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The LIFE Programme �for the Environment and Climate Action

Latvia Inforrmation Session (15 May 2023)

Joelle Noirfalisse

European Climate Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA)

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Overview of the LIFE programme 2021-2027 and sub-programmes
Zoom on Standard Action Projects and CEQL 2023 SAP CALL
Tips & suggestions for applicants

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The new LIFE programme (2021- 2027)

LIFE is the only EU programme dedicated exclusively to the environment, nature conservation and climate action
The LIFE programme as a whole constitutes a 100% contribution to the objectives and targets of the European Green Deal
The multiannual work programme for 2021-2024 was adopted in July 2021
For the period 2021-2027, there is a budget of 5.43 billion €

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The LIFE Programme 2021-2027

To contribute to the shift to a circular, energy-efficient, renewable energy based- and climate resilient economy

To protect and improve the quality of the environment

To halt and reverse biodiversity loss

NATURE AND BIODIVERSITY

CIRCULAR ECONOMY

AND QUALITY OF LIFE

CLIMATE CHANGE �MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION

CLEAN ENERGY TRANSITION

Projects

• Develop and demonstrate eco-innovative techniques and approaches

• Promote best practices and behavioral changes

• Help to implement and enforce plans and strategies, in compliance with EU legislation.

• Catalyse the large-scale deployment of successful solutions

•Contributes to policies and legislation development, monitoring and enforcement

• Help Member States to improve their implementation

Project beneficiaries are:

Private enterprises

NGOs and civil society organisations

Public authorities

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Sub-programme Circular Economy and Quality of life

Circular Economy

and Quality of Life

circular economy, �noise, air, chemicals, green and circular economy, industrial accidents, marine and coastal management, noise, soil, waste, water, and the urban environment.

Contribution in�the areas of:

Typical actions

Support to public authorities and other stakeholders to implement EU environment legislation.

Support to technologies and solutions that are ready to be implemented in close-to-market conditions, at industrial or commercial scale, during the project duration.

Integrated projects beyond air, water, waste to other areas such as circular economy.

Promote upscale and access to finance.

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Types of activities funded under LIFE

GRANTS

Action grants:

Standard action projects (SAPs)
Strategic Nature Projects (SNAPs)
Strategic Integrated Projects (SIPs)
Technical Assistance (TA)
Other actions (OA) – including Coordination and Support Actions (CSAs)

Operating grants – no call in 2023

OTHER FORMS OF FUNDING

Procurement (not in this call)
Prizes (not in this call)
Blending (not in this call)

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Standard Action Projects (SAP)- Objectives

Support the development, implementation, monitoring and enforcement of relevant Union legislation and policy
Apply best practice solutions, or develop, demonstrate and promote innovative techniques, methods and approaches that offer environmental or climate advantages compared to current practices
Catalyse the large-scale deployment of successful solutions for implementing relevant EU legislation and policies by replicating results, mobilising investment and improving access to finance

! Not focused on research, no building large infrastructures

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Standard Action Projects (SAP) - Features

Flexibility. No particular partnership requirements (one or more beneficiaries from one or more countries), limit in duration or in budget. On average:

Duration is 4.5 - 5 years,
Partnership composed by 5- 6 beneficiaries
EU contribution between 0.5 and 5 million € (some as high as 20 million).

Co-financing rate of 60% maximum, except for Nature and Biodiversity projects:

67% for projects targeting both priority and non-priority habitats and/or species
75% for projects targeting exclusively priority habitats and/or species

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Innovative solutions, best practice, state of the art and operational scale!

Innovative Solutions

Techniques, methods and approaches that are new when compared to the state of the art at Member State and sector level and that are implemented at an operational scale.

Best practice

Solutions, techniques, methods and approaches which are appropriate, cost-effective and state of the art at Member State and sector level and which are implemented at an operational scale.

State of the art

Benchmark is not EU or worldwide BUT Member State/sector.

At an operational scale

Project must allow the achievement of sufficiently credible and ambitious impacts.

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2023 Call: Scope and priority topics�for Circular economy and quality of LIFE

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Scope and priority topics
Actions to facilitating the transition toward a sustainable, circular, toxic-free, energy-efficient and climate-resilient economy and at protecting, restoring and improving the quality of the environment
Circular economy and waste Soil Air Water Noise Chemicals Environmental governance New European Bauhaus

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Circular economy and waste

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Scope and areas of intervention
Recovery of Resources from Waste, Implementation of innovative solutions to support value-added recycled materials, components or products for the following areas:
Separate collection and recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) in particular but not limited to photovoltaic panels, smartphones, tablets and computers; Separate collection and recycling of batteries and accumulators; Dismantling, remanufacturing and recycling of End of Life Vehicles (ELVs) and End-of-Life Ships; Selective separation and recycling of construction works or buildings; Sorting and recycling of plastics; Separate collection and recycling of bio-waste; Separate collection and recycling of textiles; Recycling of composite and multilayer materials in particular but not limited to carbon or glass fibres. Special attention should be given to face-masks used by the general public for COVID protection purposes, in such case also best practice solutions will be considered; Recovering critical raw materials from waste Sorting and recycling of packaging.

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Circular economy and waste

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Scope and areas of intervention
Recovery of Resources from Waste, Implementation of innovative solutions to support value-added recycled materials, components or products for the following areas:
Implementation of innovative solutions for the identification, tracking, separation, prevention and decontamination of waste containing hazardous substances (e.g. asbestos), to enable value-added recycling of the treated waste and safe disposal of the hazardous substances or reducing the scale of the problem within the framework of the project. Special attention should be given to those substances considered as the most harmful for the environment and human health, also known as substances of concern.

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Circular economy and waste

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Scope and areas of intervention
Circular Economy and the Environment: Implementation of business and consumption models or solutions to support value chains, particularly the key product value chains set out in the new EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy, aiming at reducing or preventing resource use and waste including one or more of the following:
design for the environment solutions, including circular design, to improve durability, reparability, reusability, upgradability, recycling and use of recycled content in new products; Solutions (post-design) to support the implementation, transfer and/or uptake of product durability, reuse and repair, including upgrading and remanufacturing; Support to the implementation, transfer and/or uptake of one or more of the following: Product-as-a-service solutions and other business models or technologies to optimise asset use, Industrial symbiosis and creation of circular value chains, better tracking resources and matching surplus or by-product materials or recyclable waste across industrial sectors, Digital product passports.

These solutions shall aim at reducing impacts holistically by considering aspects such as: life cycle approach, wide uptake of labelling, green procurement and tracking of raw materials in components and products;

The models and/or solutions proposed should ideally consider the environmental performance of the whole value chain, but can equally focus on any specific stage of the value chain. Projects may include, as an element, the development of data to support value chain thinking. Particular attention should be given to the involvement and active participation of SMEs.

Priority will be given to projects that minimise or eliminate environmental impact, without simply shifting negative impacts elsewhere or to other stages of the product lifecycle.

Those projects dealing in particular with waste prevention, should, as part of their actions and where relevant, involve citizens, through information and awareness on:

the environmental performance associated with proposed solution throughout its life cycle (to encourage more informed purchases),
the return, collection and recovery systems available and with respect to the meaning of the labels related to ecological performance and recycling affixed on the products.

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LIFE STEAM

LIFE18 ENV/IT/000092

Green waste valorisation through innovative low temperature STEAM explosion into advanced biofuel and agri-products

LIFE Project on bio-waste for biofuel and agri-products production

Total budget: 2,499,827.00 €

EU contribution: 1,350,154.00 €

Expected Results:

Demonstrate more than 90% increased efficiency of the new plant in producing biogas from green waste
Assessing all the LIFE STEAM environmental benefits through a complete Life Cycle Assessment
Decrease landfilled waste and the compostable fraction by using biomass for the bioconversion process, reducing emissions and transforming a low-value waste into high-value biofuels
Contributes to the Waste Framework Directive, Renewable Energy Directive and ILUC Directive

Project website: http://www.lifesteam.eu

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LIFE CIRCE

LIFE18 ENV/IT/000155

CIRcular economy model for Carbon fibrE prepregs

LIFE Project on carbon fibre reinforce polymer recycling

Total budget: 2,278,694.00 €

EU contribution: 1,180,861.00 €

Expected Results:

Reuse of waste and scraps from the production of carbon fibre composites reducing landfill and/or incineration and optimize the use of natural resources
Re-processed carbon fibre prepreg scraps used to produce automotive components, brake discs, toecaps for safety work shoes
Example of circular economy model through industrial symbiosis
Direct contribution to the Waste Framework Directive, Circular Economy Action Plan, Industrial Emissions Directive

Project website: http://www.life-circe.eu

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LIFE BIOBCOMPO

Web summary: https://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/project/Projects/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.dspPage&n_proj_id=6722

Reduction of vehicle CO2 emissions by 8% with respect to current values, thanks to the replacement of polypropylene matrix reinforced with 20% of mineral glass fibres (density of 1.04 g/cm3) with 20% of cellulose fibres (density of 0.96 g/cm3) that ensures a weight saving of 8%;

Production of automotive components made of bio-based, low density and low environmental impact polymer composites;

Optimisation of at least one of the bio-based composite for the production of automotive components;

30 000 new cars equipped with components made with the new materials;

Optimisation and full qualification of the bio-based formulations to ensure their industrial exploitation; and

Optimise of other formulations that can replace commonly used plastic compounds (PP 20% mineral filled, PP filled with 15% of GF and 15% talc and, PP 40% GF).

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Air

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Scope and areas of intervention
Air Quality Legislation and NEC Directive Where not explicitly stated otherwise, air quality projects should generally focus on urban areas, or on approaches for rural areas with a large replicability potential in the EU, in order to cover as many people as possible.
Air quality improvement and emission reduction of particulate matter (PM) in areas:
with high use of solid fuel like biomass, coal, and peat for domestic heating, or with high emissions of PM from (re)construction, quarrying, mining, mineral handling, or other dust generating activities, if not covered by the IED
Sustainable road transport mobility aiming at emissions of air pollutants, the reduction of which is essential for helping meet air quality standards,
Reduction of emissions of air pollutants during real world driving conditions zero- emission vehicles and related infrastructure , the use of innovative logistic or passenger mobility platforms

Sustainable road transport mobility aiming at emissions of air pollutants, the reduction of which is essential for helping meet air quality standards, focusing on one or more of the following:

• Reduction of emissions of air pollutants during real world driving conditions (e.g. technical measures for vehicles, eco-driving, measurement and surveillance technology)

• zero-emission two- or three wheelers and/or analysis for and implementation on a test scale of related infrastructure needs;

• zero- emission vehicles and related infrastructure needs;

• the innovative use of alternative fuels;

• innovative retrofit programmes for vehicles ;

• alternative drivetrain technology ;

• innovative technologies to reduce emissions from wear and tear (e.g. brakes, tyres, road surface);

• high-impact traffic access systems (such as Low and Zero Emission Zones and road pricing schemes) through advanced access criteria and/or labels e.g. promoting zero-emission vehicles. Priority will be given to projects in urban areas in order to improve the situation for a maximum number of persons;

• the use of innovative logistic or passenger mobility platforms

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GREEN FOUNDRY LIFE

LIFE17 ENV/FI/000173

Inorganic binder system to minimize emissions, improve indoor air quality, purify and reuse of contaminated foundry sand

LIFE Project on air pollution abatement techniques

Total budget: 2,088,998.00 €

EU contribution: 1,216,781.00 €

Expected Results:

Decrease the environmental impact in European foundry industry by demonstrating modern sand moulding based on new inorganic binder systems instead of currently used organic binder systems
Demonstrating different sand recycling (thermal reclamation and ultrasonic + microwave tehcnologies) and purification methods to increase the reuse of surplus foundry sand (composting, washing methods)
Up to 80% decrease of hazardous air emissions from the casting process and 15% foundry sand recycling
Inorganic binder systems included as Best Available Techniques (BAT) in BAT Reference Documents for Smitheries and Foundries under the Industrial Emissions Directive

Project website: http://greenfoundry-life.com

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LIFE BIOBCOMPO

Web summary: https://ec.europa.eu/environment/life/project/Projects/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.dspPage&n_proj_id=6722

Reduction of vehicle CO2 emissions by 8% with respect to current values, thanks to the replacement of polypropylene matrix reinforced with 20% of mineral glass fibres (density of 1.04 g/cm3) with 20% of cellulose fibres (density of 0.96 g/cm3) that ensures a weight saving of 8%;

Production of automotive components made of bio-based, low density and low environmental impact polymer composites;

Optimisation of at least one of the bio-based composite for the production of automotive components;

30 000 new cars equipped with components made with the new materials;

Optimisation and full qualification of the bio-based formulations to ensure their industrial exploitation; and

Optimise of other formulations that can replace commonly used plastic compounds (PP 20% mineral filled, PP filled with 15% of GF and 15% talc and, PP 40% GF).

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Noise

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Scope and areas of intervention
Substantial reduction of noise inside densely populated urban areas through solutions with high environmental and economic sustainability
using low noise surfaces and/or tyres having life cycle costs comparable to those of standard surfaces and/or tyres, low height barriers with low landscape impact eco-friendly materials, lowering noise from railway traffic or airports,
Priority will be given to projects in urban areas in order to improve the situation for a maximum number of persons

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Water Quality and quantity

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Scope and areas of intervention
Improvement of water quality by
Integrated management of nutrients and organic pollution of human (urban) and/or agricultural origin by directly removing pollution. Innovative solutions for the reduction of pressures from chemical pollutants in the water environment by reducing emissions of priority substances and other chemicals identified as river basin specific pollutants at source
Implementation of flood and/or drought risk management actions by applying at least one of the following,
Nature-based solutions consisting in natural water retention measures that increase infiltration and storage of water and remove pollutants through natural or "natural-like" processes Innovative prevention and protection tools and techniques for support of policy, land use planning, risk reduction, post-event resilience and emergency management, Innovative integrated risk assessment and management approaches
Innovative projects addressing hydro morphological pressures identified in RBMPs
Implementation of innovative water saving measures

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LIFE SANDBOIL - LIFE19 ENV/IT/000071

To mitigate the risk of backward erosion piping by means of an innovative, sustainable, natural-based and cost-effective engineering solution.

The intervention is devised to stop the progression of piping beneath the riverbank, which might lead to severe erosion and to the collapse of the structure. By reducing the risk of riverbank collapse, the risk of flooding decreases consequentially

Total project budget: 2,831,933 Euro
EU financial contribution: 1,552,062 Euro

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/life/publicWebsite/project/details/5341

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Marine and costal water management

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Scope and areas of intervention
Application of innovative solutions (tools, technologies or practices) to ensure the protection and conservation of the seas, oceans and their coasts.
initiatives aimed at reducing the pressure of human activities on the marine environment, and addressing at least one of the following topics of high concern
underwater noise, marine litter and/or contaminants (addressed at source or in the sea giving priority to prevention rather than clean-up), disturbance of and damage to the sea floor, examination & reduction of impacts of deep sea exploitation & exploration, over-fishing and/or incidental by-catch, nutrient and organic matter inputs from agriculture or aquaculture and/or navigation (e.g. dredging navigation channels, shipping highways).

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LIFE14 ENV/ES/000852 - LIFE SEACAN

The LIFE SEACAN project will demonstrate the feasibility of applying biofilm-based wastewater treatment systems to reduce the impact of the effluents generated from fish canneries located in coastal zones.

Expected results: The project expects to develop an effluent treatment process with a 25% lower environmental footprint in comparison with conventional treatment processes implemented in fish canneries. In particular, this new process will produce the following concrete environmental benefits:

Improvement in fish canneries effluent quality, in terms of nitrogen removal up to 90% and COD (chemical oxygen demand) reduced by 95%, achieved by implementing biofilm-based treatments;
Reduction of the energy input needed to perform the effluent treatment, by at least 20%, in comparison with conventional treatments;
Total Eligible Budget: 1,721,873 € EU Contribution: 1,033,123 €

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/life/publicWebsite/project/details/4237

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for water services

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Scope and areas of intervention
Application of innovative technologies and tools for drinking water and UWWT systems
the use of resource efficient processes for the provision of water services , the use of processes to diminish the presence of pollutants of emerging concern, the treatment of drinking water and/or waste water for reuse
Application of innovative tools ensuring the resource efficient provision of water services compliant with the revised Drinking Water Directive and the UWWTD to population living in rural areas
Improvement of the efficiency and effectiveness of innovative solutions and/or innovative treatment options regarding recycled/reclaimed water,
Source control methods and on-site technologies for decreased discharges of pollutants Systematic approaches to avoid loss of water, energy and resources in industrial production and/or in provision of water services

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LIFE 16 ENV/ES/000419 - LIFE LIBERNITRATE

The project focuses on reduction of the concentration of nitrates in the groundwater in rural areas in Spain by using an adsorption bed made of silica obtained from the ashes produced by a controlled burning of rice straw in a pilot specifically designed, constructed and set up by the project consortium.

Direct purification of at least 26 m3/day of well water, reducing the nitrate concentration below 50 ppm and close to 25 ppm. The prototype will be directly transferrable to municipalities of 200 inhabitants or fewer;
30% reduction in the concentration of nitrates in 130 litres/day of water effluent - below 50 ppm in drinking water to facilitate compliance with the Nitrates Directive, and in the reject water of a reverse osmosis plant;
Reduction of 0.97 kWh per m3 of wastewater treated in the osmosis plant;
A guide for farmers designed to facilitate a 20% reduction in their use of nitrogenated fertilisers; and
Development of a business plan supporting the replication and transfer of the project and job creation.

Total costs: 2.354.292 € EU Contribution: 1.412.573 €.

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/life/publicWebsite/project/details/4640

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Soil

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Scope and areas of intervention
Contribute to the soil-related commitments set in the EU Biodiversity Strategy towards 2030 and to the implementation of the new Soil Thematic Strategy, when adopted.
Implementation of actions to protect the quality of EU’s soil, including innovative actions
encourage transition to sustainable practices of soil and land management, promote and scale up innovative soil and land management techniques to eliminate and prevent adverse effects (erosion, pollution, loss of soil organic carbon, etc.) and negative impacts on soil ecosystem services, prepare for extreme weather events and combat desertification, by scaling up the implementation of effective nature-based solutions
Restoration, protection and improvement of soil health and prevention of soil degradation including soil loss also through innovative actions:
sustain soil fertility and soil biodiversity, restore them after pollution apply cost-effective investigation, assessment and remediation solutions for soil contamination, apply cost-effective solutions to unseal already sealed areas

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LIFE17 GIE/IT/000477 - Soil4Life

The project focused on sustainable soil management in a Mediterranean context (Italy, France, Croatia). It promoted sustainable and efficient use of soil to maximise ecosystem services by improving soil-related decision-making processes at national, regional and local levels, and raising awareness among stakeholders, farmers, professionals and citizens. The project achieved its objective to reach around 2 million people through their media campaign.

Established a permanent consultation board on sustainable soil management, involving Italian regions and municipalities.
Upgraded digital simulator quantifying ecosystem services provided by soils, and created related maps for the municipalities of Milan and Rome.
Drafted a White Paper for Soil, addressed to relevant government and ministry actors to promote more sustainable management of urban soils
Set up 15 regional observatories on land uptake, drafted and promoted the adoption of a Charter of Principles for sustainable soil use
Trained around 1000 farmers and almost 8000 professionals on sustainable soil management and adoption of sustainable agricultural practices.
Designed an Italian webtool for the training of Italian farmers on sustainable practises for soil management (http://www.ciaperilsuolo.it).

Total costs: € 2.919.769 EU Contribution: € 1.751.861

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/life/publicWebsite/index.cfm?fuseaction=search.dspPage&n_proj_id=6792

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Chemicals

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Scope and areas of intervention
Prevention and Reduction of the impact on the environment or human health, of hazardous substances
Substances identified as being of concern (including endocrine disruptors and persistent substances) ; combination effects of substances; nanomaterials; biocidal products and/or pesticides; PFAS (Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances).
Prevention and Reduction of the impact on the environment or human health of chemical production and use across the value chain
Digital innovations for advanced tools, methods and models, and data analysis capacities to also move away from animal testing
Implementation of safe- and sustainable-by-design solutions, including through the development, commercialisation, deployment and uptake of safe- and sustainable-by-design substances, material and product

This shall be reached through innovation for safe and sustainable by design approaches for chemicals, materials and products and promotion of the phasing out of substances of concern.

- Prevention and Reduction of the impact on the environment or human health of chemical production and use across the value chain to promote:

a. the development of green and digital/smart technologies

b. advanced materials

c. low-carbon and low environmental impact industrial production and use of chemicals

Implementation of safe- and sustainable-by-design solutions, including through the development, commercialisation, deployment and uptake of safe- and sustainable-by-design substances, material and product. The overall sustainability should be ensured by minimising the whole environmental footprint in particular on climate change, resource use, ecosystems and biodiversity from a life cycle perspective.

Facilitation of the implementation of the Seveso III Directive (Directive 2012/18/EU) on the control of major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances through deployment of particularly cost-effective methodological tools for carrying out human health and environmental risk mapping, and for addressing domino effects. Projects shall foresee the demonstrative application of these tools by different duty holders and implement risk preventing or reducing measures on their basis.

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LIFE20 ENV/BE/000671 - LIFE VIABLE

The LIFE VIABLE project aims to develop lignin-based epoxy resins on a pre-industrial scale to demonstrate their technical and commercial viability as an alternative to BPA in epoxy resins for high-performance applications. The resins will be tested in the automotive sector, with the overall aim of showing that the environmental and health impacts of BPA can be reduced by lowering its content in the formulation of epoxy resins.
Specifically, the project aims to:
Integrate glycidylated lignin oil (GLO) in epoxy-based composite materials, achieving a reduction in the use of BPA of 20 to 50%;
Manufacture a structural and an aesthetic car components to demonstrate that the lignin-based epoxy resin has similar technical characteristics to commercial materials;
Adapt industrial processes of the whole value chain for the large-scale production of the composite material;
Widely disseminate the project results to end-users, policy-makers and the chemical and biomass industry; and
Prepare a commercialisation strategy for the project solution, along with its replication for at least two other automotive components (its transfer to four sectors will be studied).

Budget: 3,371,079 € EU Contribution: 1,854,090 €

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/life/publicWebsite/project/details/5722

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for NEW European Bauhaus

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Scope and areas of intervention
New European Bauhaus (NEB) initiative, an environmental, economic and cultural project to combine design, sustainability, accessibility and affordability in order to help deliver the European Green Deal.
Proposals focused on a holistic reduction of environmental impacts of new buildings.
Proposals on circular districts involving creation of circular value chains to boost urban economies whilst producing urban and territorial regeneration.
Proposals for maintaining or restoring biodiversity that contribute to the implementation of the New European Bauhaus initiative. demonstrating biodiversity friendly practice for the energetic isolation of buildings, innovative architectural approaches for wildlife-friendly buildings,

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2023 Call: Scope and areas of intervention�for Environmental Governance

Support of public administrations to implement a holistic vision of the environment, including managing, monitoring, assessing environmental plans, programmes and initiatives

Targeted plans/programmes: National air pollution control programmes, Air Quality Plans, River Basin Management Plans, Flood Risk Management Plans, Nitrate Action Plans, Waste Management Plans, decisions related to industrial emissions, water pollutions, water abstraction etc).

Support to voluntary instruments and approaches (development, promotion, implementation and/or harmonization)

Examples: Third-party verification of the performance of innovative technologies when ready for the market, Product environmental footprint category rules (PEFCR) and/or organisation environmental footprint sectoral rules (OEFSR), EU Ecolabel, Green and Circular Public Procurement, Sustainability performance of buildings, EMAS).

Support to enhance environmental compliance assurance
Support to promote effective public participation and access to justice in environmental matters
Support behavioral change and awareness-raising initiatives linked to the European Green Deal, the Circular Economy Action Plan, the Zero Pollution Action Plan

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Selection process: �tips & suggestions

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LIFE SAP Call 2023: tentative evaluation phase�

6 /21 Sep 2023 Dec 23 – Jan 24 Mar 24 Jun 24 Jul 24

GAP

Grant

Agreement

Independent

Evaluation

Notification

of applicants

Proposal

Submission

Start of the

project

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Start early, start now! - LIFE Calls for proposals 2023

Standard Action Projects (SAPs) for circular economy and quality of life (CEQL), nature and biodiversity (N&B), climate change mitigation (CCM) and adaptation (CCA):

Opening: 18 April – Closing: 6 September 2023

1

LIFE 2023-SAP: topic description, list of countries, eligibility and admissibility conditions, evaluation criteria and procedure, scoring and thresholds, etc.
Submission forms and templates: essential forms and guides to draw up and submit your proposal
Portal Online Manual (for processes)
FAQ under the LIFE CINEA Webpage - Support to Applicants
FAQ (https://cinea.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2022-07/FAQs_LIFE2022_Calls%20220701_1.pdf) (updated 01/07/2022)
https://cinea.ec.europa.eu/programmes/life/life-calls-proposals_en

Read the relevant information

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Selection process

Areas of intervention and priorities for each sub-programme defined in MAWP (2021-2024)

Award Criteria:

Relevance
Impact (weighs 1.5)
Quality
Resources

“Bonus” criteria:

Synergies between LIFE sub-programmes

Outermost Regions and areas with specific needs and vulnerabilities

Up-scaling results of other European Union funded projects

Exceptional catalytic potential

Transnational cooperation among Member States

3

1- Relevance: contribution to one or several of the specific objectives of the LIFE programme and the targeted sub-programme. Soundness of the overall intervention logic (methodology). Promotes synergies with other policy areas relevant for achieving environment and climate policy objectives

2- Impact: Ambition and credibility of impacts expected during and/or after the project due to the proposed activities. Sustainability of the project results after the end of the project. Replicability.

3- Quality: Clarity, relevance and feasibility of the work plan and monitoring of impacts. Appropriate geographic scope. Identification and mobilisation of key stakeholders. Communication/ dissemination

4- Resources: Composition of the project team, expertise, appropriateness of the management scheme. Budget- transparency, clarity, consistency with the proposed work plan. Value for money of the project

Bonus:

Proven synergies, not a simple mention
Outermost Regions/vulnerable areas
Use of concrete results of other projects needs to be clearly demonstrated in the intervention logic/actions and necessary to achieve the project objectives. How results of other EU projects will be used – mere transfer of best practices and experiences is not sufficient.
Excpetional if strategy in place leads to significant multiplication of the impact of the project itself ie triggers an effect that amplifies outcome on a much wider scale (eg coordination and cooperation with a substantial number of relevant actors at EU, national, regional, local levels, develop a bss case etc)
More than 1 EU MS with genuine implementation, results achieved.

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Choose your idea & structure it well

Ask yourself if you have:

Clear objectives and quantifiable outcomes (achievable)
A clear understanding of the current situation and your starting point
Identified key stakeholders (and how to involve them)
A clear path to make a difference – what impact do you want to have?
A good consortium and clear management rules
A realistic budget
Actions aimed to replicability and to policy impact
Activities for getting bonus points

4

There is a significant competition for LIFE funds

Proposals that fail are either poorly prepared or simply with limited ambition or risk taking

Show that you have clear objectives, explain what needs to be done to achieve them and what is already available there that you can use without duplicating.

Outcomes: how to achieve relevant impacts expressed with realistic and measurable indicators.

How to engage your stakeholders and target groups since the very beginning- define tailored actions with this aim. Supporting letters provided?

Consortium:

- Choose well your partners – with diverse competences

- Involve partners in the preparation – avoid surprises after submission

- Keep consortium motivated - agree a working method for the proposal phase, make a plan for their input

- Do not cover the EU map artificially

Budget:

- Define your budget 'bottom-up‘: first describe the tasks – then estimate efforts and define the budget

Take into account the increment of costs and salaries since you are planning the proposal to the project implementation
Check consistency between your budget and the activities described in the Work Packages of your proposal

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Thank you for your attention!

For more information: CINEA-LIFE-ENQUIRIES@ec.europa.eu

https://cinea.ec.europa.eu/life_en