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  1. An institution, body, office or agency established by or based on the Treaty on European Union and the Treaties establishing the European Communities.

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    A microenterprise, a small or medium-sized enterprise (business) as defined in EU Recommendation 2003/361. To qualify as an SME for EU funding, an enterprise must meet certain conditions, including (a) fewer than 250 employees and (b) an annual turnover not exceeding EUR 50 million and/or an annual balance sheet total not exceeding EUR 43 million. These ceilings apply only to the figures for individual companies.

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  1. Governance, partnership: Projects aimed at increasing the application of multilevel and transnational or cross-border governance, designing and testing appropriate governance structures and mechanisms. Also cooperation between public institutions on any theme.

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    Activities that protect, promote and enhance cultural and natural heritage, increase the attractiveness through preservation and valorisation of common cultural and natural heritage in a sustainable manner, and improve and develop cultural and natural heritage objects, services and products. Cultural heritage management, art and culture, (maritime) heritage routes, access to cultural and natural heritage. Also all topics on cultural services such as festivals, concerts, art workshops.

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Call key data

European Blue Parks – Offshore marine protected areas

Funding Program

EU Missions in Horizon Europe

Call number

HORIZON-MISS-2024-OCEAN-01-01

deadlines

Opening
23.04.2024

Deadline
18.09.2024 17:00

Funding rate

70% (NPO:100%)

Call budget

€ 11,100,000.00

Estimated EU contribution per project

€ 11,100,000.00

Link to the call

ec.europa.eu

Link to the submission

ec.europa.eu

Call content

short description

Proposals under this topic are expected to show how their activities and results will contribute to achieving the Mission objective 1 – Protect and restore marine and freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity.  Proposals are expected to contribute to the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, including the Marine Action Plan, the Birds, Habitats and Marine Strategy Framework directives and the future Nature Restoration Law as well as relevant international agreements (e.g.: the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction - BBNJ).   

Call objectives

Only 8% of offshore marine waters in the EU are covered by marine protected areas (MPAs), compared to 48% of nearshore (0-1 nautical mile) and 27% of territorial (1-12 miles) zone (EEA, 2020). This means that large areas of important habitats offshore remain unprotected (such as soft sediment bottoms or habitats of highly mobile species such as marine mammals), which hinders the achievement of EU and global marine conservation targets to achieve a coherent MPA network. One of the main challenges for the establishment of offshore MPAs is the lack of knowledge about the distribution and condition of marine habitats, as well as pressures affecting them, due to high cost and effort needed for their surveillance and research. This has also been raised by Member States as one of the main issues with the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and of the future Nature Restoration Law. 

 The proposed activities should cover all following objectives:  

  • mapping the distribution and condition of marine (benthic and pelagic) habitats in offshore areas (beyond 12 nautical miles from the coast); 
  • providing the scientific basis for establishing new marine protected areas (or enlarging existing ones) in offshore areas, including strictly protected ones; 
  • assessing pressures (including cumulative ones) in offshore areas and establishing the necessary conservation measures for MPAs, including through elaboration of their management plans and monitoring schemes. 

Projects are encouraged to actively involve Member States/Associated Countries’ authorities and concerned stakeholders.

Proposals should be site-specific, and the number of sites, their size, objectives and management measures of the protected area(s) for demonstration activities have to be ecologically relevant and impactful and contribute to enhance ecosystem services.

Projects should build and capitalise on the knowledge base developed and lessons learnt from other projects, initiatives and programmes linked to the field of biodiversity, marine environment and conservation, as well as on the work carried out in relation to Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems, as required under the REGULATION (EU) 2016/2336 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 14 December 2016 establishing specific conditions for fishing for deep-sea stocks in the north-east Atlantic and provisions for fishing in international waters of the north-east Atlantic and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 2347/2002.

Projects funded under this topic are expected to  show a significant replication potential by identifying areas and locations where the proposed measures could be replicable. An action plan and roadmap needed for the replication and scale up of the proposed measures for offshore marine protected areas are expected to be drawn up by the end of the project, taking into account Marine Spatial Planning plans. 

For improved coordination and networking, the applicants should set aside resources for activities to engage with other relevant actions funded under Horizon Europe, in particular projects funded under Horizon Europe Cluster 6 topics, Mission Ocean and Waters topics, EMFAF/EMFF and LIFE activities. Additionally, projects should collaborate with projects funded under the topic HORIZON-INFRA-2022-EOSC-01-03 to adopt best practices regarding FAIR and open data sharing as well as with other relevant activities under the Research Infrastructures programme.

Proposals addressing the EU Outermost Regions are encouraged, given these regions’ natural assets.

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Expected results

Project results are expected to contribute to all the following expected outcomes:  

  • Definition of clear science-based conservation objectives and conservation measures that contribute to the restoration and protection of marine ecosystems and to effective management of protected areas;  
  • Evidence for effective decision-making process at Member States and Associated Countries level to ensure sustainable management of offshore marine protected areas; 
  • Contribution to policy development and implementation linked to protecting and restoring marine biodiversity and ecosystems;
  • New offshore marine protected areas proposed and/or established; 
  • Improved knowledge about offshore marine ecosystems (including deep sea ecosystems)and biodiversity in view of protection and conservation demo activities; 
  • Enhancement of the provision of ecosystem services compatible with the protection and restoration of the offshore ecosystems, leading to sustainable and scalable business models;
  • Active support to the Mission’s Digital Ocean and Water Knowledge system through advances in biological, ecosystem and socio-economic knowledge applied to restoration and conservation;
  • Active support to the Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Framework;
  • Reinforced EU leadership in international efforts for marine protection, in line with the EU key priorities and international commitments. 

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Eligibility Criteria

Regions / countries for funding

EU Member States, Overseas Countries and Territories (OCT)
Moldova (Moldova), Albania (Shqipëria), Armenia (Հայաստան), Azerbaijan (Azərbaycan), Belarus (Беларусь), Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosna i Hercegovina / Босна и Херцеговина), Faeroes (Føroyar / Færøerne), Georgia (საქართველო), Iceland (Ísland), Israel (ישראל / إِسْرَائِيل), Kosovo (Kosova/Kosovë / Косово), Montenegro (Црна Гора), Morocco (المغرب), New Zealand (Aotearoa), North Macedonia (Северна Македонија), Norway (Norge), Serbia (Srbija/Сpбија), Tunisia (تونس /Tūnis), Türkiye, Ukraine (Україна), United Kingdom

eligible entities

Education and training institution, International organization, Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) / Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Other, Private institution, incl. private company (private for profit), Public Body (national, regional and local; incl. EGTCs), Research Institution incl. University, Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME)

Mandatory partnership

Yes

Project Partnership

To be eligible for funding, applicants must be established in one of the following countries:

  • the Member States of the European Union, including their outermost regions
  • the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) linked to the Member States
  • third countries associated to Horizon Europe - see list of particpating countries

Only legal entities forming a consortium are eligible to participate in actions provided that the consortium includes, as beneficiaries, three legal entities independent from each other and each established in a different country as follows:

  • at least one independent legal entity established in a Member State; and
  • at least two other independent legal entities, each established in different Member States or Associated Countries.

Any legal entity, regardless of its place of establishment, including legal entities from non-associated third countries or international organisations (including international European research organisations) is eligible to participate (whether it is eligible for funding or not), provided that the conditions laid down in the Horizon Europe Regulation have been met, along with any other conditions laid down in the specific call topic.

A ‘legal entity’ means any natural or legal person created and recognised as such under national law, EU law or international law, which has legal personality and which may, acting in its own name, exercise rights and be subject to obligations, or an entity without legal personality.

Specific cases:

  • Affiliated entities — Affiliated entities (i.e. entities with a legal or capital link to a beneficiary which participate in the action with similar rights and obligations to the beneficiaries, but which do not sign the grant agreement and therefore do not become beneficiaries themselves) are allowed, if they are eligible for participation and funding.
  • Associated partners — Associated partners (i.e. entities which participate in the action without signing the grant agreement, and without the right to charge costs or claim contributions) are allowed, subject to any conditions regarding associated partners set out in the specific call conditions.
  • Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees to protect the EU’s financial interests equivalent to those offered by legal persons.
  • EU bodies — Legal entities created under EU law including decentralised agencies may be part of the consortium, unless provided for otherwise in their basic act.
  • Joint Research Centre (‘JRC’)— Where provided for in the specific call conditions, applicants may include in their proposals the possible contribution of the JRC but the JRC will not participate in the preparation and submission of the proposal. Applicants will indicate the contribution that the JRC could bring to the project based on the scope of the topic text. After the evaluation process, the JRC and the consortium selected for funding may come to an agreement on the specific terms of the participation of the JRC. If an agreement is found, the JRC may accede to the grant agreement as beneficiary requesting zero funding or participate as an associated partner, and would accede to the consortium as a member.
  • Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members (e.g. European research infrastructure consortia (ERICs)) may participate as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’. However, if the action is in practice implemented by the individual members, those members should also participate (either as beneficiaries or as affiliated entities, otherwise their costs will NOT be eligible.

other eligibility criteria

Activities are expected to achieve TRL 5-7 by the end of the project.

If projects use satellite-based earth observation, positioning, navigation and/or related timing data and services, beneficiaries must make use of Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS (other data and services may additionally be used).

Beneficiaries will be subject to the following additional obligations regarding open science practices: If projects collect in-situ data and marine observations, beneficiaries must make them openly available through the European Marine Observation and Data network (EMODnet), based on FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable) principles.

Additional information

Topics

Air Quality, Biodiversity & Environment, Climate & Climate Change, Water quality & management

Relevance for EU Macro-Region

EUSAIR - EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region, EUSALP - EU Strategy for the Alpine Space, EUSBSR - EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, EUSDR - EU Strategy for the Danube Region

UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs)

Additional Information

All proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funders & Tenders Portal electronic submission system (accessible via the topic page in the Search Funding & Tenders section). Paper submissions are NOT possible.

Proposals must be complete and contain all parts and mandatory annexes and supporting documents, e.g. plan for the exploitation and dissemination of the results including communication activities, etc.

The application form will have two parts:

  • Part A (to be filled in directly online) contains administrative information about the applicant organisations (future coordinator and beneficiaries and affiliated entities), the summarised budget for the proposal and call-specific questions;
  • Part B (to be downloaded from the Portal submission system, completed and then assembled and re-uploaded as a PDF in the system) contains the technical description of the project.

Annexes and supporting documents will be directly available in the submission system and must be uploaded as PDF files (or other formats allowed by the system).

The limit for a full application (Part B) is 45 pages.

Call documents

Horizon Missions 2023-2024Horizon Missions 2023-2024(2860kB)

Contact

EU Missions in Horizon Europe
RTD-HORIZON-EUROPE-MISSIONS@ec.europa.eu
Website

National Contact Points for Horizon Europe
Website

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