Support for gender equality

PROGRESS- SECTION 5- GENDER EQUALITY

Deadline: 28 August 2013  

PROGRESS is the EU employment and social solidarity programme, set up to provide financial support for the attainment of the European Union’s objectives in employment and social affairs.

PROGRESS supports, with this Section 5, the effective implementation of the principle of gender equality and promotion of its mainstreaming in all EU policies. The general objective of this call is to support actions from the civil society and other relevant stakeholders to promote equality between women and men and to achieve the objectives defined in the Commission's Strategy for Equality between Women and Men 2010-2015 and in the European Pact for Gender Equality 2011-2020.

 

Two specific priority areas for action:

• Actions addressing the gender pay gap: The European Commission therefore encourages the effort of all stakeholders, such as social partners, business associations, NGOs and research institutions to establish transnational partnerships and work together to contribute to tackle pay inequalities and reduce the GPG.
  
• Actions promoting gender balance in economic decision-making positions at all levels of the hierarchy, the European Commission encourages key stakeholders (social partners, business associations, recruitment agencies and head-hunters, business schools, universities and research institutes, public bodies, media, etc.) to establish transnational partnerships and work together to contribute to improve the situation.

CONTACT US   TO RECEIVE MORE INFORMATION

Partnerships within the Youth in Action programme

Partnerships

DEADLINE: 5 September

Within the “Youth in Action” programme, this call for proposals aims at supporting partnerships with regional or local public bodies or other stakeholders active in the youth sector at European level in order to develop over the long-term projects which combine various measures of the programme.

The specific objectives of such partnerships are to:

• encourage the involvement of public bodies at regional or local level or other stakeholders active in the youth sector in European youth and non-formal education activities

• support their capacity capacity-building as bodies active in the youth field providing non-formal education opportunities to young people and youth workers

• promote the development of sustainable networks, the exchange of best practices as well as the recognition of non-formal education.

 

 

Preference will be given to well-structured projects which are framed within a longer-term perspective and planned with a view to achieve a multiplying effect and a sustainable impact. The projects will support the development of a programme including one activity or combining several activities taking inspiration from the ‘Youth in Action’ programme.

The following activities are eligible under this call:

• Trans-national Youth Exchanges
• National or Trans-national Youth Initiatives
• European Voluntary Service
• Training and Networking

CONTACT US NOW for further information

Europe-Brazil relations

Exchange of New Entrepreneurs between the Federative Republic of Brazil and Europe

DEADLINE: 4 July

This call for proposals assumes that exchanges with knowledgeable entrepreneurs from Brazil and from CIP Participating Countries will help Brazilian and European SMEs and entrepreneurs to address the lack of business and entrepreneurial know-how and skills environment to grow and encourage their development.

The overall objective of this call for proposals is:

• To increase exchanges between Brazil and CIP Participating Countries;
• To provide on-the-job-training for New entrepreneurs in small and medium-sized enterprises in Brazil and in Europe in order to facilitate a successful start-up, and development of their business ideas;
• To foster sharing of experience and information between entrepreneurs on the obstacles and challenges of starting up and developing their businesses in Brazil and in the CIP Participating Countries;
• To enhance market access and identification of potential partners for new and established businesses in Brazil and in Europe;
• To support business networking between entrepreneurs from Brazil and the CIP Participating Countries by building on knowledge and experience from each other.

The specific objective is to select an organisation which will manage the exchange of new entrepreneurs between the Federative Republic of Brazil and CIP Participating Countries at local level. This call for proposals is expected to result in 100 successful exchanges.

 

CONTACT US for further information

Actions for Youth Workers

Support to Youth Workers' Mobility

DEADLINE: 10 September 2013

The aim of this call is:

• to support youth workers’ mobility and exchanges with a view to promoting the acquisition of new skills and competences in order to enrich their profile as professionals in the youth field.
• to strengthen the capacities of the structures involved in the project, which will benefit from the experience and new perspective brought by a youth worker from a different background.

Preference will be given to those projects which best reflect following priorities:

• permanent priorities of the ‘Youth in Action’ programme: participation of young people, cultural diversity, European citizenship, EN C 150/20 Official Journal of the European Union 29.5.2013 inclusion of young people with fewer opportunities;
• annual priorities of the ‘Youth in Action’ programme: awareness-raising of the rights linked to the EU citizenship, inclusive growth, creativity, entrepreneurship and employability, healthy behaviours.

Who can apply? NGOs, bodies active at European level in the field of youth, public bodies at regional or local level.

Contact us for further information.

MARCO POLO-NEW WAYS TO A GREEN HORIZON

DEADLINE: 23 AUGUST 2013

From the road to more environmentally friendly modes

This call supports actions to reduce road congestion resulting from freight traffic with a view of improving the environmental performance of the transport system and enhancing intermodal transport, thereby contributing to a more efficient and sustainable transport system which will provide EU added value without having a negative impact on economic, social or territorial cohesion. It is specifically intended to help cover initial stage losses resulting from freight transport in new or enhanced intermodal services or resulting from freight traffic avoidance actions.

 

The measures proposed under the Marco Polo Work Programme 2013 shall contribute to Achievements of the EU goals for sustainable growth as established in the Europe 2020 Strategy.

In 2013, the programme supports five distinct types of action:

• Modal shift actions, which focus on shifting as much freight as economically meaningful under current market conditions from road to short sea shipping, rail or/and inland waterways.
• Catalyst actions change the way non-road freight transport is conducted in the European Union. Under this type of action, structural market barriers in European freight transport are overcome through a highly innovative concept: causing a real break-through.
• Motorways of the sea actions offering an integrated service, which shifts freight from long road distances to a combination of short sea shipping and other modes of transport.
• Traffic avoidance actions integrating transport into production logistics: reducing freight transport demand by road with a direct impact on emissions.
• Common learning actions enhance knowledge in the freight transport and logistics sector and foster advanced methods and procedures of co-operation in the freight market, with an overall objective of promoting intermodal solutions aiming at achieving modal shift or traffic avoidance.

CONTACT US FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

EU Cohesion Policy 2014-2020: simplified procedures and harmonized rules

We are living strategic days for the European budget 2014-1010. The Cohesion Policy went through some substantial changes in line with the Europe 2020 strategy objectives of smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.

The mayor hallmarks of the proposals are: concentrating funding on a smaller number of priorities better linked to the Europe 2020 Strategy, maximizing synergies, focusing on results, monitoring progress towards agreed objectives, increasing the use of conditionalities and simplifying the delivery.

The package also harmonises the rules related to different funds, including rural development and maritime and fisheries, to increase the coherence of EU action. In particular, Territorial Cooperation has become more and more important and its role within the Cohesion Policy has been reinforced.

 

To ensure the money is spent wisely in the future Cohesion Policy will focus on objectives and results with greater emphasis on evaluation and incentives for effective projects. Communicating the results of EU Cohesion Policy is essential so that excellent projects can be recognized and Europeans can see exactly how their money is being spent.

 

How will the funds be allocated? 3 categories of regions:

• Less developed regions
• Transition regions
• More developed regions

 

The European Commission has produced two films about 2014-2020 EU Cohesion Policy:

• a three minute film explains the draft legislative package that will frame cohesion policy for 2014-2020. It shows how the new proposals are designed to reinforce the strategic dimension of the policy and to ensure that EU investment is targeted on Europe's long-term goals for growth and jobs ("Europe 2020"):   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnzVm3KsTRQ&feature=plcp&context=C310708aUDOEgsToPDskJlyPSsXBKyHWB_3i-_T1jG

 

• a six minute film provides an overall view of the European Union’s cohesion policy, real results it has helped achieve in the field and its future prospects: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/videos/video-details.cfm?vid=621

Enhance EU-Turkey relations

Strengthening Civil Society Dialogue between the EU and Turkey-

III Grant Programmes

 Since the official recognition of Turkey as a candidate country in 1999 national and European institutions have intensified the number of bilateral activities with Turkey which fall under the scope of the civil society dialogue. The main goal of these grant programmes is to give opportunity to potential beneficiaries to get familiar with the policies of the European Union concerning political issues both in terms of legislation and implementation and to be prepared for the accession through strengthening the contacts and mutual exchange of experience between all civil society actors on political issues in the Member States and Turkey.

The program, which is divided into a “Political Criteria Grant Program” and a “Media Grant Program,” will finance Turkey and EU media institutions’ and NGOs’ common projects in the two domains.

The priority areas of “Political Criteria Grant Program” are:

• Human rights;

• Anti-discrimination;

• Democracy and Rule of Law.

“Media Grant Program” aims to strengthen the capacities of the actors of the media sector and to establish a sustainable dialogue between the actors in Turkey and the EU countries. The specific objectives are:

• Enhanced networking, joint actions and peer-learning between Turkish-EU media and media-related CSOs,

• Shared good practices and promotion of innovative initiatives and media productions between Turkish-EU media and media-related CSOs on EU matters.

 

The overall amount made available is EURO 9.000.000.

Associations, foundations, media organizations and similar institutions or actors working in these domains in a member state of the EU or Turkey can apply to the grant program.

 

DEADLINE for submission:

• to the Political Criteria Program: July 5

• to the Media Grant Program: July 12

Investing in Europe’s cultural and creative sector

CREATIVE EUROPE

 

The European Commission proposal for a new EU programme for the cultural and creative sector, 2014-2020 Europe needs to invest more in its cultural and creative sector because it significantly contributes to economic growth, employment, innovation and social cohesion.

Creative Europe will safeguard and promote cultural and linguistic diversity and strengthen the competitiveness of the cultural and creative sectors.

 

 

Creative Europe:

• Helps the cultural and creative sector to seize the opportunities of the ‘digital age’ and globalisation

• Enables the sector to reach its potential so that it can contribute to the Europe 2020 goals for sustainable growth, jobs and social cohesion.

• Opens up new international opportunities, markets and audiences

• Builds on the success of the MEDIA and Culture programmes Creative Europe contributes to Europe 2020, the EU's strategy for jobs and growth.

 

This proposal is now under discussion by the Council (27 Member States) and the European Parliament who will take the final decision.

Making Tourism more sustainable

Supporting the enhancement and promotion of sustainable transnational thematic tourism products

DEADLINE: 3rd July 2013

The overall objectives of the call for proposals are the following:

• to support the enhancement and promotion of sustainable transnational thematic tourism products contributing to the development and promotion of sustainable tourism in Europe by improving their visibility and market uptake.

• to contribute to the creation of an environment favorable to transnational co-operation among tourism-related stakeholders with a particular emphasis on the SMEs.

A transnational thematic tourism product is meant as made up of a set of tourism destinations, attractions, services and taking the form of a transnational route/itinerary/trail/tourism offer, either physical (based on physical infrastructure) or conceptual (linking places/destinations/attractions) having a common thematic link and a high potential for sustainable tourism development.

 

Contact us for more information.

 

Download here the newsletter.

Green future travelling

Future travelling call

DEADLINE: 4th NOVEMBER 2013

The call aims at ensuring options for future travelling in a green, smart, safe, user-friendly, efficient and integrated transportation system by coordinating national/regional funding programs in order to fund transnational RTI project.

RTI projects can address aspects of both or either one of the research questions in the following domains:

• Future Vehicle Technologies (technology oriented research domain)

• Traveller of the Future (social, organizational and technological research domain)

Future vehicle technologies, novel information and communication system, as well as social innovations and new organizational models, will help to create more sustainable mobility in European cities and at the same time ensure adequate accessibility and mobility options in rural areas.

 

BENEFICIARIES: Transport infrastructure operators and infrastructure managers, Public transport operators and transport infrastructure operators, Industry, Governmental Organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Academia.

PARTECIPATING COUNTRIES/REGIONS: Austria, Basque Country, Belarus, Catalonia, Flanders, Germany, Israel, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Turkey.

 

CONTACT US FOR FURTHER INFORMATION