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Call key data
Novel circular business models to enable the just transition to a sustainable and circular economy
Funding Program
Horizon Europe: Cluster 6 - Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
Call number
HORIZON-CL6-2025-01-CIRCBIO-01
deadlines
Opening
06.05.2025
Deadline
17.09.2025 17:00
Funding rate
70%
Call budget
€ 10,000,000.00
Estimated EU contribution per project
€ 5,000,000.00
Link to the call
Link to the submission
Call content
short description
In supporting the implementation of the European Green Deal, and in particular the 2020 circular economy action plan (CEAP), the Waste Framework Directive and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), successful proposals will contribute to the expected impacts of this Destination, notably to benefits for industry and consumers from new opportunities both through sustainable novel products in line with ecodesign principles, and to novel circular business models that have a mitigating impact on resource use and greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to increasing Europe’s sustainable competitiveness.
Call objectives
The green transition and moving to a circular economy will require changes not only in the way materials are used and products are designed, but also in the way companies operate and business models are set up. The majority of current business models and the global economic and trading system are based on linear and unsustainable use of materials and products. This results in ever-increasing consumption, depletion of resources, increase in CO2 emissions and environmental deterioration, and undesirable generation of waste. The transition to a sustainable and competitive and circular economy necessitates transformative changes in material usage and corporate operations, with innovative business models able to trigger sustainable consumer behaviours and purchasing preferences. These models are pivotal in steering both industries and consumers towards sustainable practices, aligning with the comprehensive environmental objectives of the European Green Deal and the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030. The transition to a circular economy is key to reducing pressures on natural resources. It is also a prerequisite to achieve the EU’s 2050 climate neutrality target and to halt biodiversity loss.
Novel circular business models can affect business-internal practices as well as interactions with other businesses or civil society. Proposals should develop and demonstrate at large scale innovative business models to facilitate product reliability/durability, reusability, reparability, refurbishment, repurpose and remanufacture, including the preparation stage, as well as product-as-a-service business models.
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Expected effects and impacts
Proposals should assess and quantify, including monetisation, when possible, the environmental, social and economic impacts of these novel business models on relevant stakeholders, i.e., consumers, social partners, private companies with a focus on SMEs, municipalities and regions. The assessment of environmental impacts should be done from a lifecycle perspective and build on rules set in the Environmental Footprint methods wherever possible. Impacts of the business models on the overall resource efficiency and material use should also be assessed, as far as possible. Proposals should analyse the ‘pull’ factors that shift consumer choices in the direction of products/services offered by circular business models, as well as what can encourage more to do so. Ecodesign requirements laid down in the ESPR and EU Ecolabel aspects, and the verification of green claims should be considered where relevant.
Proposals should contribute to the development of innovative business models, including social economy entities and social enterprises, to enable the transition towards a circular and sustainable ecosystem and to stimulate the uptake of sustainable consumption patterns. Proposals should address the opportunities of developing new business models in the context of the circular economy R-strategies (refuse, rethink, reduce, reuse, repair, refurbish, repurpose, remanufacture) as well as upgrade and product-as-a-service business models.
Proposals should include social innovation and explore understanding behaviours to identify routes towards an increase of demand for sustainable products and even towards an overall reduction of consumption and product/materials use, which includes products as a service. Proposals should also explore self-sufficiency approaches and promote regenerative practices aimed at restoring biodiversity, mitigating climate change, and strengthening local communities and social justice.
The proposals should address the different perspectives of all relevant actors in a proposed project, which could be actors involved in raw material sourcing, material processing and manufacturing, intermediate production, end-product manufacturing, as well as brand owners, retailers, enterprises, re-use and repair organisations, civil society/consumers, etc. Proposals should also reflect on how access to finance can be facilitated and how economic viability can be ensured, and how governance can promote the establishment of these new business models. Critical issues of change management, scaling and diffusion of solutions should be addressed.
Proposals should target specific social groups and their purchasing power while developing novel business models, in order to keep a fair transition to climate neutrality in mind. This includes possible questions of gender equality, diversity and inclusion. Also, proposals should assess the potential of and prerequisites for new job opportunities in the areas of reuse, preparing for reuse, repair, upgrade, refurbishment, repurpose and remanufacture, contributing qualitative and quantitative data to the reskilling programmes of the green transition.
For the development of novel business models, projects should include elements of fair and affordable pricing of services/labour within various R-strategies as well as upgrade and products-as-a-service models. In this context, projects should also analyse barriers to such models and possible regulatory, governance and economic solutions. Projects should also address possible unintended or rebound effects, both positive and negative, particularly for consumers and the environment, of such novel business models.
Proposals should explore the territorial and geographical dimensions of the establishment and success of new business models and aim at synergies with the New European Bauhaus and the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative (CCRI). Projects are strongly encouraged to organise joint activities, ensure synergies and undertake clustering activities with CCRI projects and the CCRI Coordination and Support Office. To avoid double-funding and to create added value, projects should seek synergies with projects to be performed under the LIFE-2024-SAP-ENV Call.
This topic requires the effective contribution of 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.
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Expected results
Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:
- consumers obtain access to new circular products and services, such as reuse, repair and sharing, that encourage sustainable consumption and thus reduce the environmental footprint, greenhouse gas emissions, and the pressure on biodiversity;
- economic operators that want to introduce circular business models are provided with proved successful examples and recommendations how to do it;
- (re-)skilling programmes and new job opportunities emerge in the areas of re-use, preparing for reuse, repair, upgrade, refurbishment, repurpose, and remanufacture.
Eligibility Criteria
Regions / countries for funding
Moldova (Moldova), Albania (Shqipëria), Armenia (Հայաստան), Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosna i Hercegovina / Босна и Херцеговина), Canada, Faeroes (Føroyar / Færøerne), Georgia (საქართველო), Iceland (Ísland), Israel (ישראל / إِسْرَائِيل), Kosovo (Kosova/Kosovë / Косово), Montenegro (Црна Гора), New Zealand (Aotearoa), North Macedonia (Северна Македонија), Norway (Norge), Serbia (Srbija/Сpбија), Tunisia (تونس /Tūnis), Türkiye, Ukraine (Україна), United Kingdom
eligible entities
EU Body, Education and training institution, Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) / Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Other, Private institution, incl. private company (private for profit), Public Body (national, regional and local; incl. EGTCs), Research Institution incl. University, Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME)
Mandatory partnership
Yes
Project Partnership
To be eligible for funding, applicants must be established in one of the following countries:
- the Member States of the European Union, including their outermost regions
- the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) linked to the Member States
- countries associated to Horizon Europe - see list of particpating countries
Only legal entities forming a consortium are eligible to participate in actions provided that the consortium includes, as beneficiaries, three legal entities independent from each other and each established in a different country as follows:
- at least one independent legal entity established in a Member State; and
- at least two other independent legal entities, each established in different Member States or Associated Countries.
Any legal entity, regardless of its place of establishment, including legal entities from non-associated third countries or international organisations (including international European research organisations) is eligible to participate (whether it is eligible for funding or not), provided that the conditions laid down in the Horizon Europe Regulation have been met, along with any other conditions laid down in the specific call topic.
A ‘legal entity’ means any natural or legal person created and recognised as such under national law, EU law or international law, which has legal personality and which may, acting in its own name, exercise rights and be subject to obligations, or an entity without legal personality.
other eligibility criteria
Specific cases:
- Affiliated entities (i.e. entities with a legal or capital link to a beneficiary which participate in the action with similar rights and obligations to the beneficiaries, but which do not sign the grant agreement and therefore do not become beneficiaries themselves) are allowed, if they are eligible for participation and funding.
- Associated partners (i.e. entities which participate in the action without signing the grant agreement, and without the right to charge costs or claim contributions) are allowed, subject to any conditions regarding associated partners set out in the specific call conditions.
- Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees to protect the EU’s financial interests equivalent to those offered by legal persons.
- Legal entities created under EU law (EU bodies) including decentralised agencies may be part of the consortium, unless provided for otherwise in their basic act.
- International European research organisations are eligible to receive funding. International organisations with headquarters in a Member State or Associated Country are eligible to receive funding for ‘Training and mobility’ actions or when provided for in the specific call/topic conditions. Other international organisations are not eligible to receive funding, unless provided for in the specific call/topic conditions, or if their participation is considered essential for implementing the action by the granting authority.
- Joint Research Centre (JRC)— Where provided for in the specific call conditions, applicants may include in their proposals the possible contribution of the JRC but the JRC will not participate in the preparation and submission of the proposal. Applicants will indicate the contribution that the JRC could bring to the project based on the scope of the topic text. After the evaluation process, the JRC and the consortium selected for funding may come to an agreement on the specific terms of the participation of the JRC. If an agreement is found, the JRC may accede to the grant agreement as beneficiary requesting zero funding or participate as an associated partner, and would accede to the consortium as a member.
- Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members (e.g. European research infrastructure consortia (ERICs)) may participate as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’. However, if the action is in practice implemented by the individual members, those members should also participate (either as beneficiaries or as affiliated entities, otherwise their costs will NOT be eligible.
- EU restrictive measures — Entities subject to EU restrictive measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU) as well as Article 75 TFEU, are not eligible to participate in any capacity, including as beneficiaries, affiliated entities, associated partners, third parties giving in-kind contributions, subcontractors or recipients of financial support to third parties (if any).
- Legal entities established in Russia, Belarus, or in non-government controlled territories of Ukraine — Given the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the involvement of Belarus, there is currently no appropriate context allowing the implementation of the actions foreseen in this programme with legal entities established in Russia, Belarus, or in non-government controlled territories of Ukraine. Therefore, even where such entities are not subject to EU restrictive measures, such legal entities are not eligible to participate in any capacity. This includes participation as beneficiaries, affiliated entities, associated partners, third parties giving in-kind contributions, subcontractors or recipients of financial support to third parties (if any). Exceptions may be granted on a case-by-case basis for justified reasons.
With specific regard to measures addressed to Russia, following the adoption of the Council Regulation (EU) 2024/1745 of 24 June 2024 (amending Council Regulation (EU) No 833/2014 of 31 July 2014) concerning restrictive measures in view of Russia’s actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine, legal entities established outside Russia but whose proprietary rights are directly or indirectly owned for more than 50% by a legal person, entity or body established in Russia are also not eligible to participate in any capacity. - Measures for the protection of the Union budget against breaches of the principles of the rule of law in Hungary — Following the Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2022/2506, as of 16 December 2022, no legal commitments can be entered into with Hungarian public interest trusts established under the Hungarian Act IX of 2021 or any entity they maintain. Affected entities may continue to apply to calls for proposals and can participate without receiving EU funding, as associated partners, if allowed by the call conditions. However, as long as the Council measures are not lifted, such entities are not eligible to participate in any funded role (beneficiaries, affiliated entities, subcontractors, recipients of financial support to third parties, etc.).In case of multi-beneficiary grant calls, applicants will be invited to remove or replace that entity in any funded role and/or to change its status into associated partner. Tasks and budget may be redistributed accordingly.
Additional information
Topics
Relevance for EU Macro-Region
EUSAIR - EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region, EUSALP - EU Strategy for the Alpine Space, EUSBSR - EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, EUSDR - EU Strategy for the Danube Region
UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs)
Additional Information
Applications must be submitted electronically via the Funders & Tenders Portal electronic submission system (accessible via the topic page in the Search Funding & Tenders section). Paper submissions are NOT possible.
Applications must be submitted using the forms provided inside the electronic submission system (not the templates available on the topic page, which are only for information). The structure and presentation must correspond to the instructions given in the forms.
Applications must be complete and contain all parts and mandatory annexes and supporting documents.
The application form will have two parts:
- Part A (to be filled in directly online) contains administrative information about the applicant organisations (future coordinator and beneficiaries and affiliated entities), the summarised budget for the proposal and call-specific questions;
- Part B (to be downloaded from the Portal submission system, completed and then assembled and re-uploaded as a PDF in the system) contains the technical description of the project.
Annexes and supporting documents will be directly available in the submission system and must be uploaded as PDF files (or other formats allowed by the system).
The limit for a full application (Part B) is 45 pages.
Activities are expected to achieve TRL 6-8 by the end of the project.
Call documents
Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025 Cluster 6 - Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and EnvironmentHorizon Europe Work Programme 2025 Cluster 6 - Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment(2474kB)
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