When Canada became an associated country to Horizon Europe — the EU’s key funding program for research and innovation — in July 2024, a new chapter began in research and innovation cooperation.
It marked a milestone development in the long-standing strategic partnership between the European Union and Canada and a welcome move for researchers and innovators on both sides of the Atlantic. Canada is associated with Pillar II, which represents by far the largest dimension of Horizon Europe, with a budget of €53.5 billion (CAD $83.4 billion).
The program funds collaborative research projects in critical areas such as oceans, health, raw materials, energy, bioeconomy, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and digital infrastructure.
Canada and the European Union have already enjoyed long-standing research cooperation. However, association with Horizon Europe is a real game-changer, not least because now Canadian entities, including universities, research centres and companies, have the opportunity to participate in these projects on comparable terms to those of EU member states, with Canada contributing (100 million euro until 2027) to the overall budget.
More specifically, Canadian entities can now join and lead research consortia in tandem with at least two other countries (one from an EU member state and another one from an EU member state or an associated country) and conduct life-changing research to tackle some of the most pressing global challenges today.
Unlocking Horizon Europe funding is a step-by-step process. It involves finding the right calls for proposals, expected to be announced this spring, identifying the right partners and meeting specific requirements. Following these requirements has a reason: the final selection is based on excellence. Our role is to provide support in this process by explaining these requirements to as many stakeholders as possible.
Fresh off the Horizon Europe Roadshow in March, we can attest to the great interest from Canadian researchers and companies. Organized by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), in collaboration with the European Commission’s Directorate General for Research and Innovation (DG RTD), as well as the European Union Delegation to Canada alongside EU Member State representatives, the roadshow featured a series of Horizon Europe information sessions in Western Canada, with stops in Vancouver, Edmonton and Saskatoon.
A second roadshow series in Eastern Canada followed suit in late March, with stops in Montreal, Halifax and St. John’s. In parallel, we are also hosting a series of Horizon Europe webinars on various Pillar II thematic areas, called clusters.
The roadshow proved to be an unprecedented experience. Throughout the country, we have seen first-hand how European and Canadian teams work hand-in-hand to make this new chapter in our bilateral cooperation a success.
We have felt the enthusiasm with which Canadian businesses and research institutions are willing to learn more and reap the full benefits of association.
We have also learned that, in the short time since the agreement, research projects financed by Horizon Europe have already seen successful results in Canada.
Take, for instance, the BLOOM Critical Materials Programme, which develops new technologies to improve the extraction of strategic minerals such as tantalum. Without this mineral, key technology sectors, including aerospace, biomechanics and modern electronics, would be set back to the 1980s.
What’s more, we have learned about Horizon Europe projects with Canadian participation that advance medical research tackling rare diseases or using modern technology to combat environmental degradation.
Throughout the month of March, a series of bilateral talks, including the 17th Joint Science and Technology Cooperation Committee under the EU-Canada Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement, were held. In addition, the first meeting of the new EU-Canada Association Committee was held, an occasion for both sides to assess the progress achieved since the signature of the association agreement.
One recurring message that came out of these consultations is that research cooperation between Canada and the European Union has never been as robust as it is today. This doesn’t mean, however, that we can’t do more. We can and we will.
We can work to further achieve the full potential of Canada’s association to Horizon Europe, by unleashing the innovation potential of our start-ups, better coordinating our research security frameworks and increasing the mobility of our researchers across the Atlantic.
Association to Horizon Europe is the European Union’s closest form of science and innovation cooperation with non-EU countries that have a strong research and innovation capacity and, most importantly, share common values.
Building on the vigour of our values and the strengths of our respective research and innovation communities, Canada and the European Union can accomplish great things together.
Through science and innovation, we can achieve better economic and societal breakthroughs to respond to our generation’s challenges. More consequently, we can bring more unity to our fragmented world. This is more relevant today than ever.
Geneviève Tuts is the Ambassador of the European Union to Canada.
Comments
This is a good move. Europe is so far ahead in progress on climate policy and infrastructure. Canada csn only benefit from that.
This is definitely good news for both Canada and the EU.
This article also illustrates the extreme folly of Pierre Poilievre’s desire to axe the industrial carbon tax, especially at a time when Canada desperately needs to increase trade with the EU and other countries around the world in response to the Trump tariffs and his relentless attacks on Canadian sovereignty. Mr. Poilievre apparently isn’t aware, and/or is choosing to ignore, that the EU is bringing forth legislation to charge tariffs on imports that come from countries that DON’T charge a price on carbon. In his apparent zeal for catchy three word slogans and his willingness to shill for the O&G industry, Pierre Poilievre’s continued attacks on any measures to mitigate the climate crisis are consistent with a party that doesn’t even acknowledge that climate change is real and an existential threat to all life on planet earth.
Pierre Poilievre and the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) killed the consumer carbon tax through a relentless campaign of misinformation and disinformation and they are attempting to do the same to the industrial carbon tax.