Mission Lighthouses coordination and support activities

Opened

Programme Category

EU Competitive Programmes

Programme Name

Horizon Europe (2021-2027)

Programme Description

Horizon Europe is the European Union (EU) funding programme for the period 2021 – 2027, which targets the sectors of research and innovation. The programme’s budget is around € 95.5 billion, of which € 5.4 billion is from NextGenerationEU to stimulate recovery and strengthen the EU’s resilience in the future, and € 4.5 billion is additional aid.

Programme Details

Identifier Code

HORIZON-MISS-2025-03-OCEAN-07

Call

Mission Lighthouses coordination and support activities

Summary

The Mission Ocean and Waters defines “lighthouses” as central hubs that foster the development and deployment of innovative solutions across technology, society, business, and governance. Their purpose is to accelerate progress towards the Mission’s objectives and deliver a positive impact in river and sea basins through science and technology.

To ensure broad regional engagement, the Mission is organised around four area-based lighthouses: the Atlantic-Arctic, the Mediterranean Sea, the Baltic-North Sea, and the Danube River-Black Sea. These lighthouses act as cooperation platforms and apply a systemic approach that connects inland waters with marine ecosystems.

Proposals under this framework are expected to bring together diverse public and private organisations, networks, and expertise. Their role is to ensure continuity of the four lighthouses while expanding their scope to cover all Mission objectives and to facilitate the implementation of the Mission’s second phase.

Actions should provide basin-level support to stakeholders, enabling the replication and scaling up of innovative solutions. Since water challenges are transboundary in nature, coordination and cooperation across regions and basins are essential for the effectiveness of solutions and for addressing shared problems.

By 2030, proposals must demonstrate how their activities contribute to the Mission’s objectives during the deployment and upscaling phase. Cooperation with European research infrastructures is encouraged to strengthen impact, sustainability, and knowledge exchange.

Detailed Call Description

Building on and bringing together existing governance structures and networks and relevant existing activities, proposals are expected to address all following activities:

  • Support the replication and upscale of innovative solutions in the specific basin lighthouse:
    • disseminate and raise awareness about suitable, impactful innovative and transformative solutions to progress towards the objectives of the mission;
    • organise demonstration and testing activities for the innovative solutions;
    • support access to finance and mobilise suitable investors, through e.g.: pitching events, networks of investors, venture capital funds, local Entrepreneurial Discovery processes, etc.;
    • support knowledge and technology transfer, including through training and skill development;
    • support the involvement and cooperation of ‘associated regions’, essential actors for the implementation of the mission objectives at basin scale;
  • Design and carry out at basin scale relevant actions to promote Mission ocean and waters and its activities targeting different stakeholders and the general public, both at basin scale and at the regional/local level: disseminate information, exchange knowledge and good practices on the deployment of innovative solutions, on European and national procurement processes as well as on regulatory issues;
  • Support the mobilisation of national and regional funds as well as private financing around common objectives:
    • design joint initiatives under the Mission Ocean and waters, such as joint programmes or calls for R&I actions between the national and the EU level (based on the current programme co-fund actions) to address priorities of common interest at trans-regional/national level and ensure critical mass and effective use of resources;
    • support the alignment and test synergies between Regional Smart Specialisation Strategies and other relevant European programmes;
    • target relevant funding organisations such as investment funds, banks and philanthropists at national/regional levels to facilitate mobilisation of the funding;
    • support Pre-Commercial Procurements (PCP) and/or Public Procurement of Innovative solutions (PPI) by bringing together procurement agencies or departments in charge of the acquisition of innovative solutions at European, national, regional or local level to share investment plans and/or to plan common procurements of research services or of innovative solutions or products in the domains covered by Mission ocean and waters.
  • Contribute to the overall monitoring of the Mission implementation by providing relevant information in relation to each basin lighthouse area and liaising with Mission projects to collect relevant data and information;
  • Strengthen lighthouse governance and networking:
    • liaise with the Mission secretariat to ensure a coherent and timely implementation of the Mission deployment and upscaling phase in the lighthouse basin;
    • bring relevant new actions and initiatives under the Mission charter to promote their visibility and possible replication/uptake, including by connecting with other relevant initiatives in the basin such as Ocean Decade Actions and partners;
    • support an effective and participatory governance structure for the basins lighthouse involving key multi-sectoral stakeholders at sea/river basin level covering both marine and inland waters as well as the land-sea continuum and ensure cooperation and networking for achieving the three objectives of the Mission Ocean and waters by 2030;
    • liaise with the UN Ocean Decade actions and initiatives and promote international cooperation (e.g.: UN ECOP, OECD, etc.);
    • consolidate existing national and regional mission hubs or support their set up if not in place already, to provide the framework for coordinating and aligning policies, initiatives and actions at EU, national and local level, including cooperation with the National Contact Points (NCPs) and Mission Board members, where relevant;
    • Organise regular exchanges of best practices between hubs of this Mission and of the other four EU Missions, e.g. in the area of stakeholder and citizen engagement, long-term sustainability of mission hubs, and building of synergies.

Call Total Budget

€14.20 million

Financing percentage by EU or other bodies / Level of Subsidy or Loan

100%

Expected EU contribution per project: between €3.00 and €3.55 million.

Thematic Categories

  • Environment and Climate Change
  • Fisheries/ Aquaculture and Maritime Policy
  • Research, Technological Development and Innovation

Eligibility for Participation

  • Businesses
  • Educational Institutions
  • Large Enterprises
  • Legal Entities
  • Local Authorities
  • NGOs
  • Non Profit Organisations
  • Other Beneficiaries
  • Private Bodies
  • Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
  • Semi-governmental organisations
  • Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
  • State-owned Enterprises

Eligibility For Participation Notes

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.

Call Opening Date

07/05/2025

Call Closing Date

24/09/2025

National Contact Point(s)

Research and Innovation Foundation

Address: 29a Andrea Michalakopoulou, 1075 Nicosia, P.B. 23422, 1683 Nicosia
Telephone: +357 22205000
Fax: +357 22205001
Email: support@research.org.cy
Websitehttps://www.research.org.cy/en/

Contact Person:

Mr. Christakis Theocharous
Scientific Officer A’
Email: ctheocharous@research.org.cy

EU Contact Point