Security challenges of the green transition in urban und peri urban areas

Scope: Climate change and environmental degradation are an existential threat to the world, and the green transition is a critical component of the EU's strategy to reduce and mitigate their impacts, as well as to contribute to the European competitiveness. This approach is also part of the effort to transform Europe into a modern, resource-efficient, resilient and competitive economy. However, rapid deployment of new and emerging technologies, such as, but not limited to: green and grid-interactive roofs and walls, solar power installations, electric vehicle charging stations, energy storages, smart sensors and surveillance systems, green transportation systems, nature-based or other sustainable or reused construction materials, or specific infrastructure solutions may create security risks through new interdependencies including legacy infrastructure, the accumulation of deployed solutions, or otherwise create new potential risks and hazards of unknown scale and origin. Proposals submitted under this topic should investigate the integration of sustainable & environmentally friendly technologies into urban and peri-urban areas to identify and explore physical and cyber risks and vulnerabilities resulting from this phenomenon, including, but not limited to: battery fires, toxic leaks, electric shocks, structural integrity, toxic waste, data privacy, land management disruptions, including potential negative impacts on the natural environment, or social and community tensions. The proposals should also consider the threat of malicious access, software and data manipulation and misuse of managing systems potentially leading to harm to health, loss of life, environmental damage or economic damage, regardless of whether the intention is criminal, vandalism, hybrid attack or other. The ultimate goal of this research is to inform operators, first responders and authorities on how to mitigate risks, enhance their preparedness and improve their response to potential incidents. By recognizing emerging threats, it should be possible to prevent major incidents from occurring, and in the event of an accident, provide effective strategies, managerial advice, processes and methodologies to respond and recover. The research should provide recommendations that are tailored to diverse communities and context needs such as those with different socio-economic profiles, adapted to people of different ages and genders to identify and mitigate physical and cyber risks and vulnerabilities. Proactively addressing major safety and security risks associated with the green transition will help to future-proof these technologies, build public trust, and promote their widespread acceptance, backed by evidence-based safety and security policies. The proposed research should provide a comprehensive understanding of adaptive capabilities, the risks and vulnerabilities associated with green technologies , as well as practical recommendations for mitigating these risks and ensuring their safe, resilient and secure deployment while utilising the nature-based solutions and respecting principles of biodiversity. By doing so, it will contribute to the development of a resilient and sustainable urban environment, where the benefits of green technologies can be fully realized while minimizing their potential risks and negative impacts. In this topic the integration of the gender dimension (sex and gender analysis) in research and innovation content should be addressed only if relevant in relation to the objectives of the research effort. Technology Readiness Level - Technology readiness level expected from completed projects Activities are expected to achieve TRL 5 by the end of the project – see General Annex B.

Eligibility and submission conditions

"> General conditions 1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System. 2. Eligible Countries described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide . 3. Other Eligible Conditions The following additional eligibility criteria apply: This topic requires involvement as beneficiaries of at least 3 relevant practitioners from EU Member States or Associated Countries. Depending on the specific focus of the proposal submitted, these practitioners should represent one or several of the following portfolios: critical infrastructure operator, authority responsible for critical infrastructure resilience, civil protection authority, safety or security first responders, For these participants, applicants must fill in the table “Information about security practitioners” in the application form with all the requested information, following the template provided in the submission IT tool. If projects use satellite-based earth observation, positioning, navigation and/or related timing data and services, beneficiaries must make use of Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS (other data and services may additionally be used). described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. 4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes. 5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes. 5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual . 5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes. 6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants The granting authority may, up to 4 years after the end of the action, object to a transfer of ownership or to the exclusive licensing of results, as set out in the specific provision of Annex 5. Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027) – and in actions under the Research and Training Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community (2021-2025) [This [decision is available on the Funding and Tenders Portal, in the reference documents section for Horizon Europe, under ‘Simplified costs decisions’ or through this link: https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/horizon/guidance/ls-decision_he_en.pdf ]]. described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific conditions described in the [specific topic of the Work Programme] Some activities resulting from this topic may involve using classified background and/or producing of security sensitive results (EUCI and SEN). Please refer to the related provisions in section B Security — EU classified and sensitive information of the General Annexes. Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA): Application form templates — the application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System Standard application form (HE RIA, IA) Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA) HE Programme Guide Model Grant Agreements (MGA) Lump Sum MGA Call-specific instructions Detailed budget table (HE LS) Information on financial support to third parties (HE) Guidance: "Lump sums - what do I need to know?" Additional documents: HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 6. Civil Security for Society HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes HE Programme Guide HE Framework Programme 2021/695 HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764 EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509 Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement

Programme context

Following the Commission political guidelines 2024-2029 this Destination will support the implementation of the directives on the Resilience of Critical Entities (CER) [1] and on Network and Information Security (NIS2) [2] . Actions will focus on upgrading physical and digital security and resilience of critical entities and their supply chains, including the European strategic autonomy aspect. Research and innovation investments will continue addressing emerging and existing challenges for critical entities, including hybrid threats. Cross-destination and cross-cluster cooperation will be fostered to better understand the risks, including technological, organizational and underpinning societal issues, and to deliver innovative, scalable, interoperable, long-lasting and effective tools to anticipate, prevent, detect, monitor, manage and investigate them. These actions will contribute to realising the objectives of the ProtectEU – a European Internal Security Strategy [3] , Counter-Terrorism Agenda [4] and the European Preparedness Union Strategy [5] . Furthermore, this Destination will continue to develop measures to improve the resilience, safety, and security of urban and peri-urban areas against deliberate or accidental human actions, preserving citizens’ right to feel safe and have access to essential services, while meeting climate resilience objectives of the EU Adaptation Strategy [6] . Projects funded under this Destination will promote technological and social innovations enhancing the sovereignty, competitiveness and strategic autonomy of European critical entities, authorities and operators including their respective supply chains. Moreover, submitted proposals should consider current policy developments and meet expectations of the following EU legislation and policy documents, whichever would be relevant to the challenges addressed by the proposal: EU Cybersecurity Strategy [7] ; EU Maritime Security Strategy [8] ; EU Aviation Security Strategy [9] ; Europe-wide Climate Risk assessment (EUCRA) and Commission Communication on Managing Climate Risks; European Economic Security Strategy [10] ; Joint Framework on Countering Hybrid Threats [11] and the Joint Communication on Increasing Resilience and Bolstering Capabilities to Address Hybrid Threats [12] ; EU C-UAS Strategy [13] ; EU Space Strategy for Security and Defence [14] ; EU Disaster Resilience Goals [15] ; European Preparedness Union Strategy [16] ; EU Action Plan on Cable Security [17] ; European Water Resilience Strategy [18] . To this end, these proposals should contribute to the achievement of one or more of the following generic impacts: physical and/or digital aspects of critical entities safety and security are considerably improved, while dependencies on non-European technologies, services, and resources are significantly reduced; new and upgraded systems support the interoperability enabling rapid response and recovery from complex security incidents without significant human involvement, and situational awareness and information sharing functionalities are available, especially where emergency responders’ intervention is required; security-by-design, preparedness-by-design and where relevant circularity-by-design are default features of both newly created and upgraded infrastructure; urban, peri urban areas are more resilient through technological, organisational, and social innovations, and deepened public involvement; European citizens awareness and reaction capabilities in case of critical infrastructure disruption is considerably raised. Research projects should consider, build on (if appropriate) and not duplicate previous research, including but not limited to research by other Framework Programmes projects. It will be important also to take into account how research results can be advanced to deployable solutions after the projects lifetime, utilising validation and capacity-building programmes like the Internal Security Fund, Digital Europe Programme and other. Where possible and meaningful, synergy-building and clustering initiatives with successful actions in the same, or other relevant areas. should be considered, including the organisation of international events in coordination with the Community for European Research and Innovation for Security (CERIS) [19] . Legal entities established in China are not eligible to participate in both Research and Innovation Actions (RIAs) and Innovation Actions (IAs) falling under this destination. For additional information please see “Restrictions on the participation of legal entities established in China” found in General Annex B of the General Annexes. [1] Directive (EU) 2022/2557. [2] Directive (EU) 2022/2555. [3] COM/2025/148 final [4] COM (2020) 795 final. [5] JOIN(2025) 130 final [6] COM (2021) 82 final. [7] JOIN (2020) 18 final. [8] Council of the EU 11205/14 JOIN(2023) 8 final. [9] REGULATION (EC) No 300/2008 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 11 March 2008 on common rules in the field of civil aviation security and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2320/2002. [10] JOIN(2023) 20 final. [11] JOIN (2016) 18 final. [12] JOIN (2018) 16 final. [13] COM (2023) 659 final. [14] JOIN (2023) 9 final. [15] (2023/C 56/01); COM (2023) 61 final. [16] JOIN(2025), 130 final. [17] JOIN(2025) 9 final. [18] https://circabc.europa.eu/ui/group/1c566741-ee2f-41e7-a915-7bd88bae7c03/library/b560bc22-6a61-4b63-b62b-a7fe890ea177/details [19] https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/networks/ceris-community-european-research-and-innovation-security_en

Hivatkozott dokumentumok

Annex A Horizon Europe Programme Guide Online Manual [This [decision Standard application form (HE RIA, IA) Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA) Lump Sum MGA Detailed budget table (HE LS) Information on financial support to third parties (HE) Guidance: "Lump sums - what do I need to know?" HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 6. Civil Security for Society Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions