The vision of the Partnership is to: 

• Design, steer and support a just and inclusive transition to a regenerative, resilient, and sustainable blue economy.
• Boost the transformation needed towards a climate-neutral, sustainable, productive, and competitive blue economy by 2030
• Create, enhance and sustain ocean health and the social, environmental and economic well-being of the people by 2050.

This fourth co-funded call aims to support transnational research and innovation projects (for a period of 36 months) addressing one of the four priority areas below (subject to funded priority areas by participating funding organisations, see Annex):

• Priority area 1: Transitioning the blue economy sectors for sustainability and strategic autonomy
• Priority area 2: Managing sea-uses by advancing digital and ecosystem-based approaches
• Priority area 3: Promoting sustainable blue bioresources through innovation in marine production and harvesting
• Priority area 4: Building resilience in coastal communities with infrastructures and businesses

Each of these priority areas contributes directly to one or more of the Ocean Decade Challenges, supporting actionable knowledge generation, policy uptake, capacity development, and inclusive innovation in the blue economy context.

Recommendations and eligibility criteria 

Projects in this co-funded call must be impact-driven contributions to the transformation into a blue economy for a more resilient future and towards carbon neutrality targets, following an impact pathway approach.

The proposals are strongly recommended to consider a minimum of two European sea-basins which are: the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, and to assess the project proposal impact on various basins. Proposals can target European regional seas such as Adriatic Sea, Aegean Sea, Arctic, Barents Sea, Celtic Sea, etc. but they must be from a minimum of 2 different EU sea basins. 

The fourth co-funded call pools national and regional financial resources through the participation of 35 participating funding organisations from 28 countries combined with the contribution from the European Union. 20 Member-States, 7 Associated Countries and 1 Third Country are participating: Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, The Netherlands, Tunisia, Türkiye and Ukraine. The total estimated budget is about 37,000,000€.

To be eligible, each consortium must be composed of eligible partners from at least three different countries participating in the call and requesting financial support from at least three different funding organisations participating in the call. In addition to the abovementioned condition, the projects must involve at least two independent legal entities from two different EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries¹ eligible to EU funding for this call for proposal. Self-funded partners, including partners from countries (and/or regions) not participating in this co-funded call, are allowed but do not contribute to the minimum eligible consortium size.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to involve stakeholders (i.e., small, and medium enterprises (SMEs), industries, authorities, public administrations, associations, as well as civil society organisations) as partners or self-funded partners (according to national/regional regulations) in their proposal. Stakeholder engagement in the research projects will enhance innovation, policy, and societal relevance and ultimately the impact of the projects.

Looking for a partner or a project to join?
Use the SBEP Partner Search Tool available here
 

Next steps

This co-funded call is planned to be officially launched on 14 September 2026 (15:00 CEST). Applicants will have up to 16 November 2026 (15:00 CET) to submit their pre-proposals (provisional date). 

For more information: We invite you to regularly consult our website and social media channels to be kept updated on this major research funding opportunity.

Contact: sbep.call-secretariat@uefiscdi.ro

Please note that the information provided here is provisional. Changes may occur in the official call announcement. 
 

¹as recipients of the financial support, at the time of the closing of the call by 16/11/2026 and 14/06/2026