On March 11th, 2025, the Alliance represented Scottish cities at the ‘Horizon Europe Ecosystem’ Session, hosted by Scotland Europa at the Glasgow Caledonian University campus. This captivating event proved insightful, offering a deep dive into Horizon Europe – the EU’s flagship funding programme for ground-breaking research and innovation. The session was not only informative but also incredibly engaging, sparking lively discussions and inspiring ideas that could shape the future of European research.
With the ongoing challenges posed by Brexit, the conversation around EU funding has never been more pertinent. EU funding has historically played a pivotal role in fostering economic development, creating jobs, improving infrastructure, and driving innovation across Scotland’s cities. Horizon Europe seeks to continue this tradition.
Horizon Europe champions collaboration, urging all sectors to tackle global challenges in innovative ways. This is particularly relevant to Scottish cities, which consistently lead the charge in technological advancements, solidifying their status as research pioneers. One historic example of this is the £39.6 million “Scotland’s 8th City – the Smart City” ERDF programme which enabled the Scottish cities to harness EU funding to leverage data and digital technologies to make Scotland’s cities more attractive, liveable and resilient through improved community engagement, service integration and innovation.
The session attracted a diverse mix of attendees, including seasoned experts familiar with Horizon Europe, newcomers with a budding understanding of the fund, individuals who had previously submitted proposals, and intriguingly, participants who had served as evaluators of proposals. This blend of perspectives enriched the discussions and provided a comprehensive view of Horizon Europe’s impact.
There was coverage from those in academia with innovative ideas and a rich knowledge of key elements that the fund tackles, those from organisations such as Scottish Enterprise and Glasgow City Innovation District, who seek to collaborate and fuel proposals, and the Alliance, who represented the views of Scottish cities and how the programme can be leveraged by cities to address their specific needs, and seek to understand the collaboration required from different stakeholders.
Key messages from the discussion include:-
- Local authority collaboration is crucial for harnessing Horizon Europe funding
- Whilst the event was held in Glasgow, Scotland Europa stressed the need for all cities to be involved in funding proposals, and cross-city discourse
- The need for enhanced cooperation with EU cities and regions remains crucial for Scottish cities, particularly in the context of global challenges like climate change, technological innovation, and post-pandemic recovery
- There is an expected increase of involvement from private sector representatives, which will be helpful in negating funding or resource issues. Trade Associations are noted as being a useful source of finding private partners
- Aberdeen were reinforced as being a successful example of securing EU partnerships and funding. The University of Aberdeen has successfully contributed to 1500 joint research publications over the last 10 years, amounting to £47 million in EU funding
- The Alliance is in a unique position to act as a connector between academia, local government, and private investors, working to establish projects that can benefit from Horizon funding, and further emphasise the competitiveness of Scottish Cities
For more information on the support available from Scottish Enterprise and Scotland Europa to help support Scottish cities develop a Horizon Europe proposal with stakeholders please contact Lorna Murphy (Scotland Europa) – Lorna.Murphy@scotent.co.uk
The deadline for expressions of interest from interested parties has not been confirmed yet. However, it is advisable to regularly consult the European Commission’s Funding and Tenders Portal for the most current information.
