With its broad range of calls covering diverse fields, identifying the right opportunity for your project is crucial to securing funding. Effective mapping and screening of Horizon Europe calls are essential steps in this process. Here’s how you can strategically approach these tasks to increase your chances of success.
Understanding the Horizon Europe Landscape
Horizon Europe is a vast program with a budget of €95.5 billion for the period 2021-2027. It covers a wide array of topics across three main pillars: Excellent Science, Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness, and Innovative Europe. Each pillar includes various clusters and calls for proposals, targeting different research areas and types of innovation. Understanding this structure is the first step in effectively mapping and screening calls.
Step 1: Identify Your Research or Innovation Niche
Before diving into the Horizon Europe portal, it’s important to have a clear understanding of your project’s focus. Define your research or innovation goals, key objectives, and the societal or industrial\scientific challenges your project aims to address. This clarity will guide your search for relevant calls.
For instance, if your project involves basic science, it will align with the Excellent Science pillar, specifically under the European Research Council (ERC) grants. If you work on a cutting-edge technology, you may focus on the Innovative Europe pillar and check the European Innovation Council (EIC) schemes. If your project addresses societal challenges, such as climate change or health, it might fit within the Global Challenges pillar, which includes clusters like Health or Climate, Energy and Mobility.
Step 2: Use the Horizon Europe Portal
The European Commission’s Funding & Tenders Portal is the primary tool for finding Horizon Europe calls. It’s a comprehensive platform where all open and upcoming calls are listed, along with detailed information on each one.
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Search by Keyword: Start by using keywords related to your project. This will help you narrow down the vast number of calls to those most relevant to your work.
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Filter by Pillar and Cluster: Go to All filters and use the filters available on the portal to narrow down your search by selecting specific pillars, clusters, or cross-cutting priorities.
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Explore Work Programmes: Work Programmes provide detailed information on the policy context and the expected impacts of different calls. Reviewing these can help you understand the strategic priorities of Horizon Europe and align your project accordingly.
Step 3: Analyse and Prioritize Relevant Calls
Once you have a list of potential calls, the next step is to analyse and prioritize them based on their alignment with your project’s objectives, your organization’s strengths, and the likelihood of success.
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Match Project Objectives with Call Goals: Carefully read the specific call text to ensure your project objectives align with the goals and expected impacts of the call. Misalignment at this stage can lead to wasted effort on developing a proposal that may not be a good fit.
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Assess Eligibility and Requirements: Each call has specific eligibility criteria, including the types of participants (e.g., universities, SMEs, public bodies), geographical restrictions, and consortium requirements. Make sure your project and your consortium meet these criteria.
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Evaluate Competition and Success Rates: Some calls are more competitive than others. It is important to check what is the total budget of the call and how many proposals will be funded by it. Look also for information on past calls, including the number of proposals submitted and the success rates, to gauge your chances. Calls with very high competition might require an exceptionally strong proposal to succeed.
Step 4: Screen for Strategic Fit and Impact
Beyond just fitting the call’s technical requirements, your project should also align strategically with broader EU priorities and demonstrate a strong potential impact.
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Strategic Fit with EU Priorities: Horizon Europe places a strong emphasis on projects that contribute to EU strategic priorities, such as the European Green Deal, digital transformation, and resilience against future crises, farm to fork and so on. Highlighting how your project contributes to these priorities can strengthen your proposal.
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Potential for Societal and Economic Impact: Calls often require you to demonstrate the societal or economic impact of your project. Consider how your project will contribute to European competitiveness, job creation, or solving pressing societal issues, and be prepared to articulate this in your proposal.
Step 5: Engage with National Contact Points (NCPs)
National Contact Points (NCPs) are experts appointed by EU Member States to provide guidance and support to Horizon Europe applicants. They can offer valuable insights into specific calls, help you understand the evaluation criteria, and provide advice on proposal writing. Engaging with your NCP can significantly enhance your chances of finding the right call and crafting a competitive proposal.
Step 6: Monitor and Update Your Search
Horizon Europe is dynamic, with new calls being released regularly and updates being made to existing ones. Keep an eye on the portal and subscribe to relevant newsletters or alerts to stay informed about new opportunities. Regularly revisiting and updating your search ensures you don’t miss out on a call that could be a perfect fit for your project.
