Grants to enhance collaboration b/w Circular Cities and Regions Initiative’s Supporting Organisations

Deadline: 28-Mar-23

The European Commission (EC) is offering grants to enhance collaboration b/w Circular Cities and Regions Initiative’s Supporting Organisations.

Scope

• As part of the EU circular economy action plan, the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative (CCRI) supports the implementation of circular systemic solutions at the local and regional levels by providing financial and technical assistance to cities and regions in the EU and Associated Countries. The CCRI Coordination and Support Office (CCRI-CSO) is responsible for facilitating the implementation of the CCRI and supporting the cooperation, synergies and complementarities between the CCRI Pilot Group and Fellows, CCRI Projects and Associated Partners. In particular, the CCRI-CSO is responsible for providing practical and tailor-made support to the Pilot Group. The CCRI-CSO also helps to identify and analyse the main R&I gaps as well as the (technical, regulatory and financial) barriers and drivers to a local circular economy.
• There is a wide range of organisations in Europe that focus on circular economy at the local and regional scale and have the potential to contribute to CCRI, by implementing activities ranging from political engagement, networking, dissemination, research, support to the development and implementation of circular economy action plans and other circular innovative solutions on the ground.
• The objective of this topic is to strengthen the collaboration between various relevant initiatives and organisations that support circular economy at the local and regional scale, enhance their capacity to contribute to CCRI, while avoiding overlaps and duplications in their activities. Proposals should build on the activities of the CCRI-CSO, and ensure the proposed activities are complementary. Proposals should set out a clear plan on how they plan to collaborate with the CCRI-CSO, CCRI Pilots and Fellows, CCRI Projects and Associated Partners, for example by undertaking joint activities, workshops or common communication and dissemination activities and/or providing additional technical expertise through dedicated support activities. Selected proposal will thus need to work together with the above-mentioned CCRI counterparts and, if needed, refine their work plan together with the Commission. All the proposals’ activities must be coordinated and implemented in close cooperation and coordination with the CCRI-CSO, as well as explore the possibilities to further build on and make use of outputs produced, in order to ensure complementarities.

Funding Information

• The check will normally be done for the coordinator if the requested grant amount is equal to or greater than EUR 500 000, except for:
  • Public bodies (entities established as a public body under national law, including local, regional or national authorities) or international organisations; and
  • Cases where the individual requested grant amount is not more than EUR 60 000 (lowvalue grant).

Eligible Projects

• Proposals should:
  • Ensure close cooperation with CCRI and its Coordination and Support Office (CSO), and contribute to CCRI´s goals and activities, for instance by participating in relevant activities and sharing knowledge that can be transferred to the Pilot Group and Fellows and beyond;
  • In cooperation with the CCRI-CSO, facilitate exchange of knowledge and best practices on circular economy innovation, including innovative technologies, business models and governance as well as methodologies for supporting local and regional initiatives based on the latest knowledge in management, behavioural science and other relevant areas;
  • In collaboration with the CCRI-CSO, provide technical support to local and regional circular economy initiatives in order to increase the chance of success of circular systemic solutions. The projects should complement the support provided by CCRI-CSO to Pilot Group and Fellows, either by targeting cities and regions not already included in the list of CCRI Pilot Group and Fellows supported by the CSO and/or covering additional circular economy topics and dimensions not already addressed by the CCRI-CSO;
  • Organise workshops, webinars, trainings, capacity-building and/or peer-learning activities in coordination with the CCRI-CSO, in order to support the development and implementation of circular systemic solutions as well as facilitate knowledge and experience transfer for further outreach and replication in European territories;
  • Develop in cooperation with the CCRI-CSO relevant case studies of local and regional circular economy measures, activities and policies, identifying and presenting the respective strengths and weaknesses. These case studies could be used for their replication and dissemination across the EU and Associated Countries;
  • Support the CCRI-CSO in the development of guidance and policy recommendations for local and regional authorities on how to address identified technical, regulatory, and financial obstacles to the transition to the circular economy as well as on the development and the implementation of circular economy initiatives at a local and regional scale;
  • Promote in collaboration with the CCRI-CSO the concept of circular economy to cities and regions that are in the early stage of circular economy transition to help them build their understanding of the concept and the opportunities and chances of a circular system.
  • The target group of this topic includes organisations that support circular economy at the local and regional scale. These may include: research and technology organisations, associations of cities and regions, other organisations providing technical assistance to local and regional circular economy initiatives and projects. Proposals should ensure that all evidence, information and project outcomes will be accessible through the CCRI website.

Expected Outcomes

• Successful proposal will support the delivery of solutions to implement the European Green Deal, the EU circular economy action plan (CEAP) and the EU bioeconomy strategy. The topic will support the transition towards a sustainable, regenerative, inclusive and just circular economy at local and regional scale across the EU and Associated Countries.
• Proposals results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:
  • Strengthened collaboration and complementarity between various relevant initiatives and organisations that support circular economy at the local and regional scale;
  • Enhanced support to the implementation of circular systemic solutions in cities and regions through the streamlining and creation of synergies with/between the activities of other relevant initiatives and organisations;
  • Increased capacity, efficiency and efficacy of organisations that support circular economy at the local and regional scale, e.g. research and technology organisations, associations of cities and regions, other support organisations providing technical assistance to urban and regional circular economy initiatives and projects;
  • Enhanced knowledge transfer and exchange of best practices between organisations that support circular economy at the local and regional scale;
  • More widespread dissemination of circular innovation, including technological, business, governance and social innovation, which lead to an uptake and easier replication, scalability and visibility of circular systemic solutions and hence multiplication of their economic, social and environmental benefits at the local and regional scale;
  • Increased contribution of the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative (CCRI) scheme to the policy targets of the European Green Deal, particularly the circular economy action plan, the industrial strategy and the bioeconomy strategy at local, regional, national, European and international levels.

Eligibility Criteria

• Any legal entity, regardless of its place of establishment, including legal entities from nonassociated third countries or international organisations (including international European research organisations) is eligible to participate (whether it is eligible for funding or not), provided that the conditions laid down in the Horizon Europe Regulation have been met, along with any other conditions laid down in the specific call topic.
• A ‘legal entity’ means any natural or legal person created and recognised as such under national law, EU law or international law, which has legal personality and which may, acting in its own name, exercise rights and be subject to obligations, or an entity without legal personality.
• Beneficiaries and affiliated entities must register in the Participant Register before submitting their application, in order to get a participant identification code (PIC) and be validated by the Central Validation Service before signing the grant agreement. For the validation, they will be asked to upload the necessary documents showing their legal status and origin during the grant preparation stage. A validated PIC is not a prerequisite for submitting an application.

Specific cases:

• Affiliated entities — Affiliated entities (i.e. entities with a legal or capital link to a beneficiary  which participate in the action with similar rights and obligations to the beneficiaries, but which do not sign the grant agreement and therefore do not become beneficiaries themselves) are allowed, if they are eligible for participation and funding.
• Associated partners — Associated partners (i.e. entities which participate in the action without signing the grant agreement, and without the right to charge costs or claim contributions) are allowed, subject to any conditions regarding associated partners set out in the specific call conditions.
• Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees to protect the EU’s financial interests equivalent to those offered by legal persons.
• EU bodies — Legal entities created under EU law including decentralised agencies may be part of the consortium, unless provided for otherwise in their basic act.

For more information, visit European Commission.