Horizon Europe - Mission: Restore our Ocean and Waters
Enriched EU · Found: 2026-03-10 12:35
EU flagship R&I programme (93.5B EUR total). Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters has calls for 2026-2027 opening Feb 4, 2026 with deadline Sep 23, 2026. Non-profits receive 100% funding for Innovation Actions.
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/programmes/horizon
Funding Details
- Funder
- European Commission – Horizon Europe
- Funding Goal
- Restore and protect ocean, seas, and inland waters by 2030 through large-scale innovation actions demonstrating marine habitat mapping, pollution reduction, sustainable fisheries, coastal resilience, and digital ocean monitoring across four EU sea-basin lighthouses.
- Funding Amount
- €7.0M–€7.75M per Innovation Action grant (4 grants per topic); €2.5M–€2.9M for CSA topic. Total 2026 call budget: €115.3M. Total 2027 call budget: €100.4M. Non-profits receive 100% funding rate under Innovation Actions. (2.500.000 € – 7.750.000 €)
- Deadline
- 2026-09-23 (Fixed)
- How to Apply
- Single-stage submission via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal. Applicants use the standard Horizon Europe IA or CSA application template. Evaluation criteria follow General Annex D (excellence, impact, quality/efficiency of implementation). National Contact Points (NCPs) provide country-specific guidance. Partner Search Portal available to find consortium partners. Opening date: 4 February 2026; Deadline: 23 September 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time.
- Target Region
- EU Member States and Associated Countries; four lighthouse basins: Atlantic-Arctic, Mediterranean, Baltic-North Sea, Danube-Black Sea
- Contact
- EU-MISSION-OCEAN-AND-WATERS@ec.europa.eu | EU Funding & Tenders Portal: https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal | National Contact Points for country-specific support | IT Helpdesk for submission issues
- Last Checked
- 2026-03-11 18:19
Application Checklist
Eligibility
Project Scope
Required Documents
Constraints
Summary
Horizon Europe's Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters" is a flagship EU research and innovation programme operating within the broader €95.5 billion Horizon Europe framework (2021–2027). The Mission channels dedicated calls to accelerate the protection and restoration of ocean, seas, and inland waters by 2030, aligned with the EU Biodiversity Strategy, Zero Pollution Action Plan, and European Climate Law. It operates through four geographic "lighthouse" basins — Atlantic-Arctic, Mediterranean, Baltic-North Sea, and Danube-Black Sea — which serve as large-scale living laboratories for demonstrating systemic solutions. The 2026 call (HORIZON-MISS-2026-03) opens 4 February 2026 with a deadline of 23 September 2026 and a total budget of €115.3 million across five topics. Four topics are Innovation Actions (IAs) covering: large-scale marine habitat mapping (€31M), aquatic pollution nature-positive solutions (€31M), fisher co-management and regenerative fisheries (€31M), and Digital Twin Ocean infrastructure (€19.4M). A fifth topic is a Coordination and Support Action (CSA) for ocean technology testing sites (€2.9M). The 2027 call (HORIZON-MISS-2027-03, deadline September 2027) adds a further €100.4M across topics including coastal resilience, sustainable seafood supply chains, green harbours, sustainable coastal tourism, and blue forest ecosystems. Eligible applicants include research organisations, NGOs, enterprises, and public authorities from EU Member States and Associated Countries. For Innovation Actions, non-profit organisations receive 100% funding coverage (the standard Horizon Europe rule). Projects are large-scale consortium efforts requiring typically 4–5 demonstration sites across at least 3 different Member States within one chosen lighthouse basin. Each consortium must meaningfully involve at least 4 associated regional or local authorities. Financial support to third parties of up to €100,000 per entity is permitted to support replication in associated regions. While this programme is highly relevant thematically to marine conservation, coastal protection, biodiversity, and ocean pollution — including plastic and nutrient pollution — the scale and complexity of projects (€7–7.75M per grant, multi-national consortia, mandatory public authority involvement) means that small to medium NGOs are most realistically positioned as consortium partners rather than lead applicants. The Baltic-North Sea lighthouse basin is explicitly eligible, making this programme geographically relevant to North Sea and Baltic Sea-focused organisations.
Historical Context
Horizon Europe runs 2021–2027 with a total budget of €95.5 billion. The five EU Missions were established as part of the programme's mission-driven innovation framework. The 2026-2027 Work Programme for EU Missions was published 11 December 2025. The ocean mission previously ran calls in 2022, 2023, and 2025. Info Days for 2026 calls were held 20–21 January 2026. The Director-General may adjust opening dates by up to one month and deadlines by up to two months.
Why it was added
Horizon Europe Ocean Mission directly targets marine restoration and biodiversity. 100% funding rate for non-profits. Calls opening Feb 2026 with Sep 2026 deadline.