The LIFE Programme is the EU’s funding instrument for the environment and climate action. The general objective of LIFE is to contribute to the implementation, updating and development of EU environmental and climate policy and legislation by co-financing projects with European added value. After 22 years, €3.4 billion and 4.170 projects, the LIFE Programme continues to finance actions for the environment and climate action.
The proposed seven (7) specific priorities under this topic shall aim to address the following specific needs identified by the Member States in the sub-programme Circular Economy and Quality of Life and in the sub-programme Nature and Biodiversity.
Strengthening foresters’ skills in biodiversity friendly forest management
The activities that can be funded are the following:
Applicants should have an expert understanding in biodiversity friendly forest management and a proven track record in respective training activities. Applicants should also have a good understanding of the wider EU forest policy context.
Specific consortium requirements: The applicant must be either forest agencies, administrations and/or forest organisations covering directly and/or through their membership at least two- third of the EU Member States.
Maximum EU contribution: €1.0 million
New European Bauhaus – Supporting local strategies for an efficient and balanced use of space towards sustainable, beautiful and inclusive neighbourhoods.
Sufficiency and adaptation of buildings and spaces is a new area of work in the European Commission. This call aims to showcase with examples and data that would help confirm the conclusions of the report and demonstrate ways forward that can be replicated in other areas of the EU and beyond.
This call is made in synergy with the New European Bauhaus (NEB) initiative and will contribute to the Roll-Out component of the NEB Facility. It is also relevant in the context of the Affordable Housing initiative.
This specific priority aims to support at least four small and medium sized municipalities from the eligible countries (see section 6) in setting up individual short/medium-term plans for providing quality affordable housing through the transformation of existing building stocks and spaces in urban, peri-urban and rural neighbourhoods focusing on sufficiency and adaptability measures.
Specific consortium requirements: The consortium shall include at least four small and medium-size local authorities 15, from four different EU eligible countries.
Maximum EU contribution: €4 million
Strengthening the fight against environmental crime in the EU and supporting the implementation of the new Environmental Crime Directive
Combatting environmental crime is of both political and legal importance (strengthening the rule of law). In this context, relevant objectives include developing and establishing tools for enhancing specialisation, cooperation and communication between all the competent authorities within and between Member States involved in enforcement of environmental crime legislation.
The project must include the following activities:
Furthermore, the project must also cover at least three of the following activities, to the applicants’ choice:
Specific consortium requirement: The consortium must include at least one EU network of environmental practitioners (e.g., of prosecutors, inspectors, judges, police and other enforcement officers).
Maximum EU contribution: €1.5 million
Participation of consumer organisations and environmental NGOs in the implementation of the Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR)
The objective of the proposed project is twofold:
The first strand of work involves identifying, elaborating, and channelling the contribution of consumer and environmental NGOs and other non-profit organisations to the preparatory work on ESPR implementation.
The second strand of work involves the following:
Specific consortium requirements: To ensure a wide representation of European consumer organisations and environmental NGOs in the framework of relevant meetings at different stages of the legislative process, the applicant must be a single NGO /non-profit organisation or a consortium of NGOs and non-profit organisations, covering through their membership at least two- thirds of the EU Member States in the field of European consumer organisations and/or environmental NGOs.
Maximum EU contribution: €3 million
Capacity building on results-based payment schemes for the restoration of biodiversity in agricultural landscapes and implementation of the Nature Restoration Regulation
This proposed project will establish a peer-to-peer network, connecting public authorities, experts and practitioners from all Member States with a different level of experience in setting up RBPS. It will support Member States in setting up, piloting, monitoring, and evaluating their own RBPS by taking stock of existing schemes and bringing together environmental and agricultural authorities (including CAP managing authorities and paying agencies), biodiversity experts, farmers and other land managers, and farm advisors.
The project should leverage Knowledge and Innovation Systems (e.g. AKIS) to enhance the dissemination of best practices in the implementation of results-based payment schemes.
The project will also organise seminars, workshops, and field trips to successful demonstration RBPS sites. The project will undertake surveys with farmers in participating Member States to identify their interest and financial needs to implement the schemes on the ground.
The consortium needs to include the relevant expertise in terms of management of natural ecosystems, ecology of the target groups of organisms (including farmland birds, pollinators, and grassland butterflies), grassland management, and agriculture. It is expected that the public authorities in charge of managing and supporting schemes for biodiversity restoration, as well as authorities in charge of budgetary control, are involved in the networking activities organised by the consortium.
Specific consortium requirements: Applying consortia shall include at least two entities from EU member states that have been involved in setting up and managing RBPS at national or regional level across different Member States. Those entities might be public agencies, and/or public authorities, and/or well as research bodies.
Maximum EU contribution: €1 million
Support for Circular Business Model Mainstreaming – Boosting the single market for sustainable products and services
Knowledge creation and sharing:
Pilot sector demonstrations: Gather tangible examples from selected pilot sectors such as furniture or textiles and utilise them to generate usable step-by-step analysis and targeted recommendations to guide companies in adopting CBMs – identifying viable circular approaches and successfully transforming their business model or products to become more circular.
Capacity building and advisory support:
Networking and outreach: Identify useful networks, hubs, sector organisations and other intermediaries that could further expand outreach and spread the information and tools developed within relevant sectors/economic operators in addition to EEN, ECESP or the ECCP.
Feedback and impact assessment: Utilise the piloting work/advisory role of EEN or other multipliers to get structured feedback from business, in particular SMEs, microenterprises and SMCs on barriers, concerns and challenges related to circular transitions. Develop project indicators to measure progress.
Multi-country and multi-sectoral consortia will be encouraged.
Maximum EU contribution: €0.6 million
Climate Proof Pollution Alert model: relevant for the Water Resilience Strategy and Zero Pollution geared to transboundary cooperation on water pollution incidents
Here below the list of activities and outputs to deliver under the project:
Specific consortium requirements: To be eligible, the consortium shall include partners from at least 3 different eligible countries and must include water authorities (or their grouping and associations) in charge of the management of River Basin Management Plans (which must include water bodies being part of the same transboundary/international water course) and established in at least one of the eligible countries.
Maximum EU contribution: €0.7 million
90%
In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:
Department of Environment
Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment
www.lifecyclamen.com.cy
Persons to Contact
Marilena Papastavrou
Environment Officer, National Contact Point for Environment
Telephone: +357 22 408 926
Email: mpapastavrou@environment.moa.gov.cy
Chrystalla Papastavrou
Environment Officer, National Contact Point for Climate
Telephone: +357 22 408 962
Email: cpapastavrou@environment.moa.gov.cy
For questions please send email at: CINEA-LIFE-ENQUIRIES@ec.europa.eu