Biodiversa+, an EU-backed partnership, has opened a new funding call with a budget of around €40 million for international research into “novel ecosystems” — environments reshaped by human influence that differ from historical conditions and are unlikely to return to their previous state.
The BiodivFuture call will support projects examining the biodiversity and socio-ecological impacts of these ecosystems, as well as how they may develop in future, according to the announcement issued by the European Commission on Wednesday.
Novel ecosystems were described as ecosystems that have changed, often because of human activity, and are unlikely to revert even with human intervention.
The call is framed around three themes: how novel ecosystems function; pathways that lead to them; and how benefits from biodiversity are shared fairly and equitably in their context.
Funded projects are expected to generate “actionable knowledge” to help reverse biodiversity decline and support resilient, functioning ecosystems, it said, linking the work to the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
Who can apply and what is required
Eligible proposals must involve research consortia with partners from at least three countries that are financially participating in the call, including at least two EU Member States or EU Associated Countries, Biodiversa+ said.
Applicants are encouraged to take inter- and transdisciplinary approaches, including involvement of non-academic stakeholders, and proposals must show added value from working across countries.
Full call documents and criteria are available on the Biodiversa+ website, and a general information webinar for researchers is scheduled for 10 September 2026.
Biodiversa+ said it is a European co-funded biodiversity partnership launched on 1 October 2021, developed jointly by BiodivERsA and the European Commission, and that it has launched six co-funded joint research calls with an estimated total budget of around €250 million over seven years.
