Horizon Europe CL6 CIRCBIO-01 — Circular Systemic Solutions Through Living Labs in Cities (2026)

Enriched EU · Found: 2026-03-15 04:29

Horizon Europe Innovation Action funding circular economy demonstration through living labs in cities and regions; EUR 10M total; first deadline 16 April 2026, second deadline 23 September 2026; NGOs eligible.

Source: https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-CIRCBIO-01-two-stage

Funding Details

Funder

European Research Executive Agency (REA) — Horizon Europe Cluster 6 CIRCBIO

Funding Goal

Deploy circular systemic solutions through living labs in cities and regions, testing scalable circular economy approaches that integrate waste reduction, resource efficiency, and community participation

Funding Amount

EUR 5-10M per project indicative; total topic budget to be confirmed when call opens April 17 2026; two-stage call (5.000.000 € – 10.000.000 €)

Deadline

2026-04-16 (Fixed)

How to Apply

URGENT — Stage 1 concept note deadline 16 April 2026 (32 days). Call opens April 17 2026 officially, but Topic ID HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-CIRCBIO-01-two-stage concept notes may have different timeline. Submit via EU F&T Portal. Must include city or regional authority partner.

Target Region

EU Member States and Horizon Europe associated countries; city-level implementation required

Contact

REA CCRI team; circular-cities-and-regions.ec.europa.eu

Last Checked

2026-03-15 08:29

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• City or regional authority required as consortium partner
• Consortium of 3+ entities from 3+ countries required
• NGOs eligible as partners for community engagement and waste management expertise

Project Scope

• Living lab deployment in city — systemic circular solutions required
• Plastic waste circularity can be part of broader circular city approach

Required Documents

• Two-stage: Stage 1 concept note April 16; Stage 2 full proposal invited only

Constraints

• URGENT: Stage 1 concept note deadline 16 April 2026 — 32 days
• Transferability across cities and regions required

Summary

HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-CIRCBIO-01-two-stage funds deployment of circular systemic solutions through living labs in cities and regions. The call connects to the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative (CCRI) and seeks projects that demonstrate, test, and scale circular economy approaches at city or regional level, integrating plastic waste reduction, sustainable resource use, and community-based circular practices. This is a two-stage call. Stage 1 concept notes have a deadline of 16 April 2026. Successful concept notes are invited to submit full proposals in Stage 2 (September 2026). Projects must be anchored in a specific city or region with a local authority as consortium partner. For a Danish NGO with municipal plastic waste operations, a project involving a Danish city (Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense) as the living lab host, with cross-border comparison with a Baltic or Nordic city, could be developed under this call. The NGO would participate as the waste management and circular value chain expertise partner alongside the city authority and a research institution. The concept note framing should emphasise systemic change, citizen engagement, and transferability of solutions across cities — not just operational plastic waste management. The city-as-living-lab model allows testing innovative collection models, extended producer responsibility implementation, and circular product design at urban scale.

Historical Context

CCRI-linked CIRCBIO calls since 2021. Two-stage format repeated annually. 2025 equivalent topic closed September 2025.

Why it was added

grant-scan-eu-ft-2026-03-15

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