The European University Association, together with 28 partner organisations, has launched ‘Fund research, development and innovation. Fund the future’, a grassroots petition calling on European leaders to commit at least €200 billion to the next Horizon Europe programme.
Add your individual voice to this collective call for ambitious, predictable and protected Horizon Europe funding
Europe cannot aim for greater sovereignty, resilience and technological independence while underinvesting in research, development and innovation.
Upcoming European Council meetings of heads of state or government of EU member states on 26-27 November and 17-18 December will see pivotal discussions on the 2028-2034 multiannual financial framework. Before then, our community must send a clear message: investing in research, development and innovation is essential for Europe's future competitiveness, resilience and prosperity.
As the voice of Europe’s universities, EUA encourages the diverse individuals that make up university communities across Europe, as well as researchers, innovators and all supporters of ambitious European RD&I among our wider sector, to sign and share the petition to strengthen this collective call for investment in Europe's future.
Why should national leaders prioritise Horizon Europe in the MFF negotiations?
- A strong Horizon Europe is not a cost, but a necessary investment. Indeed, the European Commission has estimated that every €1 invested through the current Horizon Europe programme could generate up to €11 in additional GDP by 2045.
- Europe needs knowledge and solutions to address our shared challenges. Investing in Horizon Europe means investing in Europe’s capacity to deliver on the green and digital transitions, agriculture, health, security and resilience, and much more.
- An ambitiously funded Horizon Europe will create opportunities for new generations of researchers and innovators to develop their talent, pursue new ideas and build their careers in Europe.
- Horizon Europe has demonstrated its unique added value, which complements individual countries’ national policies and investments. It does so by enabling cross-border collaboration and excellence-based competition between researchers, research institutions and industries at a scale no national programme could achieve alone.
Background
The petition comes at a critical moment in negotiations on the EU’s next long-term budget (2028-2034).
A revised negotiating box presented by the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU on 10 October proposes €158.2 billion for the next Horizon Europe programme, €16.8 billion below the European Commission’s original proposal and well short of the €200 billion called for by the European research and innovation community. As EUA recently warned, such cuts risk undermining Europe's capacity to support excellent research, attract talent and sustain cross-border collaboration.
The petition is a joint initiative of the Association of ERC Grantees, the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities (ALLEA), BusinessEurope, CESAER, the Coimbra Group, the European Association of Research and Technology Organisations (EARTO), the European Aerospace Science Network (EASN), the European Alliance for Social Sciences and Humanities (EASSH), the European Consortium for Mathematics in Industry (ECMI), the European Educational Research Association (EERA), the European Geosciences Union (EGU), the European Mathematical Society (EMS), the European Physical Society (EPS), the European Plant Science Organisation (EPSO), EUA, the European Conference for AeroSpace Sciences (EUCASS), EU-LIFE, the European Council of Doctoral Candidates and Junior Researchers (Eurodoc), EuroTech Universities Alliance, the Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities, the International Consortium of Research Staff Associations (ICORSA), the Initiative for Science in Europe (ISE), the League of European Research Universities (LERU), the Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA), Orgalim, ResearchMatters, Science Europe, the Young Academy of Europe (YAE) and the Young European Research Universities Network (YERUN).