This topic is for the continuation of the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (SBEP), i.e. EU contribution in WP 2026. The third instalment of the partnership is expected to contribute to expected outcomes specified in topic HORIZON-CL6-2022-GOVERNANCE-01-02 and HORIZON-CL6-2024-GOVERNANCE-01-1.

Scope:

The objective of this action is to continue to provide support to the European Partnership for a climate-neutral, sustainable and productive Blue Economy (SBEP) identified in the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan 2021-2024 and first implemented under the topic HORIZON-CL6-2022-GOVERNANCE-01-02: European Partnership for a climate neutral, sustainable and productive Blue Economy, and in particular to fund additional activities (which may also be undertaken by additional partners) in view of its intended scope and duration, and in accordance with Article 24(2) of the Horizon Europe Regulation.

Taking into account that the present action is a continuation of the existing topic and foresees an amendment to an existing grant agreement, the proposal should present additional activities (including additional partners) to be covered by the award primarily in terms of grant agreement revisions.

The consortium which applied to and received funding under HORIZON-CL6-2022-GOVERNANCE-01-02 and HORIZON-CL6-2024-GOVERNANCE-01-1 is uniquely placed to submit a proposal to continue the envisioned partnership. Not only did this consortium submit the proposal leading to the identification of the partnership in the Horizon Europe strategic planning 2021-2024, it has also implemented the partnership through co-funded calls in year 2022 based on this planning and further to topic HORIZON-CL6-2022-GOVERNANCE-01-02 and HORIZON-CL6-2024-GOVERNANCE-01-1. In this context, the current consortium has particular expertise in relation to the objectives of the Partnership, the activities to be implemented, in particular FSTP calls or other calls/scope of calls clearly required/envisioned pursuant to the initial proposal/partnership, and other relevant aspects of the action. In practice, another consortium could not continue the activities of the Partnership underway without significant disruption to the ongoing activities, if at all.

The scope of the application for this call on the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership should focus on the 2023-27 programmes according to the partnership’s co-created strategic research and innovation agenda for seven years. It should pursue alignment, cooperation and structuring of research and innovation efforts across the EU and national levels, focusing on regional seas and on the objectives of the EU Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters and of the European Ocean Pact, to support a just and inclusive transition to a regenerative, carbon-neutral and circular blue economy and to foster knowledge exchange and co-creation of actions with regulators, policymakers and businesses. It should also continue or expand the priority areas identified in the Strategic Research & Innovation Agenda, promoting R&I alignments across national, regional, and EU levels, and fostering integration across science, industry, governance, and society. The partnership will focus on multiple strategic areas like ocean health, sustainable blue economy, digital twins, and citizen well-being, while aligning with EU policies such as the European Green Deal and other directives. It should recognise the diversity of citizens to be involved and the vulnerability of different groups when approaching different analyses, and develop more inclusive recommendations. The Partnership should consolidate relevant structuring activities and propose additional ones (potentially done by additional partners) aiming at promoting Blue Economy Innovations, contributing to the development of the European Ocean Observing System (EOOS), for instance by facilitating and promoting coordination of cross-border ocean and coastal observations programmes, at increasing the availability of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Re-usable) data for environmental, climate and blue economy purposes, at exploiting the opportunities offered by Artificial Intelligence and other cutting-edge technologies, etc.

The partnership is expected to continue to organise joint calls as part of the additional activities and therefore it should factor in ample time to run the co-funded projects.

The partnership's additional activities are expected to be designed and described in such a way that it is clear how they will increase scientific contributions, applicable in a legal/regulatory context, and how they will facilitate the use of scientific knowledge by regulators and policymakers and support the development of a sustainable blue economy. The additional activities are expected to be implemented through the multi-actor approach and ensure adequate involvement of researchers from different disciplines, advisors, local, regional and national authorities, government representatives, industry and businesses, including SMEs, knowledge institutions and citizens, civil society organisations including NGOs, and other relevant actors of the value chain, supported through Open Science practices and an inclusive governance, policy and decision-making.

While the award of a grant to continue the Partnership in accordance with this call should be based on a proposal submitted by the coordinator of the consortium funded under HORIZON-CL6-2022-GOVERNANCE-01-02: European Partnership for a climate neutral, sustainable and productive Blue Economy and the additional activities (which may include additional partners) to be funded by the grant should be subject to an evaluation, this evaluation should take into account the existing context and the scope of the initial evaluation as relevant, and related obligations enshrined in the grant agreement.

Taking into account that the present action is a continuation of topic HORIZON-CL6-2022-GOVERNANCE-01-02 and HORIZON-CL6-2024-GOVERNANCE-01-1 and foresees an amendment to an existing grant agreement, the proposal should also present in a separate document the additional activities and additional partners, if any, to be covered by the award in terms of how they would be reflected in the grant agreement. The proposal should also describe the specific activities foreseen to strengthen the synergies with other related Missions and Partnerships.