Following the partial political agreement reached in April 2019 between the European Parliament and the Council on Horizon Europe, the European Commission is now preparing for the implementation of the 2021 – 2027 EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation.

One of the main novelties of ‘Horizon Europe’ is the development and implementation of ambitious missions to maximise the impact of EU support to research and innovation and demonstrate its relevance for society and citizens. High-ambition and high-profile initiatives will aim to deliver a transformative impact for society, the economy, and/or environment, in relation to the challenges faced by European citizens. They will require identifying a well-defined end-point, fixed in time against which to measure success and the development of a systemic approach to meeting a challenge, combining new knowledge and technology with business model, finance, regulatory, governance, skills and social innovation.

Such missions will be defined and designed with the assistance of Commission expert groups (the Mission Boards) consisting of a maximum of 15 independent high-level individuals with broad expertise.

The Commission is already now calling for applications with a view to selecting members for the following Mission Boards:

• Mission board for adaptation to climate change including societal transformation

• Mission board for cancer

• Mission board for healthy oceans, seas, coastal and inland waters

• Mission board for climate-neutral and smart cities

• Mission board for soil health and food

The Mission Boards will be implemented in two phases:

1st Phase: The main task of the Mission Boards will be to advise the Commission on the identification and design of one or more possible specific missions, with their respective objectives, indicators and timelines, from the five above-mentioned mission areas. They will do so in dialogue with Member States and the European Parliament, as well as relevant stakeholders and, as appropriate, the interested larger public. The Commission will make the final selection of specific missions in accordance with the procedures established for Horizon Europe.

2nd Phase: Once the Horizon Europe framework programme and its budget is formally agreed, the Mission Boards will advise the Commission on the portfolio of research and innovation activities needed to support the mission objectives, providing further advice on the mission implementation including preparation of dedicated mission calls in the Horizon Europe work programme, the criteria for selecting activities to fund, as well as on wider policy measures required to secure the success of the mission.

Deadline for submitting: 11/06/2019 at 12:00 noon (CET)