Photo: Ildigo from Pixabay
In its fifth call, the European Climate Initiative – EUKI invited the civil society, scientific community, nonprofit enterprises, the education sector and public authorities to outline cross-border climate projects.
Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) launched a call for the financing of ideas under its European Climate Initiative (EUKI). Nongovernmental organizations, governments, academic institutions and other nonprofits can apply with suggestions for transboundary climate action by January 19.
Following EU climate goals
The fifth call is focused on Central, Eastern and Southern Europe and the Baltic states including candidates for joining the European Union. EUKI connects local stakeholders to implement joint, ambitious climate policy in Europe, the announcement reads.
“The EU member states will agree on a new, more ambitious EU climate target by the end of this year. The path we have to take is clear: Europe needs and wants more climate action. To achieve the climate target within the next ten years we want to join forces in Europe and promote exchanges of expertise and practical solutions,” Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety Svenja Schulze said. She added cross-border cooperation helps to implement an effective climate strategy in Europe.
Investment projects are ineligible
Projects picked in the EUKI call for financing provide forward-looking ideas for European climate action. They are categorised into eight core areas: climate policy; energy; buildings and municipalities; mobility; agriculture, soils and forestry; awareness; climate-aligned finance; and sustainable economy. The transboundary projects should also help simplify the EU climate policy dialogue, the ministry stressed.
The ideas should help simplify the EU climate policy dialogue
The call isn’t for investment projects but for measures and preparatory steps to enable investments in climate action, and financing is provided solely for projects, not for institutions. Projects can receive between EUR 50,000 and EUR 1 million while their duration is limited to 28 months.
Eligible projects support the achievement of potential greenhouse gas savings and the development of good climate policy conditions, according to the terms. The ideas need to anticipate possible impacts of a continued COVID-19 crisis and include adequate contingency plans.
The online information day on the fifth call for proposals under the EUKI financing program will be held on December 15.
Applicants should partner with organizations in other European countries
Applicants can approach the matter in areas of capacity building, network building, implementing policies and measures, developing strategies and conducting feasibility studies, and dialogue formats, dissemination and educational projects. EUKI said potential applicants should partner with organizations in other European countries for the call.
After the ideas are evaluated, selected applicants will have to submit full project proposals within six weeks.
Projects can receive between EUR 50,000 and EUR 1 million
The growing network of the European Climate Initiative currently covers 241 organisations that are active in 25 EU member states and five Western Balkan countries and have a cross-border impact. It focuses on climate-friendly and liveable cities, socially acceptable structural change in coal mining regions and raising awareness of responsible nature conservation and climate action among European schoolchildren, to name just a few examples, the invitation reads.
Organizations from candidate countries were able to participate for the first time in the fourth EUKI Call, as implementing partners. A total of 32 projects were selected, of which 20 in the region tracked by the Balkan Green Energy News. There are participants from at least two countries per project.
*This article was co-developed by the European Climate Initiative EUKI.
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