Greening the economy in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Call summary and aims

This call focuses on moving to a greener, more resource efficient and climate-resilient economy in sync with the natural environment, demonstrating a strong commitment to supporting the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Connecting economic and environmental gains - the circular economy (topics: CE-SC5-01-2018,

Further development of a sustainable, resource efficient and competitive economy will require a transition to a more circular economic model with products, processes, services and business models that are designed to maintain the value and utility of materials and resources in the economy for as long as possible. The circular economy solutions should combine a strong environmental rationale with a convincing business logic.

Actions in this part of the call aim in the medium term to substantially improve the efficiency of resource use (including energy and water), to minimise the production of waste and increase the use of resources originating from secondary sources – while avoiding adverse health effects – and to reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. They intend to elucidate the role of design in product durability, enhance the capacity of cities to embrace circular economy approaches and support the transition to systemic, integrated solutions closing the cycles of resource use in the water sector. They will contribute to implementing the Circular Economy Action Plan[[COM(2015) 614 final]]and key high-level EU priorities, including those addressing jobs, growth and investment, climate and energy, and a strengthened industrial base. Ultimately, they are expected to support Europe's endeavours to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 12 'Responsible consumption and production', SDG 6 'Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all', SDG 11 'Sustainable cities and communities' and SDG 13 'Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts' (and the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change), together with the Habitat III New Urban Agenda.

The topics in this part of the call contribute to the focus area 'Connecting economic and environmental gains - the circular economy'.

It should be noted that a number of topics (with "CE-" in the topic identifier) in the 'Raw Materials' section of this call also contribute to the circular economy.

Raw materials (topics:

The EU is highly dependent on raw materials that are crucial for a strong European industrial base, an essential building block of the EU's growth and competitiveness. The main aim of this part of the call will be on achieving the objectives and meeting the targets of the EIP on Raw Materials. A wide range of actions will cover the entire EU raw materials value chain, from sustainable exploration, extraction, processing to recycling. Actors from the whole EU raw materials innovation chain will be involved, including researchers, industry, end-users, public authorities and civil society.

In the short to medium term, innovation actions are expected to deliver pilot actions demonstrating sustainable production of primary and secondary raw materials, particularly CRM or other scarce high-tech metals. Breakthrough research concepts, as the basis of tomorrow's innovations, are also tackled through smaller, lower-TRL actions. Actions will also contribute to building the EU knowledge base of primary and secondary raw materials for solid decision making, and particularly to the further development of the EC Raw Materials Information System – RMIS[[ https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/scientific-tool/raw-materials-information-sy..., responding to the Circular Economy Action Plan and the objectives of the Strategic Implementation Plan of the EIP on Raw Materials. Policy-related actions aim at improving framework conditions for the sustainable development of and investment in innovative solutions in the EU. In the long term, actions should positively impact on: downstream industries' access to raw materials; employment in and competitiveness of the EU raw materials and related manufacturing industries, including SMEs; the environmental and social performance of the raw materials sector; and improved public awareness, acceptance and trust. International co-operation is encouraged in all actions. Ultimately, the actions on raw materials are expected to support Europe's endeavours to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), notably SDG 12 'Responsible Consumption and Production'.

Topics relevant to bio-based materials (e.g. wood) and the bio-economy can be also found in Societal Challenge 2 'Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine, maritime and inland water research, and the bio-economy' and the Joint Undertaking for Bio-Based Industries (BBI). Innovation actions with relevance to raw materials can be found in the calls under the SPIRE PPP.

Topics in this part of the call that contribute to the focus area 'Connecting economic and environmental gains - the circular economy' (prefix 'CE') will contribute to the implementation of the EU Circular Economy Action Plan.

Water for our environment, economy and society (topics: SC5-11-2018 and SC5-12-2018)

Changes in water availability, the frequency of floods and droughts due to climate and other environmental changes, pollution trends, increased competition in water use including for industry, energy, agriculture and food production, land-use changes and increasing urbanisation all require the development and implementation of robust, smart, effective and tailored water management systems, solutions and multi-sectoral governance models in Europe and globally. The transformative potential of digital technologies can play an important role in doing so.

This part of the call supports and aims to accelerate the implementation of EU policies[[http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/index_en.htm]]and initiatives[[e.g. EIP Water, http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/innovationpartnership/]]relating to water, resource efficiency and water-dependent industries, while also contributing to policy relating to the Energy Union, climate action and the digital economy. Overall, actions are expected to lead in the medium term to: digital solutions for improved public- and private-sector decision-making on water-related risks, efficiency and resilience; substantial reductions in water and energy consumption; and the development of new markets for water-smart technologies and services. A further action focuses on EU-India cooperation to improve wastewater efficiency and quality of and access to drinking water in India. Ultimately, actions are expected to support Europe's endeavours to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 6 'Clean water and sanitation' and SDG 13 'Climate action'.

It should be noted that topic CE-SC5-04-2019 'Building a water-smart economy and society' in this call, as well as topics in the call 'Building a low-carbon, climate resilient future: climate action in support of the Paris Agreement' also contribute to this priority. Relevant actions are also called for under the SPIRE cPPP in the LEIT-NMBP part of this Work Programme.

Innovating cities for sustainability and resilience (topics: SC5-13-2018-2019 and SC5-14-2019)

Most of the challenges Europe is facing today, such as climate change, water and waste management, health, social cohesion and immigration, have a strong urban dimension. However cities are also hubs of technological and social innovation, the places where capital investments, high productivity and high-skilled jobs are located. In this sense, cities not only contribute and are exposed to global challenges but they are also key players in providing solutions.

Actions in this part of the call have the medium-term objective of enabling cities to design and implement transition pathways to becoming inclusive, resilient, sustainable, low-carbon and resource efficient by enhancing their innovation capacity and enabling them to act as hubs of innovation. Further actions aim to strengthen the sustainability of urban areas globally, and particularly in China and CELAC countries. Ultimately, they are expected to support Europe's endeavours to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 11 'Sustainable cities and communities' and SDG 3 'Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages', together with the Habitat III New Urban Agenda, and the EU Urban Agenda[[https://ec.europa.eu/futurium/en/urban-agenda]].

It should be noted that topic CE-SC5-03-2018 'Demonstrating systemic urban development for circular and regenerative cities' in this call also contributes to this priority.

Protecting and leveraging the value of our natural and cultural assets: Earth observation (topics:

The Commission, together with the European GEO nations, is committed to implementing GEOSS in line with the new GEO Strategic Plan 2016-2025 and to developing an approach towards GEOSS for the European region (supporting the EuroGEOSS initiative of the European GEO caucus[[For information on the European GEO caucus, please see the GEO High-Level Working Group at: http://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regexpert/index.cfm?do=groupDetail.grou...) that facilitates and steers national contributions while accelerating the use of GEOSS resources. At the same time, the capacity to observe the planet is evolving rapidly, leading to higher volumes of and more diverse data flows produced at European and national level by private and public operators (including from citizens).

Actions in this part of the call aim to capitalise on these trends, in collaboration with the Copernicus programme, to develop new mass-market applications for businesses, citizens and public authorities. Overall, actions are expected in the medium term to stimulate growth and jobs in Europe in the context of the digital economy (through open innovation) and to lead to better informed decision-making in environmental policy and management and in disaster management. Actions will also contribute to implementing EU space policy and to international agreements such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 9 'Industry, innovation and infrastructure, 11 'Sustainable cities and communities', 13 'Climate action, 14 'Life below water' and 15 'Life on land'.

It should be noted that topics addressing Earth observation can also be found in other parts of the Horizon 2020 Work Programme 2018-2020, notably:

• in a dedicated part of the call 'Space 2018-2020' (H2020-SPACE-2018-2020) in the Work Programme part 'Leadership in Enabling and Industrial Technologies - Space'.
• certain topics in the call 'Blue Growth' (H2020-BG-2018-2020) in the Work Programme part 'Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine, maritime and inland water research and the bioeconomy'.
• the EIC Prize 'Early Warning for Epidemics' in the Work Programme part 'Towards the next EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation: European Innovation Council (EIC) Pilot'.

Protecting and leveraging the value of our natural and cultural assets: Nature-based solutions, disaster risk reduction and natural capital accounting (topics: SC5-17-2018, SC5-18-2018)

Predicting earthquakes reliably and enhancing early warning capacity prior to an earthquake would enable the timely rolling out of emergency plans and actions and prevent the loss of human lives. Similarly, mainstreaming the actual value of nature into our economic transactions would fostered a wiser use and management of our natural capital and sustained biodiversity and ecosystems’ productive capacity for our benefit but also for the benefit of the future generations. Actions under this section will help create economic, social and environmental resilience in our societies.

Actions under this section of the call aim to improve decision making, early warning, preparedness and communication among relevant actors to better cope with earthquakes through enhanced forecasting capacity. Furthermore, they aim to enhance the capacity of authorities and the private sector to better assess and value biodiversity, ecosystems and their services to enable them to incorporate and mainstream these values into their accounting and decision making frameworks. Ultimately, they are expected to support Europe's endeavours to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3 'Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages', SDG 6 'Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all', SDG 8 'Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all', SDG 11 'Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable', SDG 13 'Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts' and SDG 15 'Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss'.

It should be noted that topic LC-CLA-06-2019 ''Inter-relations between climate change, biodiversity and ecosystem services' in the call 'Building a low-carbon, climate resilient future: climate action in support of the Paris Agreement' also contributes to this priority.

Protecting and leveraging the value of our natural and cultural assets: Heritage alive (topics: SC5-19-2018 and SC5-20-2019)

Cultural heritage is a non-renewable, irreplaceable resource and a common good, but is frequently under threat from environmental challenges and climate change, disaster risks, neglect, decay and under-funding. It can play a crucial and catalytic role in well-being, cultural diversity, sustainable development and social cohesion and as such it needs to be protected and preserved through leveraging its innovation potential.

Actions in this part of the call have the medium-term objective of positioning cultural heritage at the centre of sustainable development and unlocking its potential as a strategic living resource and driver for economic growth and job creation, social cohesion and environmental sustainability. By doing so, they will also contribute to the protection and preservation of cultural and historic heritage in Europe and beyond and will mobilise investments in the sector leading to the emergence of a global market for heritage-led innovative solutions and services. Ultimately, they are expected to support Europe's endeavours to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 11 'Sustainable cities and communities' and its target of strengthening efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage.

It should be noted that topic 'LC-CLA-04-2018: Resilience and sustainable reconstruction of historic areas to cope with climate change and hazard events' in the call 'Building a low-carbon, climate resilient future: climate action in support of the Paris Agreement' also contributes to this priority.