The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) will be accepting applications for funding urban resilience, environmental restoration and revitalization projects from September through December of 2019. These projects will be supported under the 5th Call for Proposals of the Urban Innovative Actions.
Commissioner for the Security Union Julian King explained, “With this call for projects under the Urban Innovative Actions, we continue to help cities and local authorities protect public spaces without changing their open character. This support is part of our work towards an effective and genuine Security Union, bringing together actors at all levels to strengthen our resilience.”
Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy & Enlargement Negotiations, also in charge of Regional Policy, Johannes Hahn said, “No one is better placed than cities themselves to design the solutions that will transform life in urban areas. This is why the Commission has been directly awarding EU funding to cities so they can test ideas that will make them great places to live in, work and innovate.”
The Urban Innovative Actions provide EU cities with funding to finance innovative projects, with a total budget of €372 million from the ERDF. The Commission works in partnership with French region Hauts-de-France in implementing the program.
The 5th and last call for proposals under the Urban Innovative Actions will be launched in September 2019. It will be the last opportunity for cities under the current EU budget 2014-2020 to seek financing for innovative actions in the areas of culture and cultural heritage, circular economy, air quality and demographic change. The winning cities will be announced in the second quarter of 2020.
Photo of Tampere, Finland via Adobe Stock.