Open Now: European Urban Initiative – Innovative Actions Call for proposals!

Deadline: 19-Jan-23

European Urban Initiative (EUI) is pleased to launch its first Innovative Actions call with a budget of EUR 50 million in support to New European Bauhaus demonstrators.

The first EUI-IA Call for Proposals will fund projects to deliver tangible, real-life examples of New European Bauhaus (NEB) interventions that fully integrate the three NEB core values of sustainability, inclusiveness, and aesthetics to a maximum level of ambition according to the framework proposed in the NEB Compass.

Strands & Objectives

The EUI includes two strands:

• Strand 1- Support of innovative actions, and
  • Support of innovative actions are:
    • To identify and support the testing of transferable and scalable innovative solutions to address issues relating to sustainable urban development at Union level;
    • To collect and share results from experimentations and support transfer activities, in view of fostering innovation capacities and knowledge building for all EU urban areas and mainstreaming innovative solutions in sustainable urban development, under Article 11 of the ERDF/CF Regulation and beyond.
• Strand 2- Support of capacity and knowledge building, territorial impact assessments, policy development and communication are:
  • Capacity building part
    • To improve the capacities of cities in the design of sustainable urban development policies, strategies and practices in an integrated and participative way;
    • To improve the design and implementation of sustainable urban development policies, strategies and action plans in cities.
  • Knowledge building, territorial impact assessments, policy development and communication part
    • To develop a knowledge base in support of better sustainable urban development policy and strategy design, implementation and mainstreaming;
    • To ensure easier access to horizontal and thematic knowledge and share knowhow on sustainable urban development;
    • To support the Urban Agenda for the EU, and upon request of Member State(s), to possibly support the intergovernmental cooperation on urban matters.

The Call will not be prescriptive with regard to the nature of expected proposals. However, cities are invited to consider the four following themes which have the greatest potential to generate innovative solutions and create a clear demonstration effect to inspire the use of Cohesion policy in urban areas:

• Construction and renovation in a spirit of circularity and carbon neutrality
• Preserving and transforming cultural heritage
• Adapting and transforming buildings for affordable housing solutions
• Regenerating urban spaces

What kind of projects are they looking for?

• Innovative
  • Innovative Actions support pilot projects that have never been tested anywhere else in Europe. This is an evolutionary approach where the innovation lies in the new elements added to the existing idea, or as a revolutionary approach with completely new solutions never tested before in the policy field concerned in the EU.
• Participative
  • Participation and co-creation with Partners, relevant stakeholders, and target groups, are key for the development and implementation of genuinely innovative and experimental projects.
• Measurable
  • A robust methodology is necessary to measure expected impacts, as well as clear and quantified results to capture the expected change in the local situation resulting from the project.
• Transferable and scalable
  • Based on lessons drawn from the project and shared to a wider audience of policy makers and practitioners, the Innovative actions have the potential of being scaled and transferred to other urban areas across Europe.
• Of good quality
  • Proposals must prove to be justified, realistic, consistent, and coherent. They should also be ready to be managed effectively, implemented swiftly, and demonstrate value for money.

What kind of support are they offering?

• Funding: Each project can receive up EUR 5 million. Part of this allocation will support the transfer of these innovative solutions to other cities in Europe to have an even bigger societal impact!
• Knowledge and Capacity Building: They provide a knowledge environment for cities to ensure easier access to knowledge and share the know-how on sustainable urban development! They are interested in strengthening your capacities in designing such strategies in an integrated and participative way.
• Duration: project implementation should take place within a maximum period of 3,5 years.

Eligibility Criteria

• The following authorities may apply for support to undertake the EUI-IA:
  • First category: Any urban authority of a local administrative unit defined according to the degree of urbanisation (DEGURBA) of Eurostat as city, town or suburb (corresponding to DEGURBA code 1 or DEGURBA code 2 of Eurostat) comprising at least 50 000 inhabitants.
  • Second category: An association or grouping of urban authorities with legal status of organised agglomeration composed by Local Administrative Units, where the majority (at least 51%) of inhabitants lives in Local Administrative Units defined according to the degree of urbanisation (DEGURBA) of Eurostat as cities, towns or suburbs (corresponding to DEGURBA code 1 or DEGURBA code 2) and where the total combined population is at least 50 000 inhabitants.
  • Third category: An association or grouping of urban authorities without legal status of organised agglomerations where all the urban authorities involved (Main Urban Authority – hereinafter: MUA, and Associated Urban Authorities – hereinafter: AUA) are Local Administrative Units defined according to the degree of urbanisation (DEGURBA) of Eurostat as cities, towns or suburbs (corresponding to DEGURBA code 1 or DEGURBA code 2) and where the total combined population (MUA and AUA) is at least 50 000 inhabitants.

Common Requirements for Eligible Urban Authorities

• In addition to the principles outlined above for each specific category of eligible urban authorities, the following principles apply to all eligible urban authorities in the framework of the EUI-IA:
  • All urban authorities shall be located in an EU Member State.
  • Only eligible urban authorities as defined above may submit an Application Form in the framework of the EUI-IA Call for Proposals. An Application Form submitted by a Delivery Partner will be declared ineligible.
  • Urban authorities  can be listed in a project proposal only as MUA and/or AUA. The category of Delivery Partners is reserved only to institutions and/or organisations that are not recognised as urban authorities in the framework of the EUI-IA.
  • If innovative solutions require an urban-rural interface or functional area approach, it is possible to include Local Administrative Units defined as rural according to their degree of urbanization (DEGURBA code 3 of Eurostat) as Delivery Partners. Please note that their number of inhabitants does not count to reach the minimum eligibility threshold of 50 000. The reason for including Local Administrative Units defined as rural must be clearly presented and justified in the Application Form.
  • An urban authority or an organised agglomeration can be involved in only one project proposal in the framework of each Call for Proposals (even if these project proposals are submitted under different topics in the same Call for Proposals). The rule applies also to the AUA (a municipality can be involved in only one project proposal whether it is as a MUA or as an AUA).
  • Urban authorities already supported in an approved project by the EUI-IA in the framework of a previous Call for Proposals cannot submit a new Application Form on the same topic over the entire duration of the Initiative.
  • Urban authorities must comply with the requirements on exclusion from access to funding.
  • Agencies and companies (e.g.: in the field of energy/waste management, economic development, touristic promotion, etc.) fully or partially owned by the municipality/city council are not considered as Local Administrative Units and therefore cannot be recognised as eligible urban authorities. Nevertheless, these organisations can be involved in the Partnership as Delivery Partners.

For more information, visit https://www.urban-initiative.eu/news/open-now-european-urban-initiative-innovative-actions-call-proposals