HORIZON-MISS-2027-03-OCEAN-04: Towards community-driven business models: coastal and freshwaters sustainable tourism

HORIZON-MISS-2027-03-OCEAN-04: Towards community-driven business models: coastal and freshwaters sustainable tourism. This community-led approach prioritises engaging coastal, riparian and/or lakeside communities alongside key stakeholders to sustainably develop local businesses that create livelihood opportunities, attract investment, and help preserve marine, coastal, and freshwater habitats.  

Objectives: 

Expected outcomes from projects are: 

• Development of innovative, community-driven business models supporting sustainable marine, coastal and freshwater tourism and local entrepreneurship; 
• Scalable and economically viable initiatives with replication potential across multiple sea basins; 
• Enhanced capacity-building and engagement of coastal, riparian and lakeside communities and the private sector; 
• Job creation and skills development linked to sustainable tourism and local value chains; 
• Improved habitats and biodiversity, alongside strengthened conservation capacity for marine, coastal and freshwater ecosystems; 
• Increased awareness and behavioural change among tourists and local communities towards ecosystem conservation. 

Successful applicants will be required to: 

• Test and demonstrate the feasibility and socio-economic viability of site-specific, community-driven tourism initiatives that couple business activities with the protection and restoration of marine and freshwater ecosystems; 
• Implement demonstration activities in at least three coastal or freshwater areas in different Member States or Associated Countries within a single Mission basin, engaging tourists and local users through diverse participatory initiatives; 
• Promote sustainable tourism practices that minimise environmental pressures, reduce pollution and waste, and protect habitats and biodiversity; 
• Deliver inclusive capacity-building, training and skills development actions for local communities and tourists, addressing diversity, gender equality and non-discrimination; 
• Establish effective governance structures ensuring stakeholder involvement and long-term financial sustainability of initiatives; 
• Explore and assess financial instruments for upscaling, including reinvestment of profits, crowdfunding or philanthropic funding; 
• Build operational links with the relevant Mission Lighthouse CSAs and the Mission Implementation Platform to support coordination, replication and tracking of Mission progress. 

Eligible applicants: The conditions are described in General Annex B. The following additional obligations apply: if projects collect in-situ data and marine observations, beneficiaries must make them openly available through the European Marine Observation and Data network (EMODnet), based on the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles. 

Budget: 

The total indicative budget for the topic is EUR 6.00 million, with four projects to be funded under this topic. The Commission estimates that an EU contribution of between EUR 1.00 and 1.50 million would allow these outcomes to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of a proposal requesting different amounts.  

Duration: 

The project is expected to start in 2028, following grant agreement preparation, and should typically run for a duration of 3 to 4 years, depending on the scope of the proposed work. 

Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027 : Missions 

EU Funding & Tenders Portal 

To get support : 

• Online Manual for the procedures from proposal submission to managing your grant. 
• Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026-2027 for detailed guidance to the structure, budget and political priorities of the Horizon Europe 2026-2027 Work programme. 
• Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ for answers to most frequently asked questions on submission of proposals, evaluation and grant management. 
• Research Enquiry Service for questions about any aspect of European research in general and the EU Research Framework Programmes in particular. 
• National Contact Points (NCPs) for guidance, practical information and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe. There are also NCPs in many non-EU and non-associated countries (‘third-countries’). 
• Enterprise Europe Network for contacting your EEN national contact for advice to businesses with special focus on SMEs. The support includes guidance on the EU research funding. 
• IT Helpdesk for questions such as forgotten passwords, access rights and roles, technical aspects of submission of proposals, etc. 
• European IP Helpdesk for intellectual property issues. 
• CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk for standardisation issues in your project proposal.   
• The European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for their recruitment for consulting the general principles and requirements specifying the roles, responsibilities and entitlements of researchers, employers and funders of researchers. 
• Partner Search Services for finding a partner organisation for your proposal. 

See related links above on getting support.