Soil health, pollinators and key ecosystem functions

Topic updates

31 January 2025

17 October 2024

Flash information on proposal numbers

The HORIZON-MISS-2024-SOIL-01 call was closed on the 8th October 2024.

137 proposals were submitted in response to this call. The breakdown per topic is indicated below:

HORIZON-MISS-2024-SOIL-01-05 (Soil health, pollinators and key ecosystem functions): 8 proposals

Evaluation results are expected to be communicated in January 2025.

Soil health, pollinators and key ecosystem functions

TOPIC ID: HORIZON-MISS-2024-SOIL-01-05

Type of grant: Call for proposals

General information

Programme: Horizon Europe Framework Programme (HORIZON)

Call: Research and Innovation and other actions to support the implementation of Mission 'A Soil Deal for Europe' (HORIZON-MISS-2024-SOIL-01)

Type of action: HORIZON-RIA HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions

Type of MGA: HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based [HORIZON-AG]

Status: Forthcoming

Deadline model: single-stage

Planned Opening Date: 08 May 2024

Deadline dates: 08 October 2024 17:00 (Brussels time)

Topic description

ExpectedOutcome:

Activities under this topic will help to progress towards the objectives of the Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’, in particular its specific objectives 4 “Reduce soil pollution and enhance restoration”, 6 “Improve soil structure to enhance habitat quality for soil biota and crops” and 8 "Improve soil literacy in society”. Activities will also contribute to the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, to the revised EU Pollinators Initiative “A new deal for pollinators”, to the future EU Nature Restoration Law and the proposed Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive, to the EU Farm to Fork Strategy, including the EU Action Plan on the Development of Organic Production, and to the goals of the UN CBD COP-15. It also directly contributes to the achievement of several of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in particular SDG 15 by halting biodiversity loss and halting and reversing land degradation and SDG2 on food security as activities are expected to improve pollination ecosystem services, which are key for food production.

Projects results are expected to contribute to all of the following outcomes:

• Improved knowledge and understanding of the biology and ecology of insect species spending part of their life cycle on or in the soil, with specific focus on ground-nesting pollinators.
• Better understanding of the major causes of the decline of these insects and the synergistic effects of various threats, including the quantitative and qualitative aspects related to the magnitude of their decline.
• More effective measures to tackle the loss of soil-dependent insects.

Scope:

Soil-dependent insects are under threat because of non-adapted soil management practices such as tillage and issues like contamination, compacting or sealing. A better understanding of the causes of their decline and effective measures to tackle them are needed.

Pollination is a key ecosystem service for crops and food production. Therefore, a specific focus on pollinating insects is required. Many solitary wasps and 70% of wild bees nest below ground and require protection during this crucial period of their lifecycle. Other ground-nesting pollinators also contribute to soil quality and other ecosystem functions, but little is known about their below ground lives.

The “New Deal for Pollinators” calls for more research to better understand the taxonomic and functional diversity of pollinator communities and their distribution, as well as the threats to pollinators and their interactions.

Proposed activities should:

• Improve the knowledge on the biology, ecology and population dynamics of insects spending part of their life cycle on or in the soil, with specific focus on ground-nesting pollinators, as well as on the interactions between life below and above ground. Focus should be put on lesser-known species, regions and major threats and causes of their decline. The potential buffer and protective role of soil against threats in different soil and land uses, including applied agricultural practices, such as ploughing (e.g., agricultural, forestry, urban and natural areas) should be explored.
• Contribute to the development of monitoring methods including on threats and pressures that can be of relevance for the pollinator monitoring framework, under the revised EU Pollinators Initiative : “A New deal for Pollinators”.
• Identify soil conditions associated with a high diversity of pollinators and map regions of particular importance for the protection of soil-dependent pollinators.
• Analyse the effects of different soil management practices, including different plant protection and/or soil management methods, across different farming systems, such as organic farming or conventional approaches, and compare intensively managed areas with protected areas.
• Develop and demonstrate soil remediation and mitigation practices to address the causes of insect (and in particular pollinator) decline.
• Provide recommendations for best soil management practices to integrate pollinator conservation and restoration across the wider landscape and enhance habitat connectivity and pollination services.

Projects should seek potential synergies and capitalise on the results of past or ongoing projects (e.g., Horizon projects Safeguard, PollinERA and WILDPOSH ^[1]). Furthermore, specific tasks and resources should be envisaged to collaborate and capitalise on activities and results from projects financed under other Work Programme topics of the Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’, in particular BIOservicES and SOB4ES and under the topic HORIZON-MISS-2024-SOIL-01-06: Harnessing the multifunctional potential of soil biodiversity for healthy cropping systems.

Proposals should demonstrate a route towards open access, longevity, sustainability and interoperability of knowledge and outputs through close collaboration with the Joint Research Centre’s EU Soil Observatory and the SoilWISE project and the EU Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity.

International cooperation and links to global conservation actions are encouraged. Potentially, the projects funded under this topic could also cooperate with living labs and lighthouses that will be created in this and future calls of the Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’.

Proposals must implement the multi-actor approach and should involve at least researchers, landowners and/or land managers, and representatives of civil society notably environmental NGOs.

[1]European-funded consortium project that seeks to evaluate the risks of exposure of wild pollinators to pesticides across Europe

General conditions

1. Admissibility conditions: described in Annex Aand 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 Bof 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: described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes

Proposals must apply the multi-actor approach. See definition of the multi-actor approach in the introduction to this Mission.

4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion: described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes

5.Evaluation and award:

• Award criteria, scoring and thresholds are described in Annex Dof the Work Programme General Annexes

• Submission and evaluation processes are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual

• 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: described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes

Specific conditions

7. Specific conditions: described in the specific topic of the Work Programme

Start submission

The submission system is planned to be opened on the date stated on the topic header.

Get support

Online Manualis your guide on the procedures from proposal submission to managing your grant.

Horizon Europe Programme Guidecontains the detailed guidance to the structure, budget and political priorities of Horizon Europe.

Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ– find the answers to most frequently asked questions on submission of proposals, evaluation and grant management.

Research Enquiry Service– ask questions about any aspect of European research in general and the EU Research Framework Programmes in particular.

National Contact Points (NCPs)– get guidance, practical information and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe. There are also NCPs in many non-EU and non-associated countries (‘third-countries’).

Enterprise Europe Network– contact your EEN national contact for advice to businesses with special focus on SMEs. The support includes guidance on the EU research funding.

IT Helpdesk–contact the Funding & Tenders Portal IT helpdesk for questions such as forgotten passwords, access rights and roles, technical aspects of submission of proposals, etc.

European IPR Helpdeskassists you on intellectual property issues. CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk–the European Standards Organisationsadvise you how to tackle standardisation in your project proposal.

The European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for their recruitment– consult the general principles and requirements specifying the roles, responsibilities and entitlements of researchers, employers and funders of researchers.

Partner Search Serviceshelp you find a partner organisation for your proposal.