Green ERA-Hub: EU alliances for innovative plant breeding wanted
As part of the European "Green ERA-Hub" initiative, the BMBF is funding innovative approaches for a sustainable bioeconomy. A new round of calls for proposals is focussing on the breeding of resistant crops.
Sustainable, efficient and resilient production systems in agriculture are of fundamental importance on the way to a functioning sustainable bioeconomy. The Coordination and Support Action (CSA) "Green ERA-Hub", launched in September 2022 and funded by the European Commission, represents 15 former and still active EU initiatives from the fields of agriculture, food production and biotechnology. It is dedicated to the implementation of a sustainable bioeconomy based on renewable raw materials and aims to increase the productivity and quality of food, animal feed, fuels and fibres.
The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is participating in the CSA Green ERA-Hub together with the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) in order to achieve the goals for food security and sustainable agricultural production set out in the EU Bioeconomy Strategy and the National Bioeconomy Strategy (NBÖS).
Improving the resilience and health of crops
As part of the new "Green ERA-Hub" call for proposals, the BMBF wants to fund European and international collaborative projects in the field of research and development. The second round of funding will focus on research, development and innovation projects (R&D&I projects) on the Green ERA Hub's priority topic of "Improving the resilience and health of crops".
Focus on molecular biological breeding methods
The BMBF primarily funds research approaches whose results are highly relevant to the cultivation systems of the temperate climate zone. These include, for example, cereals or other crops such as brassicaceae and legumes, but also temporary grassland, perennial crops or innovative mixed cultivation.
The focus of the funding is on projects that aim to develop innovative breeding methods – in particular molecular biological methods for sustainable plant varieties and/or innovative sustainable cultivation methods and management practices. The projects should support the development of climate-smart agriculture and improve stress resistance and plant health to achieve economic sustainability.
At least one of the following goals should be achieved:
- Resilience: improve the resilience of production systems to abiotic and biotic stresses through novel approaches that combine innovative genetic approaches with management practices throughout the cropping system.
- Reduced resource use: Improving nutrient use efficiency and plant health while minimising the use of fertilisers and chemical pesticides.
- Water use efficiency: Improving water use efficiency with the aim of increasing heat, drought and salt tolerance.
- Agrobiodiversity and soil health: Maintaining and improving soil function and health by increasing root and soil microbiome diversity and optimising interactions between plant roots, soil and microorganisms.
Current round of Green ERA-Hub
The aim of the EU Green ERA-Hub initiative is to establish research networks that contribute to sustainable and resilient agricultural and food systems.
To the call for proposals on the BMBF website (only available in German)
Further information on the second "Green ERA-Hub" funding round can be found on the initiative's project page.
The funding is aimed at transnational collaborative projects with at least three partners from at least three of the countries involved in the call. The project objectives must be achievable within a maximum of 36 months. Universities, non-university research institutions, state and federal institutions with research tasks as well as commercial enterprises, in particular small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which are based in Germany at the time of application are eligible to apply.
Three-stage application procedure
The application procedure is organised in three stages. In the first step, the project outline must be registered by the coordinator of the transnational project. Only then can the project outlines be submitted. Registration and submission of the project outlines is carried out via the Green ERA-Hub project page.
The submission deadline is 5 September 2024. After the projects have been reviewed by an external international group of experts, the selected German project partners can submit their funding applications via the "easy-Online" electronic application system.
The BMBF has commissioned Project Management Jülich with the process. Contact persons are Christian Breuer and Petra E. Schulte.
More information
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