Research - International Research

Horizon Europe

Horizon Europe is the EU’s key funding programme for research and innovation. The programme facilitates collaboration and strengthens the impact of research and innovation in developing, supporting and implementing EU policies while tackling global challenge. In particular, it aims to tackle climate change, helps to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and boosts the EU’s competitiveness and growth. The current programme is based around three pillars: (i) research excellence; (ii) global challenges and European industrial competitiveness and (iii) innovative Europe. It runs from 2021 to 2027 inclusive with a budget package of €93.5 billion.

Horizon Europe incorporates five research and innovation missions which are portfolios of actions across disciples intended to achieve bold and measurable goals. The mission areas are:

• Adaption to climate change mission
• Cancer
• Climate-neutral and smart cities mission
• Restore our Ocean and Waters mission
• Soil Deal for Europe mission

Horizon Europe also supports European partnerships in which the EU, national authorities and/or the private sector jointly commit to support the development and implementation of a programme of research and innovation activities.

DAFM and specifically the National Contact Point for Horizon Europe engages in preparing the Horizon Work Programmes and works to promote and engage with the Soil Mission and Partnerships.

• Horizon Europe - European Commission (europa.eu)

Horizon Partnerships

Horizon Partnerships align with HE work programme and play a crucial role in supporting agreed EU policy objectives. A number of these partnerships are of particular relevance to the agri-food sector, and DAFM participates as funders in the following partnership:

• European Partnership on accelerating farming systems transition through agroecology living labs and research infrastructure (Agroecology Partnership);
• European Partnership for Animal Health and Welfare (PAHW);
• European Partnership for Agriculture of Data (AgData);
• FutureFoodS - European Partnership for Sustainable Food Systems
• European Partnership for One Health/Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)

The partnerships bring together diverse stakeholders, including researchers, farmers, industry experts, policymakers, and consumers, to collaboratively tackle issues related to sustainable agriculture, food production, and food security.

By pooling resources, expertise, and knowledge, Horizon Partnerships enable the development of innovative solutions that improve agricultural practices, enhance crop productivity, and promote sustainable food systems.

• Horizon Partnerships

Soil Mission

Life on earth depends on healthy soils. Soil is the foundation of our food systems. It provides clean water and habitats for biodiversity while contributing to climate resilience. It supports our cultural heritage and landscapes and is the basis of our economy and prosperity. However, it is estimated that more than 60% of EU soils are unhealthy.

Under Horizon Europe, the Soil Mission has emerged as a significant initiative developed to address the challenges and opportunities related to soil management and sustainable land use. The mission aim to promote the understanding, protection, and restoration of soils in Europe through interdisciplinary research and collaborative efforts. With the recognition that healthy soils are fundamental to food security, biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation, and overall ecosystem functioning, the Soil Mission within Horizon Europe has become instrumental in advancing soil science and policy.

• Soil Mission

Horizon Europe (HORIZON) Research Calls

• Search Funding & Tenders (europa.eu)

SCAR is a broader setting used to discuss all agricultural research; it is not limited to Horizon 2020 topics. It meets several times per year in different formats, depending on the topic or level. It is a group of high level officials from around Europe providing advice to the Commission and other MS in relation to research for agriculture, food, fisheries and the Bioeconomy. DAFM is coordinating Irish involvement in SCAR.

• Standing Committee on Agricultural Research

FACCE-JPI promotes the integration and alignment of national research resources in Europe under a common research strategy, to address the diverse challenges in agriculture, food security and climate change.

Launched in 2010, FACCE-JPI currently brings together 24 member countries. Its aim is to build capacity and capability in the European Research Area (ERA) to tackle the challenges at the intersection of agriculture, food security and climate change nexus that cannot be addressed solely at the national level

Most notably in the current policy context, FACCE-JPI plays a role to help coordinate and support the operations of both the Horizon Europe Missions on a “Soil Deal for Europe” and “Adaptation to Climate Change”, and the Horizon Europe Partnerships on “Agroecology” and “Future Foods”.

Further information can be found about what FACCE-JPI does in the “FACCE in Brief” document.

The Joint Programming Initiative a Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life (JPI HDHL) brings together 20 countries that align research programming and fund new research to prevent or minimise diet-related chronic diseases.

The research area focuses on the links between nutrition and health, as well as nutrition-related public health interventions and aims to enhance co-ordination of research investment in these areas. The vision of the JPI HDHL is that by 2030 all citizens will have the motivation, ability and opportunity to consume a healthy diet from a variety of foods, have healthy levels of physical activity and that the incidence of diet-related diseases will have decreased significantly.

DAFM and the HRB participate in the Management Board of the JPI HDHL and participate as funders in various research. For more information on the JPI HDHL, please use the following link:

• Joint Programming Initiative a Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life

• European Research Area Networks (ERANETs)

The US-Ireland R&D Partnership is a tri-jurisdictional alliance between Ireland, Northern Ireland and the United States which was officially launched in 2006. Its aim is to promote collaborative innovative research projects which create value above and beyond individual efforts. InterTradeIreland provides support and facilitates arrangements between the various funding partners involved in the US-Ireland R&D Partnership initiatives.

Agriculture and the US-Ireland Research and Development Partnership

Since 2016 the scope of the Partnership has been extended to include agriculture research focused on selected priority areas – this has resulted in Ireland and Northern Ireland based researchers being able to compete with US-based researchers in selected areas.

The following partner agencies provide research funding in the Agriculture thematic area in the US-Ireland R&D Partnership:

• In the United States (US), the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), within the US Department of Agriculture

• In the Republic of Ireland (RoI), the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM)

• In Northern Ireland (NI), the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA)

It is under the Agricultural and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Foundation Programme, one of NIFA’s major competitive grant programs through which it addresses critical societal issues, that US-Ireland tripartite applicants have an opportunity to compete for awards but limited only to the scope of the stated priority areas for the US-Ireland R&D Partnership.

For detailed Call information, please see here.

The Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine (DAFM) and New Zealand’s Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) have established a 3-year pilot Joint Research Initiative (JRI) over the period 2022 to 2024 in recognition of the strong existing research connections and the common challenges facing the agri-food sectors in both Ireland and New Zealand.

The pilot Joint Research Initiative goal is to provide Joint Research Calls that build on the established research links between Ireland and New Zealand, strengthen existing cooperation and collaboration between funders and researchers on a bilateral basis, align research priorities and activities, and exploit synergies where they exist.

Joint Calls are funded by DAFM and MPI and will address research related to high/medium-intensity grassland livestock systems, the impact of such systems on the climate and the environment, and the necessity to identify and implement research outputs and outcomes to enable the sector’s climate actions and transition to climate neutrality.

JRI competitive research calls are open to Irish scientists and researchers from eligible Research Performing Organisations (RPOs) to develop collaborative research proposals with research partners from New Zealand. It is also possible for Irish RPOs to partner with industry and other stakeholders, and with institutions from other countries/networks on a self-financing or in-kind basis.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – through its Co-operative Research Programme (CRP) – has opened a call for applications to fund research fellowships and attendance at international conferences (such as workshops, congresses and symposia) in 2020.

The CRP is supported by 24 of the 34 OECD member countries (including Ireland) and operates under four themes:

• Managing Natural Capital for the Future
• Managing Risks in a Connected World
• Bio - Based Industries
• Transformational Technologies and Innovation

The CRP supports travelling fellowships from six to 26 weeks for established scientists and supports conferences/workshops on issues relevant to the programme and OECD.

• Cooperative Research Programme