Innovative solutions to fight wildlife trafficking and to reduce invasion of invasive alien species

**A pályázat célja és várt eredménye** Expected Outcome: Proposals are expected to contribute to all the following expected outcomes: custom officers, border guards and relevant law enforcement officers and civil servants from competent authorities have improved capacities to detect illegal wildlife trade and prevent invasive alien species introduction, reintroduction and spread; illegal wildlife trade is better detected, contributing to improved protection of endangered species, and the spread of invasive alien species through trade is prevented and identified as early as possible, supporting the EU and global biodiversity objectives. Scope: Wildlife trafficking and invasive alien species pose major threats to biodiversity [1] and present important challenges regarding enforcement, prevention and detection capacities. Invasive alien species also cause significant negative economic impacts, estimated at around €12 billion per year in the EU, and wildlife trafficking is one of the most profitable criminal activities worldwide [2] . Moreover, they pose significant health hazards. The rate of introduction of invasive alien species has been increasing. Wildlife trafficking is also increasing, especially due to increase in online trade [3] . The development of innovative tools to identify wildlife species in international trade offers opportunities for multiple applications to better combat drivers of biodiversity loss, in particular the overexploitation of wildlife through trade and illicit trafficking and, in specific cases, the introduction and spread of invasive alien species. European law enforcement, customs and competent authorities, need improved capabilities that allow better and automatic monitoring and detection in online trade (e.g. e-commerce platform and marketplaces); and in physical trade, considering trade and logistic chains (e.g. ports, border crossings, postal and logistics hubs); interpreting data from multimodal signals; to support the detection of illegal wildlife trade and smuggling and invasive alien species in trade (intentionally or unintentionally introduced) while minimising disruption to the trade flow. This topic is expected to support the implementation of the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030 (target 12 on invasive alien species), the EU invasive alien species regulation [4] , the EU wildlife trade regulations [5] , the revised EU action plan against wildlife trafficking (2022-2027) [6] , the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (target 4 on halting species extinction, protecting genetic diversity and managing human-wildlife conflicts; target, 5 on wild species; and 6 on invasive alien species). Proposals should: develop tools/prototypes, using innovative solutions for the detection of invasive alien species in trade and illegal wildlife trade, prioritising technologies and methods deployable by law enforcement and competent authorities, in co-creation with the end-users taking into consideration cost-effectiveness and minimising barriers to adoption; ensure that technical solutions developed under this topic are interoperable with existing operational systems used by law enforcement and competent authorities; ensure that the solutions developed allow for the lawful collection, preservation, and admissibility of digital and physical evidence. Furthermore, solutions should specifically facilitate cross-border evidence collection in support of competent authorities, while maintaining the unbroken chain-of-custody and data governance compliance principles; demonstrate the developed solutions in relevant environment(s); ensure the scalability of the tools developed and develop long-term maintenance plans; develop the skills and competences of competent authorities, including law enforcement services, border guards, customs authorities and environment protection agencies, to use these tools (including for the lawful collection of crime evidence), for example by developing trainings and training materials; develop modern and effective societal awareness raising campaigns involving civil society non-governmental organisations and companies where relevant. Proposals should involve, as beneficiaries, at least 3 relevant competent authorities representing law enforcement (like customs or border guards), nature conservation services or environmental protection services from at least 3 different EU Member States or Associated Countries. This topic requires the effective contribution of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) disciplines and the involvement of SSH experts, institutions as well as the inclusion of relevant SSH expertise, in order to produce meaningful and significant effects enhancing the societal impact of the related research activities. Proposals may include PCP subcontracting activities as described in part H of the General Annexes of the work programme. Funded projects are encouraged to liaise with the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC), for example with regards to a possibility of testing the relevant research outputs at the JRC Border Security Lab. Technology Readiness Level - Technology readiness level expected from completed projects Activities are expected to achieve TRL 6-7 by the end of the project – see General Annex B. Activities may start at any TRL. [1] IPBES, Summary for Policymakers of the Thematic Assessment Report on Invasive Alien Species and their Control of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services , 2023. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7430692 ; IPBES, Summary for policymakers of the thematic assessment of the sustainable use of wild species of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES ), 2022, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7411847 . [2] UNODC, World Wildlife Crime Report 2024: Trafficking in Protected Species , 2024 https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/wildlife/2024/Wildlife2024_Final.pdf. [3] Europol, European Union Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment – The changing DNA of serious and organised crime, Publication Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2025. [4] Regulation - 1143/2014 - EN - EUR-Lex [5] Wildlife trade - Environment - European Commission [6] EUR-Lex - 52022DC0581 - EN - EUR-Lex **Jogosultsági és benyújtási feltételek** "> 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 Eligibility Conditions 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). 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. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as member of the consortium selected for funding as a beneficiary with zero funding, or as an associated partner. The JRC will not participate in the preparation and submission of the proposal - see General Annex B. The specific conditions for actions with PCP/PPI procurements in section H of the General Annexes apply to grants funded under this topic. In line with the “restriction on control in innovation actions in critical technology areas” delineated in General Annex B of the General Annexes, entities established in an eligible country but which are directly or indirectly controlled by China or by a legal entity established in China are not eligible to participate in the action. 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 described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes. 5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes 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 specific conditions are described in General Annex H. 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. described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes. Specific conditions described in the [specific topic of the Work Programme] Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA): Application form templates Please use the application form that you will find in the Submission System. You can find examples of standard application forms in the Reference Documents page . Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations Standard evaluation form (HE RIA, IA) Guidance HE Programme Guide Model Grant Agreements (MGA) HE MGA HE Unit MGA Additional documents: HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 14. Horizontal Activities HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes HE Framework Programme and Rules for Participation Regulation 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