Integrated assessment of land use and biomass demands to contribute to a sustainable healthy and fair bioeconomy
European Comission
ExpectedOutcome :
In line with the European Green Deal priorities, the EU’s climate ambition for 2030 and 2050 and the bioeconomy strategy vision of an economic system that acts within environmental and social boundaries, the successful proposal will aim to develop or improve land use models and tools, enabling sustainability assessments to support better-informed policy- and decision-making processes, particularly on a national and regional level. European Green Deal related policy domains will benefit from further deployment and exploitation of this Environmental Observation data.
Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:
- Better understanding, methods and tools for determining the potential and limits of land and biomass to contribute to the climate, biodiversity, environmental, as well as social and economic objectives of the European Green Deal.
- Enhanced knowledge on the policy pathways for maximising the climate benefit of bioeconomy solutions within ecological boundaries and improved decision-making for ensuring policy coherence on the national and regional level. Scope :
- Improve understanding of direct and indirect implications of current and future regional, national or EU policies and targets on land and biomass use, including an assessment of existing and emerging trade-offs, using and improving existing databases with high resolution data.
- Develop methodologies as well as tools for national and regional policy- and decision-makers to carry out integrated bioeconomy assessments of land and biomass use. The assessments will integrate existing and future EU, national and regional climate, environmental and food policies with projections on industrial biomass demand, and assess their implications on land and biomass use, taking into account trade-offs and synergies.
- Using the methodologies, quantify and project the land and biomass use and its climate mitigation potential, including the substitution effect of bio-based products and land impacts of diets, in at least four case study regions covering different socio-economic situations and climate/ecological zones in the EU and Associated Countries. The data should also cover, but not be excluded to, land use intensity and management types and their respective areas as well as biomass stocks and flows.
- Take into account biophysical and as far as possible, legal and socioeconomic constraints determining possible land use and biomass potentials.
- Seek to understand and identify factors determining land management practices and enabling nature-based solutions that maximise the co-production of ecosystem services, biodiversity restoration and preservation, enhanced climate mitigation and net primary production.
- Seek to understand and identify optimum/sustainable land-dependent and land-independent food supply for healthy, safe and sustainable diets.
The proposals must use the multi-actor approach by involving a wide diversity of bioeconomy actors and conducting trans-disciplinary research.
Where relevant, activities should build and expand on the results of past and ongoing research projects. The project requires an active collaboration with the JRC on the development of the necessary methods and approaches for the activities described in the scope of the topic.
General conditions
- Admissibility conditions: described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes
Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System
- Eligible countries: described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes
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. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide .
- Other eligibility conditions: described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes
The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as member of the consortium selected for funding.
The following additional eligibility criteria apply: The proposals must use the multi-actor approach. See definition of the multi-actor approach in the introduction to this Work Programme part.
Financial and operational capacity and exclusion: described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes
Evaluation and award:
Award criteria, scoring and thresholds are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes
Submission and evaluation processes are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual
Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement: described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes
- Legal and financial set-up of the grants: described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes
Specific conditions
- Specific conditions: described in the specific topic of the Work Programme
Documents
Call documents:
Standard application form — call-specific application form is available in the Submission System
Standard application form (HE RIA, IA)
Standard evaluation form — will be used with the necessary adaptations
Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA)
MGA
Additional documents:
HE Main Work Programme 2023–2024 – 1. General Introduction
HE Main Work Programme 2023–2024 – 13. General Annexes
HE Framework Programme and Rules for Participation Regulation 2021/695
HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764
Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment
EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual