Driving Urban Transitions (DUT) European Partnership Launches Second Joint Call for Proposals

The second call to launch through the DUT European Partnership focuses on three themes of Positive Energy Districts, the 15-minute City and Circular Urban Economies.

The Driving Urban Transitions (DUT) European Partnership is a programme of JPI Urban Europe and one of 49 European Partnerships under Horizon Europe. DUT is formed of 60 partners from 28 countries, involving national and regional policy makers, funders and urban-related policy agencies to invest in urban R&I and strengthen a European innovation ecosystem for urban transitions.

DUT is now inviting applications for its second joint call for proposals to support transnational research and/or innovation projects addressing urban challenges to help cities in their transition towards a more sustainable economy and functioning.

The projects selected within the Call will be funded directly by national/regional Funding Agencies from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey.

The challenges are grouped into the following three themes called ‘Transition Pathways’, each of which has three topics:

Positive Energy Districts (PED)

  • PED topic 1: Energy Resilience and Energy Poverty
  • PED topic 2: Urban Regeneration and Refurbishment
  • PED topic 3: Enabling Systems for Local Energy Transitions: Collaboration and Sustainable Investment

The 15-Minute City (15mC)

  • 15mC topic 1: Integrated Policies and Evidence to Reduce Car-dependency
  • 15mC topic 2: Mobility and Planning Policies for Proximity-oriented Developments
  • 15mC topic 3: Empower People for Urban Mobility Transitions

Circular Urban Economies (CUE)

  • CUE topic 1: The Built Environment as a Resource Base
  • CUE topic 2: Knowledge and optimisation of resources flows between urban and rural areas
  • CUE topic 3: Planning and Designing urban areas with Nature: Towards a Regenerative Urbanism

Proposals addressing subjects from across different TPs can be submitted and will be welcomed, though this is not mandatory. All projects will be asked to choose a main TP and may indicate which other TP(s) are involved, if any.

Projects should take a transdisciplinary and preferably co-creative approach from the early project formulation stages. They should focus on urban area (including peri-urban area) issues and challenges. Where appropriate, they may also consider the effects and impact on other territories like rural areas or consider urban-rural relationships.

Proposals must be submitted by consortia consisting of at least three eligible applicants from at least three different participating countries. In addition, at least two of the eligible applicants must be from different EU Member States or Associated Countries eligible for European Commission co-funding.

Typically, small to medium-sized consortia (involving funding requests to three to five Funding Agencies on average per proposal) are expected. However, there is no upper limit and consortia may involve as many partners as necessary for a convincing proposal, ensuring that all participants have a justified role. Each partner within the consortium should clearly add value to the objectives of the proposed project.

There are no fixed minimum or maximum limits for a project size. Medium-sized projects with a total budget request from all involved Funding Agencies in the range of €1 million to €2 million are typically expected, although total project costs can be lower or higher. However, funding limits exist for many Funding Agencies.

Eligibility requirements, national/regional topics of interest, eligible costs and funding provisions may vary according to the respective funding organisation’s regulations. Project partners must therefore refer and adhere to their own regional/national regulations and scientific remits, as detailed in the relevant regional/national announcements. DUT also is providing a preliminary list of Transition Pathways and topic coverage by the participating Funding Agencies.

Pre-proposals should be submitted by the 21 November 2023 (13:00 CET) deadline.

(This report was the subject of a ResearchConnect Newsflash.)