Overall Description

This funding topic supports innovative and practically applicable approaches to sustainability assessment, education and communication. It aims to improve the evaluation of products, processes and services through sustainability indicators while strengthening the knowledge, competencies and participation required for a sustainable society.

Projects should develop new methods for learning, dialogue and participation, address systemic sustainability relationships and consider guiding values and ethical principles. Children, young people and multipliers are important target groups.

Funding Amount

• Typical DBU funding per project: €100,000–€400,000, excluding the applicant’s own contribution.
• Maximum per project: No fixed maximum; funding is assessed individually.
• Co-financing: Applicants must generally provide and document an own contribution.
• Indicative funding rate: Cost-based funding is usually approximately 50%.
  • Companies generally contribute 75% of development-related project costs and 50% of research-related project costs. More favourable rates may apply to SMEs and cooperation projects.
• Funding up to €175,000 is approved by the DBU Secretary General. Larger grants require additional assessment and approval by the DBU Board of Trustees.

Submission Deadlines

• Deadline: No fixed deadline; project outlines and applications may be submitted at any time.
• Early submission is recommended because funding is competitive.
• Indicative assessment period: approximately four to six months for complete, high-quality applications not requiring additional review.

Submission Conditions

• Applications normally follow a two-stage procedure:
  1. Submission of a project outline through the DBU online portal, normally 3–10 pages.
  2. Submission of a full application, normally around 20 pages, following an invitation from DBU.
• Applications and reports must generally be submitted in German.
• Projects must be innovative, exemplary, environmentally relevant and practically implementable.
• Projects must not begin before DBU approval unless early commencement is expressly authorised.
• Applicants must generally provide an own contribution and document total project expenditure.
• Cooperation projects require a joint application and separate cost plan for each partner.
• Typical project duration is 18–36 months; longer projects are considered only in justified exceptional cases.
• Applicants must comply with DBU funding guidelines and applicable EU State aid rules.

The following activities are generally not eligible under this topic:

• Artistic projects, exhibitions, performances, festivals and similar cultural events.
• Established or regularly recurring conferences, annual meetings, anniversary events, sustainability days and symposia.
• Establishment of new environmental learning centres or nature trails.
• Educational projects associated with garden shows.
• General public-relations, information or awareness-raising campaigns.
• Individual gardens, “world fields,” school gardens and redesign of schools or kindergartens.
• Projects primarily establishing, expanding or redesigning websites.
• Green-office concepts.
• Financing third-party programmes at schools or kindergartens.
• Specialist environmental-advisory services.
• Regular exchange programmes, school trips and study visits.

Eligible Types of Businesses

Funding is generally available to legal entities, including:

• Small and medium-sized enterprises.
• Other companies.
• Universities and higher-education institutions.
• Scientific and research institutions.
• Schools and extracurricular educational institutions.
• Associations, clubs and non-profit organisations.
• Municipalities and other local authorities.
• Civil-society and educational organisations.
• Other legally constituted organisations.

Natural persons and state institutions may be supported in individual cases following a separate assessment.

Eligible Countries

• Primary eligible country:
  • Germany
• International projects:
  • Limited funding is available for international projects, primarily in Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe.
  • Projects outside these regions may be considered individually.
  • International projects must primarily be implemented abroad and substantially involve local partners.
  • DBU particularly supports cooperation between a German applicant and local international partners.