Horizon 2020

 

Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme ever with nearly €80 billion of funding available over 7 years (2014 to 2020). It is the successor of the 7th Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (FP7) that lasted from 2007 to 2013.

Horizon 2020 is the financial instrument implementing the Innovation Union, a Europe 2020 flagship initiative aimed at securing Europe's global competitiveness via smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and jobs.

European collaboration on research and innovation is important because it enhances the quality of  Norwegian research, it enables us to contribute ourselves and it gives us better access to  international knowledge development.” (Norwegian Minister of Education and Research, Kristin  Halvorsen)

 

Horizon 2020 consists of 3 pillars, each of them has several subprograms dedicated to a specific topic. The overarching sections are Excellent Science, Industrial Leadership and Societal Challenges. More information about them and individual subprograms could be found follwing the link below 

Horizon 2020 programme sections 

 

The programs most relevant for health research and innovation in hospitals are listed below. However, there are topics related to health almost in all other subprograms.

• Health, demographic change and wellbeing is the largest part of societal challenges with a total budget of €7,5 billion. In 2014 and 2015 there will be 36 calls for proposals with 4 deadlines. All 36 calls for proposals are published on the Participant Portal.
• Marie Curie Actions fund various projects and networks providing training and mobility opportunities to researchers throughout their careers. Research and innovation fields as well as sectors are chosen freely by the applicants in a fully bottom-up manner.
• European Research Council (ERC) provides funding to ground-breaking frontier research across all fields of research, on the basis of scientific excellence. ERC grants support projects carried out by an individual researcher who can employ a team to work on the project.

Two other EU programs highly relevant for hospital innovation that are connected to Horizon 2020:

• The Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) aims to improve the drug development process
• Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) funds projects aiming to deliver concrete solutions for independent living or ‘ageing well’ of elderly people using ICT

There are also more specific and smaller programs, like European and Developing Countires Clinical Trials Partnership, Joint Programme Neurodegenerative research - JPND and Joint Programing Initiative on Microbial Resistance - JPIAMR.