Call: Climate Change Adaptation

The specific objectives of the sub-programme “Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation” are:

• to develop, demonstrate and promote innovative techniques, methods and approaches for reaching the objectives of Union legislation and policy on climate action and to contribute to the knowledge base and to the application of best practices;
• to support the development, implementation, monitoring and enforcement of relevant Union legislation and policy on climate action, including by improving governance at all levels, in particular through enhancing capacities of public and private actors and the involvement of civil society;
• to catalyse the large-scale deployment of successful technical and policy-related solutions for implementing relevant Union legislation and policy on climate action by replicating results, integrating related objectives into other policies and into public and private sector practices, mobilising investment and improving access to finance.

The LIFE Programme will contribute to the transformation of the Union into a climate-neutral and resilient society, by supporting the implementation of the EU's climate policy as part of the European Green Deal and preparing the EU for the climate challenges in the coming years and decades.

Its areas of intervention will be the following:

• Climate Change Mitigation
  • Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, including fluorinated greenhouse gases and ozone depleting substances, in line with the EU’s climate neutrality target and the improvement of energy efficiency, including addressing the policy and market framework for the development and deployment of low-carbon or energy efficient products and services, as well as by promoting the transition of the transport sector.
  • Enhancing the functioning of the Emissions Trading System.
  • Support to sustainable land, forest, soil, sea and ocean management practices, which reduce emissions or remove CO2 from the atmosphere.
  • Develop and promote solutions to remove/sequester CO2 from the atmosphere. Carbon capture and carbon removals can be nature-based and coupled with restoration projects or rely on storage in specific long–term media or use of long-lasting products.
• Climate Change Adaptation
  • Support adaptation related policy development, and improve adaptation strategies and plans at all levels and in all sectors, in line with the new EU Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change;
  • Improve, promote, and scale up the use of state-of-the art tools and solutions for adaptation modelling, risk assessment, management and decision support; adaptation monitoring, reporting and evaluation; and ex-ante project assessment tools to better identify co-benefits and positive impacts on the economy of adaptation and prevention projects;
  • Support the rollout of viable nature-based solutions in the management of land, coastal and marine areas including through assessments, guidance, capacity building, and suitable financial approaches and products;
  • Approaches and solutions for adapting cities and regions to climate change, notably in support of the EU and Global Covenant of Mayors and of the European Climate Pact;
  • Approaches and solutions to ensure a stable and secure supply of high quality freshwater, prevent droughts, reduce water use, protect and restore wetlands, and prevent floods;
  • Solutions to climate-proof and enhance the resilience of infrastructure and buildings, including by using blue-green infrastructure and through cooperation with standardisation organisations;
  • Support preparedness for extreme weather events, notably at a local level and in the outermost regions;
  • Promote financial instruments and innovative solutions to deal with climate-induced risks, and public-private collaboration to reduce the share of uninsured climate-related economic losses, including by improving collection and access to climate-related economic loss data.
• Climate Change Governance and Information, which will include actions contributing to climate change mitigation or adaptation:
  • Incentivise changes in behaviour and practices, as well as improving citizens’ knowledge and awareness, notably through the support of the implementation of the European Climate Pact, mainstreaming emission reduction and resource efficiency actions in relevant sectors;
  • Development and implementation of climate and energy strategies or mid-century strategies at local, regional and national level;
  • Improve greenhouse gas monitoring, accounting and reporting and contribute to policy monitoring, assessment and ex-post evaluation;
  • Information on best practices and awareness raising on climate change mitigation and adaptation, including on climate-proofing of infrastructure investment and policies;
  • Development of climate services and promotion of climate science;
  • Development and promotion of sustainable finance instruments and support for climate diplomacy.

The sub-programme Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation may cover activities related to energy efficiency and renewable energy, as far they are not covered by the Clean Energy Transition sub-programme calls in that same year.

Objectives

Projects under this strand should help to achieve the long-term vision of the new EU Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change that, in 2050, the EU will be a climate-resilient society which is fully adapted to the unavoidable impacts of climate change. Projects should help to reinforce adaptive capacity, strengthen resilience, and reduce vulnerability, in line with the Paris Agreement and the proposed European Climate Law.

Scope and areas of intervention

• Adaptation policy development, and adaptation strategies and plans
• State-of-the art tools and solutions for adaptation
• Nature-based solutions in the management of land, coasts and marine areas
• Adapting cities and regions to climate change
• Climate-proofing and resilience of infrastructure and buildings
• Adaptation solutions for farmers, forest managers, Natura 2000 managers and other land managers
• Water management
• Preparedness for extreme weather events
• Financial instruments, innovative solutions and public-private collaboration on insurance and loss data

In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:

• be legal entities (public or private bodies)
• be established in one of the eligible countries, i.e.:
  • EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories (OCTs))
  • non-EU countries:
    • please see the List of Participating Countries in LIFE for an up-to-date list of countries with which the association agreements have started to produce legal effects (either through provisional application or their entry into force).
• the coordinator must be established in an eligible country

Natural persons are NOT eligible (with the exception of self-employed persons, i.e. sole traders, where the company does not have legal personality separate from that of the natural person).

International organisations are eligible. The rules on eligible countries do not apply to them.

Proposal page limits and layout:

Proposals must be complete and contain all the requested information and all required annexes and supporting documents:

• Application Form Part A — contains administrative information about the participants and the summarised budget for the project
• Application Form Part B — contains the technical description of the project
• Part C containing additional project data
• mandatory annexes and supporting documents:
  • detailed budget table
  • participant information

Page limit - Part B: 120 pages

Indicative range of project budgets: EUR 1 to 5 Mio.

Estimated number of projects to be funded: 14 projects

Funding rate for Standard Action Projects (SAPs): Maximum 60%