Good response to first FP7 Environment call for proposals
A total of 600 proposals were submitted in response to the first Environment call of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), which closed on 2 May. With a total budget of €200 million, the call covers 72 topics in the area of environmental research. According to the Commission, initial indications suggest that the project proposals represent a good thematic spread. While traditional research areas, such as climate change, continue to attract strong interest, other thematic areas that have recently increased in political importance have also generated a lot of proposals. These include the environment in relation to health, and sustainable development forecasting and assessment. There has also been a noticeable increase of proposals coming form outside Europe, particularly in the areas of Earth observation systems, climate change and water. This can be explained by the fact that FP7 is the first framework programme to open all its thematic areas to international partners. Another reason could be that the environment is now regarded as a global issue requiring a global response. With the evaluation and selection of proposals nearly completed, funding negotiations are expected to begin in early autumn. If all goes to plan, the first projects could be up and running by the end of 2007. Preparations for a second call for proposals are also underway. The call is due to be launched in the autumn, with the deadline falling in spring 2008.