LIFE

5.43 billion

Solutions for meeting major environmental and climate challenges

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DG / Responsible Agencies / National Contact Points: ENV | CLIMA | ENER | LINE | NCP 1 | NCP 2

Potential beneficiaries

National and local authorities, businesses and private organizations, agencies, associations, NGOs, universities and research centers.

Description and objectives

The environment and climate are threatened by the impact of human activities. The EU is strongly committed to protecting the environment and combating climate change. The LIFE program was created to support the achievement of the objectives of the Union’s environmental legislation and policies from the different perspectives: nature, biodiversity, climate action, and energy transition/efficiency. LIFE aims to support the efforts of operators with projects aimed at:

• Achieving the transition to a sustainable, circular, energy-efficient, renewable energy-based, climate-neutral and resilient economy;
• Protect, restore and improve the quality of the environment, including air, water and soil;
• Halting and reversing biodiversity loss and countering ecosystem degradation.

Its budget is implemented through four subprograms:

• Nature and biodiversity;
• Circular economy and quality of life;
• Climate change mitigation and adaptation;
• Transition to clean energy.

Types of actions and projects

LIFE finances actions aimed at nature conservation, development of circular economy, transition to clean energy, and combating climate change; introduction of innovative technologies; development of best practices; coordination and capacity building; and support in the implementation of environmental and climate plans developed at the regional, interregional, or national level.

More specifically, LIFE projects can be traced to the following objectives:

• Develop and promote innovative techniques and approaches and the dissemination of knowledge and good practices, including through support of the Natura 2000 network;
• Improve governance at all levels, particularly by improving the capacities of public and private actors and the involvement of civil society;
• Catalyze the large-scale diffusion of successful technical and policy solutions by integrating what has been achieved by other policies and in public and private sector practices, mobilizing investment, and improving access to finance.

Depending on the level of intervention, LIFE projects are divided into:

• Projects of a strategic nature: support the achievement of the Union’s nature and biodiversity objectives through the implementation of coherent action programs across member states to integrate these objectives and priorities into other policies and funding instruments;

• Integrated strategic projects: implement, on a regional, interregional, national, or transnational scale, environmental and climate strategies and action plans developed by member state authorities and required by specific EU environmental, climate, or energy legislation or policies;

• Projects for standard actions: pursue the specific objectives of the LIFE Program ;

• Capacity building projects to support energy efficiency and renewable energy;

• Studies, evaluation and monitoring of policies, information and communication activities, awards, etc.

Highlights

The number of LIFE subprograms has increased from two (Environment and Climate Action) to the four already mentioned (Nature and Biodiversity, Circular Economy and Quality of Life, Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation, and Transition to Clean Energy).

Transition to Clean Energy integrates capacity building actions to support energy efficiency and renewable energy previously funded under Horizon 2020. The program resumes and expands the funding of integrated strategic projects initiated in the previous programming period. Greater attention is also ensured to the Nature and Biodiversity component (which will also benefit from specifically dedicated integrated strategic projects). Financial instrument operations will be supported by the InvestEU program.