Technical innovation to protect ecosystems and to scale up their restoration

The funding opportunity identified as HORIZON-CL6-2027-01-BIODIV-03 focuses on technical innovation aimed at protecting ecosystems and scaling up restoration efforts. It is part of the Horizon Europe program, specifically categorized as an Innovation Action (HORIZON-IA) with a planned opening date of April 20, 2027, and a submission deadline of September 22, 2027. The total funding available for this topic is €14 million, with two expected grants, each providing a maximum and minimum contribution of €7 million.

Eligible applicants include research institutions, universities, enterprises (particularly small and medium-sized enterprises), innovation hubs, technology developers, and ecosystem management organizations. A consortium involving multiple independent legal entities from different EU Member States or Associated Countries is typically required to foster collaboration and knowledge exchange.

The project scope emphasizes improving both the effectiveness and ease of ecosystem protection and restoration activities. This includes a focus on developing technical innovations such as machinery, equipment, and digital solutions that facilitate activities like biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation, and the implementation of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation. Successful proposals should address specific ecosystem protection needs and demonstrate cooperation with the EC Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity.

The funding will be awarded as lump sum grants, which simplifies the funding model by providing a fixed amount instead of reimbursement for costs. The application process is single-stage, requiring complete proposals submitted by the specified deadline. Historical success rates for similar calls in Horizon Europe suggest rates often range from 10% to 20%, indicating a competitive field.

No co-funding requirement is explicitly mentioned, but demonstrating additional financial commitments or partnerships can enhance project viability. The opportunity encourages innovation and the development of solutions that not only help restore degraded ecosystems but also contribute to broader environmental frameworks and regulations implemented by the EU.

Overall, this initiative presents a significant chance for eligible entities to engage in groundbreaking research and development, with the aim of enhancing ecosystem services critical for climate resilience and sustainability.

This is a description of a funding opportunity related to technical innovation to protect ecosystems and to scale up their restoration, specifically under the topic HORIZON-CL6-2027-01-BIODIV-03. This opportunity falls under the Horizon Europe (HORIZON) program, specifically Call 01 single stage (2027) (HORIZON-CL6-2027-01). It is a HORIZON-IA (HORIZON Innovation Actions) type of action, utilizing a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] Model Grant Agreement (MGA). The deadline model is single-stage, with a planned opening date of 20 April 2027 and a deadline of 22 September 2027 at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The expected outcomes of the projects funded under this topic are: activities of protection and restoration of ecosystems by stakeholders become easier and more effective; conditions to scale up the implementation of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation by stakeholders are improved, thus improving ecosystem services including for climate mitigation and adaptation.

The scope of the topic is as follows: Ecosystem restoration strategies for nature restoration and climate change mitigation require a coordinated and coherent set of human interventions and management practices (e.g. temporal protection of plants or removing invasive species, including their seeds) for which there is usually no dedicated mean like specific machinery, equipment or other technical innovations (like for example specific lures for invasive alien species). The most common practice is the use of agricultural machinery or equipment, but this is not always effective. With target 4 of the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030, the EU took the following commitments: significant areas of degraded and carbon-rich ecosystems are restored; habitats and species show no deterioration in conservation trend and status, and at least 30% reach favourable conservation status or at least show a positive trend. According to the EU Nature Restoration Regulation, Member States shall put in place effective and area-based restoration measures with the aim to jointly cover, as a Union target, at least 20 % of land areas and at least 20 % of sea areas by 2030, and all ecosystems in need of restoration by 2050. This is reflected in target 2 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The European Climate Law requires Member States to adopt and implement national adaptation strategies and plans in which they should promote Nature-based Solutions and ecosystem-based adaptation. These policies and legislations have reached the implementation stage in the EU and worldwide.

Successful proposals are expected to: design, develop and test technical innovations corresponding to identified needs for specific ecosystems protection and/or restoration activities. A wide range of possible innovations can be proposed, including new or adapted machines, low techs, digital innovations or combinations of them to be used in a wide range of ecosystem types, including terrestrial, freshwater and marine; pay attention to effectiveness, simplicity of use, durability and environmental sustainability and responsibility (including alertness to potential risks, trade-offs and the unintended consequences as a result of the use of technological innovations). This topic is particularly relevant for SMEs. Proposals should foresee appropriate resources to ensure close cooperation with the EC Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity (KCBD) and its Science Service.

The general conditions for this funding opportunity include:

1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.
2. Eligible Countries described in Annex B of the 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. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.
3. Other Eligible Conditions described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.
4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.
5. Evaluation and award:
 a. Award criteria, scoring and thresholds are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.
 b. Submission and evaluation processes are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.
 c. Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.
6. 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 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027) – and in actions under the Research and Training Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community (2021-2025). Purchases of equipment, infrastructure or other assets specifically for the action (or developed as part of the action tasks) may be declared as full capitalised costs. Described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.

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

Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA) information: Application form templates the application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System Standard application form (HE RIA, IA) Evaluation form templates will be used with the necessary adaptations Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA) Guidance HE Programme Guide Model Grant Agreements (MGA) Lump Sum MGA Call-specific instructions Detailed budget table (HE LS) Guidance: "Lump sums - what do I need to know?"

Additional documents include: HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction, HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 9. Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment, HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes, HE Programme Guide, 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, and Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

The budget overview for various topics under the Call 01 - single stage (2027) (HORIZON-CL6-2027-01) is provided. Each topic is listed with its corresponding budget in EUR, the type of action (HORIZON-RIA, HORIZON-CSA, or HORIZON-IA), the opening date (2027-04-20), the deadline (2027-09-22), the contribution amount, and the indicative number of grants.

There is a partner search announcement section where LEARs, Account Administrators, or self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics.

The submission system is planned to be opened on the date stated on the topic header.

A general FAQ and support section is available, providing links to the Online Manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, European IPR Helpdesk, CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk, the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for their recruitment, and a Partner Search tool.

In summary, this funding opportunity aims to foster technical innovation in ecosystem protection and restoration, particularly by engaging SMEs. It seeks to support projects that develop and test new technologies applicable to a wide range of ecosystems, contributing to the goals of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the EU Nature Restoration Regulation. The funding is provided as a lump sum, and successful proposals are expected to collaborate with the EC Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity (KCBD). The call is part of the Horizon Europe program and has a single-stage deadline in September 2027.

Eligible Applicant Types: The opportunity is particularly relevant for SMEs, but other types of applicants are not explicitly excluded. Therefore, eligible applicant types could include SMEs, large enterprises, research institutes, universities, and other organizations capable of designing, developing, and testing technical innovations for ecosystem protection and restoration.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, specifically a "HORIZON Lump Sum Grant" under the Horizon Europe Programme. The specific types of actions funded include HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (RIA), HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), and HORIZON Innovation Actions (IA).

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity does not explicitly state whether a single applicant or a consortium is required. However, given the scope and nature of the projects, a consortium is likely beneficial, if not implicitly required, to bring together the necessary expertise and resources.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The eligible countries are described in Annex B of the 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. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide. This suggests that the geographic eligibility includes EU member states, associated countries, and potentially certain non-EU/non-associated countries with specific funding arrangements.

Target Sector: The program targets the following sectors: environment, climate, agriculture/food, innovation, and DeepTech. Specifically, it focuses on ecosystem restoration, biodiversity, climate change mitigation, and the development of technical innovations for these areas.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity mentions "EU member states" and "non-EU/non-Associated Countries." Therefore, the mentioned countries include the EU and non-EU countries.

Project Stage: The expected maturity of the project varies depending on the type of action: Research and Innovation Actions (RIA): These projects typically involve research and development activities, so the project stage would be research, development, and potentially validation. Innovation Actions (IA): These projects focus on innovation and scaling up, so the project stage would be demonstration, commercialization, and scale-up. Coordination and Support Actions (CSA): These projects support coordination and networking, so the project stage would be research and development.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic and type of action. The budget overview provides the following ranges: Under €50k: Not explicitly mentioned. €50k–€200k: Not explicitly mentioned. €200k–€1M: Not explicitly mentioned. €1M–€5M: Several topics fall within this range, such as HORIZON-CL6-2027-01-ZEROPOLLUTION-01 (around €4M) and several CIRCBIO topics (€4M–€5M). Over €5M: Many topics fall within this range, with some reaching €7M or €8M, and one reaching €10M. Variable: The funding amounts are variable depending on the specific topic and action.

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

Nature of Support: 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, but the "Indicative number of grants" provides some insight. For example, a topic with a budget of €10,000,000 might have an indicative number of 2 grants, each around €5,000,000. Without knowing the number of applications, it's impossible to determine the exact success rate, but it is likely to be below 10%.

Co-funding Requirement: The opportunity does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required. However, given that it is a Horizon Europe grant, co-funding may be encouraged or implicitly expected, depending on the specific call conditions.

Summary: This Horizon Europe funding opportunity, under Call 01 - single stage (2027) (HORIZON-CL6-2027-01), aims to foster technical innovation for ecosystem protection and restoration. The program seeks to improve the effectiveness of ecosystem protection and restoration activities, scale up the implementation of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation, and enhance ecosystem services for climate mitigation and adaptation. The scope encompasses a wide range of ecosystems, including terrestrial, freshwater, and marine environments. Eligible applicants include SMEs, large enterprises, research institutes, and other organizations capable of designing, developing, and testing relevant technical innovations. The funding mechanism is a lump sum grant, with project stages ranging from research and development to demonstration, commercialization, and scale-up. The geographic eligibility includes EU member states, associated countries, and potentially certain non-EU/non-associated countries with specific funding arrangements. The application process involves a single stage, and the funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic and type of action, with some topics offering up to €8M or more. The program targets the environment, climate, agriculture/food, innovation, and DeepTech sectors. Successful proposals are expected to design, develop, and test technical innovations, paying attention to effectiveness, simplicity of use, durability, and environmental sustainability. Cooperation with the EC Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity (KCBD) and its Science Service is also encouraged.