This extension applies specifically to the Black Sea Regional Portfolio, titled: ‘Addressing Knowledge Gaps in the Black Sea: Information, Data Exchange and Good Practices in the Context of Climate Change’

About the Call for Expressions of Interest: 

This Call is part of the first wave of Regional Portfolio Calls for expressions of interest, which opened on 29 July 2026. Projects funded by national, regional, or EU programmes that are ongoing during the regional portfolio timeframe (early 2027 to early 2029) and wish to join this new clustering initiative under the Partnership are invited to apply by filling out a light online questionnaire. 

With the support of the Partnership, the Regional Portfolios aim to:

• Enhance synergies and information sharing among projects addressing similar key research topics in the portfolio sea-basin;
• Reduce duplication of efforts;
• Strengthen collaboration with key regional stakeholders;
• Respond to regional R&I challenges and opportunities.

By reaching a critical mass of projects focusing on similar themes, the Regional Portfolio Action will help amplify the impact of portfolio projects at both regional sea-basin and European levels, for example, by providing efficient scientific support for strategic and political decision-making, whilst also addressing regional research gaps and avoiding duplication.

Benefits of Participation as a project:  

Projects selected to join a Regional Portfolio will benefit from:

• increased visibility at the regional and international level
• networking with regional and quadruple-helix stakeholders (industry, government, research institutes, and the public
• career boost, especially for early-career scientists
• identification of new opportunities for cooperation
• identification of potential beneficiaries of the project outputs
• co-design market-uptake plans
• meetings with EU Commission experts
• participation in SBEP events

To participate:

• Projects must fall within the thematic scope of the chosen Regional Portfolio.
• Projects must be active for at least 6 months between early 2027 and early 2029, and be recipients of a regional/national/EU grant.
• Projects must address the geographical area of the Portfolio, or prove their relevance to it. Projects that express an interest and are eligible to be included in more than one Regional Portfolio will be asked to rank the portfolios in order of preference.
• Applicants must prove their commitment, availability and capacity to engage (as self-funded).
   

To apply:

• Please consult and download the relevant Call text at the bottom of this page.
• Please note that each Regional Portfolio has its own Call text and application form. The Black Sea Regional Portfolio application form is available here. This questionnaire must be filled out entirely by the project representative (Principal Investigator or appointed consortium member) to validate the submission. Alternates, if any, will also need to provide the required details in the online application form.
• Applicants will have up to 6 November 2026 (15:00 CET) to declare their interest in participating in the Black Sea Regional Portfolio. 
• A single-step selection process will apply, and selected projects will be announced in December 2026.

More information about the Regional Portfolio Action:

An open webinar was held on 7 October 2026 to present the Regional Portfolio Action, address questions from potential applicants, and share insights and experience from a project already part of the Thematic Portfolios

More information on these portfolios can be found on the general preannouncement page here. We invite you to regularly visit our website and social media channels to stay updated on funding and networking opportunities. 

Contact: Regional Portfolio Secretariat (ANR, France), sbep-portfolio@anr.fr

Please note that the information provided here is provisional. Changes may be made to the official call announcement. This news page was last updated on 26/10/2026.