Funds research and innovation projects across various sectors.
Horizon Europe is the European Union's key funding programme for research and innovation, running from 2021 to 2027 with a budget of €95.5 billion. It aims to tackle climate change, help achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, and boost the EU's competitiveness and growth. The programme is structured around three main pillars: Excellent Science, Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness, and Innovative Europe. It focuses on areas such as health, culture, security, digital technologies, climate, energy, mobility, food, and natural resources. Horizon Europe offers various funding opportunities, from individual researcher grants to large collaborative projects. The European Research Council provides grants up to €2.5 million for frontier research, while Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions support researcher mobility and training. Eligibility criteria vary depending on the specific call, but generally include excellence, impact, and implementation quality. The programme is open to researchers, universities, companies, and organizations from EU member states and associated countries. In some cases, entities from non-EU countries can also participate. Recent projects funded include research on cancer prevention, climate-neutral cities, and restoring ocean ecosystems. Horizon Europe also supports European Partnerships and introduces research missions to increase the effectiveness of funding by pursuing clearly defined targets.