Joint Open Letter on the Future of the “Intelligent Energy Europe” Programme, 2014-2020

The six networks welcome the general direction and focus for Horizon 2020, the new financial framework programme for research and innovation that aims to bring, through a single set of rules, a major simplification to EU funding instruments for innovation.

Illustration : Photo by Russ Ward on Unsplash

Our networks welcome the general direction and focus for Horizon 2020, the new financial framework programme for research and innovation that aims to bring, through a single set of rules, a major simplification to EU funding instruments for innovation.

With a budget of €80 billion, the new programme is also part of the drive to create sustainable growth and jobs in Europe. We also see that organisational innovation, innovative application of technologies and skills are indispensable complements to purely technological innovation if Horizon 2020 is to achieve these goals. The EU should continue to support these elements through the Intelligent Energy Europe (IEE) programme, as a sub-programme of Horizon 2020.