R&I activities under this Destination will help establishing healthy, biodiverse and resilient forests that are sustainably managed and able of providing a wide range of key ecosystem services, including climate mitigation through carbon removals and continuing supplying materials and services for the development of a sustainable forest bioeconomy in line with the EU forest strategy for 2030.

Proposals for topics under this destination should set out a credible pathway contributing to “achieving healthy soils and forests, as well as clean air, fresh and marine water, whilst ensuring water resilience and the transition to a clean, competitive and circular economy and sustainable bioeconomy”, and more specifically to one or more of the following impacts:

• innovative circular and bio-based materials, products, processes and value chains are developed for the consumers and industry, replacing unsustainable alternatives and leading to new and more sustainable approaches for managing waste materials and by-products, aiming at pollution prevention and remediation, and the promotion of new forms of cooperation between diverse economic and societal actors across sectors and territories;
• industry and consumers benefit from new opportunities both through sustainable novel products in line with ecodesign principles, and novel circular business models that have a mitigating impact on resource use and greenhouse gas emissions;
• innovative business and governance models, are advanced to foster safe and sustainable product design. This includes durability, reliability, reusability, upgradability, reparability, recyclability, recycled content, and circularity with a comprehensive approach addressing environmental impacts also at a territorial level and involving civil society in fostering a circular economy;
• large-scale diffusion of social and technological innovation across circular and bioeconomy sectors within planetary boundaries thanks to innovative, socially fair, climate-neutral, circular, bio-based and nature-based solutions;
• the full potential of marine and freshwater biological resources and blue biotechnology is leveraged to deliver societal benefits, such as more environment-friendly industrial products and processes, support public health and environmental conservation;
• actors in the forest sector foster the multi-functionality of forests based on the three pillars of sustainability (economic, environmental and social), enhancing a sustainable and circular bioeconomy including support to business development; restoring and protecting biodiversity and ecosystems, ensuring that ecosystem services continue to be delivered including mitigating and adapting to climate change; and delivering societal expectations including well-being of different actors.

R&I fostering circular economy and other sectors under this Destination aimed at impacting or involving civil society will take into account the participation of disadvantaged groups based on gender and other social categories as appropriate.