Zabala Innovation will present 12% of Environment sub-programme proposals to the LIFE 2020 call

On 9 November, the European Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) announced the results of Phase 1 of the LIFE Programme (Concept Notes). The number of the submitted proposals, far from having decreased due to the COVID19 crisis, has grown to 1,500 which is a record figure showing the great interest that the call for proposals generates.

LIFE call expands in terms of proposals and budget

The proposed projects have a total cost of more than €5.1 billion, broken down by type of a project:

1. Environment: €2.8 billion

2. Nature and biodiversity: €1.8 billion

3. Environmental governance and information: €513 M

Participants requested some 2.8 billion in EU contributions which is €600 million more than in 2019.

The results of the first evaluation announced last week shows great news for ZABALA Innovation Consulting, which has multiplied by 4 the average success rate (approving 50% of the proposals submitted to the Environment area and Environmental governance and information), and 100% of the Nature and Biodiversity projects. This means that 12% of the total number of proposals will go on to the second phase of the LIFE programme in the Environment area!

These figures are a boost for phase 2 of the LIFE Programme, which ends on 15 February 2021.

2021-2027: what can we expect for LIFE?

The optimistic figures achieved in the first phase of LIFE support the strategy of the European Commission, which has already announced an increase in the budget of the LIFE Programme for the period 2021-2027. Following last week’s negotiations, funding increased by €4.8 billion (+37%) to provide a better quality of life for Europeans and invest in a more sustainable future. This ambitious plan resulted in the creation of the Green Deal, a roadmap designed to give the EU a sustainable economy. This success in the LIFE call, as shared this week by Angelo Salsi, head of the Programme, shows that the Green Deal is not just a vision, but is already a way of thinking.