Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021. Further details are in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Specific conditions are described in the specific topic of the Work Programme.

The application and evaluation forms, as well as the model grant agreement (MGA), are available in the Submission System. The standard application form is HE CSA, and the standard evaluation form is HE CSA. Guidance documents include the HE Programme Guide, Lump Sum MGA, call-specific instructions, detailed budget table (HE LS), and guidance on lump sums.

Additional documents include the HE Main Work Programme 2025, the HE Programme Guide, the HE Framework Programme 2021/695, the HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764, the EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, rules for legal entity validation, the EU Grants AGA, and the Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual.

The budget overview for the HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL call in 2025 is as follows:

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-01: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 12,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-02: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 11,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 2

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-03: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 6,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-04: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 6,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-05: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 6,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-06: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 6,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-07: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 6,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-08: HORIZON-CSA, EUR 6,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-09: HORIZON-CSA, EUR 5,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-10: HORIZON-CSA, EUR 3,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

HORIZON-MISS-2025-05-SOIL-11: HORIZON-RIA, EUR 6,000,000, single-stage, indicative number of grants: 1

The opening date for submissions is May 6, 2025, and the deadline is September 30, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time.

Partner search announcements are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal.

In summary, this funding opportunity aims to improve soil health policies and practices by strengthening the connection between scientific knowledge and policy-making. It seeks to establish and support national and regional hubs that can effectively translate research findings into actionable policies, contributing to the goals of the EU Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe” and the forthcoming Soil Monitoring Law. The funding supports a range of activities, including assessments, networking, tool development, and collaboration with key stakeholders and international initiatives. The funding is provided as a lump sum, and applicants are encouraged to build on existing projects and initiatives.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the context of Horizon Europe, the eligible applicants can include a wide range of entities such as universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, non-profit organizations, and other relevant stakeholders from EU Member States and Associated Countries. The call also mentions the involvement of public administrations, private sector, and philanthropy, suggesting that these entities are also eligible.

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

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity does not explicitly state whether a single applicant or a consortium is required. However, given the scope of the activities, which include coordination, networking, and collaboration across different sectors and governance levels, it is highly likely that a consortium of multiple applicants is preferred, if not required.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries. The call also mentions that 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 environment, specifically focusing on soil health. However, the scope of the activities also encompasses agriculture and forestry, environment including biodiversity, climate, and spatial planning.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity explicitly mentions EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries. It also refers to non-EU/non-Associated Countries that have specific provisions for funding participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Project Stage: The expected maturity of the project for this opportunity is geared towards activities that support the implementation and further development of existing initiatives and policies. This suggests a focus on validation, demonstration, and potentially scale-up, rather than early-stage research or idea generation.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call. The budget overview lists several topics with indicative funding amounts ranging from €3,000,000 to €12,000,000 per project.

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.

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

Summary:

This Horizon Europe call, "Supporting the implementation of the Soil Deal for Europe Mission," aims to strengthen science-based policies for soil health across various governance levels. It focuses on implementing the proposed EU Directive on Soil Monitoring and Resilience and anchoring R&I activities of the EU Mission “A Soil Deal for Europe” at national and regional levels. The call seeks to improve the accessibility and utilization of scientific knowledge on soil degradation, health, and sustainable management practices by decision-makers. It also aims to strengthen national and regional structures for coordinating soil-health research and policy, facilitate exchanges between similar structures supporting other EU Missions, and support the creation or further development of national soil-health hubs.

Proposed activities should include taking stock of existing science-policy mechanisms, facilitating better connections among these mechanisms, identifying options for a functioning science-policy interface for soil health, developing tools for managing soil-health knowledge, and supporting the creation or further development of national soil-health hubs. Proposals should build on previous and ongoing projects, coordinate with other Horizon Europe projects, and collaborate with the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) and international institutions.

The call is structured around several topics, each with a specific focus and budget. The funding type is a lump sum grant, and eligible applicants include a wide range of entities from EU Member States and Associated Countries. The application process is a single-stage open call with a deadline of September 30, 2025. This initiative is crucial for ensuring the long-term sustainability of soil resources and supporting the EU's broader environmental and climate goals.