Open Calls

Open Call 1 (OC1) aims to strengthen and expand the Nemesis Living Labs by integrating at least one additional experimental site per Living Lab. Selected applicants will contribute to co-creation, testing and demonstration activities addressing desertification and land degradation in the Mediterranean.

The total available budget for OC1 is EUR 500,000. Each selected third party may receive up to EUR 100,000 as lump-sum funding. At least one third party will be selected per Living Lab.

Applications must be submitted by single legal entities established in an eligible country or region corresponding to the relevant Living Lab. Eligible profiles may include, for example, farmers and landowners, cooperatives, NGOs, public authorities, research institutes and SMEs, provided they meet the general and Living Lab-specific requirements.

Yes. Proof of access to the experimental site is a mandatory eligibility condition. Applicants must demonstrate secure access to the proposed site for the implementation period of the sub-project. Proposals without acceptable proof of site access will be declared ineligible and will not be evaluated further.

The deadline for submission is 1st August at 17:00 CEST. Late submissions will not be considered.

Applications must be submitted exclusively through the Nemesis online submission portal. Applications sent by email or through any other channel will not be accepted. An application is admissible only if all mandatory fields and documents have been completed and uploaded by the deadline.

Applications and all substantive proposal content must be submitted in English. Supporting administrative documents, including proof of legal entity status and proof of access to the experimental site, may be submitted in their original local language. An official translation is not required. Applicants are nevertheless encouraged to provide a brief English summary or clearly indicate the relevant information where this would facilitate the eligibility check.

Eligible activities must directly support the integration and operation of the additional experimental site and its contribution to the relevant Living Lab. Depending on the approved work plan, these may include site characterisation and baseline soil sampling; monitoring and data collection; implementation and testing of co-created soil-management practices; participation in Living Lab meetings, workshops and technical exchanges; stakeholder mobilisation, co-creation, demonstrations and site visits; communication, dissemination and knowledge exchange; and contributions to the Nemesis Digital Twin and SOILL-related activities where relevant. At least one stakeholder engagement, co-creation or demonstration activity must be carried out and documented during the first 12 months.

An applicant may submit only one proposal per Living Lab under OC1. The same legal entity may not receive more than one sub-grant under OC1. If several applications from the same legal entity are submitted to the same Living Lab, only the latest complete version received before the deadline will be considered.

Applicants must submit the documentation specified in the application package. This includes at least the completed proposal template, proof of legal entity status, and proof of access to the experimental site.

All proposals first undergo an admissibility and eligibility check. Eligible proposals are then evaluated remotely by three independent experts: one internal evaluator from the Nemesis consortium and two external evaluators. Proposals are assessed against Alignment and excellence (0-5 points), Capacity and implementation (0-10 points), and Expected contribution / impact (0-5 points). The maximum total score is 20 points. A minimum threshold of 3/5 applies to Alignment and excellence; proposals below this threshold will not be evaluated further against the remaining criteria. Funding decisions will be based on the final ranking, the available budget allocation and the objective of selecting at least one third party per Living Lab.

When considering the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools for the preparation of the proposal, it is imperative to exercise caution and careful consideration. The AI-generated content should be thoroughly reviewed and validated by the applicants to ensure its appropriateness and accuracy, as well as its compliance with intellectual property regulations. Applicants are fully responsible for the content of the proposal (even those parts produced by the AI tool) and must be transparent in disclosing which AI tools were used and how they were utilized. Specifically, applicants are required to: Verify the accuracy, validity, and appropriateness of the content and any citations generated by the AI tool and correct any errors or inconsistencies; Provide a list of sources used to generate content and citations, including those generated by the AI tool. Double-check citations to ensure they are accurate and properly referenced; Be conscious of the potential for plagiarism where the AI tool may have reproduced substantial text from other sources. Check the original sources to be sure you are not plagiarizing someone else’s work; Acknowledge the limitations of the AI tool in the proposal preparation, including the potential for bias, errors, and gaps in knowledge.

Translated versions are provided solely for the convenience and information of interested applicants. In the event of any inconsistency, discrepancy, ambiguity, or difference in interpretation between the translated version and the official English document entitled "Open Call 1: Guidelines for Applicants", the official English version shall prevail.

Yes, in principle. A self-employed farmer or sole proprietor may apply if officially registered under the applicable national framework and able to provide the required proof of legal status. Cooperatives, public universities and research institutes may also apply as sole applicants, provided that they are single legal entities and meet all general and Living Lab-specific eligibility requirements, including operational capacity and secure access to a suitable experimental site.

No. Applications must be submitted by a single legal entity. Applicants may collaborate with farmers, landowners, research organisations or other stakeholders where this supports implementation, but these collaborators are not co-applicants or co-recipients of the sub-grant. For the North Africa Living Lab, the term "cross-border" refers to the Living Lab covering eligible areas in both Algeria and Tunisia; it does not require each proposal to include a site or partner in both countries.

Each application must target one specific Living Lab and demonstrate clear alignment with that Living Lab's objectives and requirements. Complementary outcomes may be assessed where relevant. A combined or "mixed" Living Lab application is not possible.

Yes, more than one site or plot may be included where they form part of one coherent project concept and can be implemented under one application, work plan and maximum funding amount. Each site or plot must comply with the applicable eligibility and Living Lab-specific requirements. Including two sites provides neither an automatic advantage nor an automatic disadvantage. Applicants are generally advised to focus on the site that best meets the selected Living Lab requirements and aligns most clearly with OC1, unless multiple sites are necessary for a well-justified experimental design.

It refers to the documented operational history of the experimental site itself. The exact practices or trials proposed under OC1 do not need to have been implemented previously, and the earlier activity does not necessarily need to have been carried out by the applicant. Relevant evidence may include previous research, monitoring, agricultural production or land-management activities, provided that dated documentation shows at least one year of activity. Where several sites are included, each site must meet this requirement.

No official Nemesis template is provided. Proof of legal entity status should be an official national document demonstrating the applicant's registration or legal status. Acceptable evidence of site access may include ownership documents, a lease agreement, a formal site-use agreement, or a signed authorisation or commitment from the site owner. The document should clearly identify the applicant and site, state the access or use rights granted, and cover the implementation period of the sub-project. Costs incurred solely to obtain or rent access to a site, without active involvement in the proposed activities, are not eligible.

The site information requested in the proposal template must be provided. The proposed experimental site(s) should be identified using GPS coordinates (latitude/longitude in the WGS84 coordinate system), which should accurately indicate the location of the experimental site(s). Where multiple sites are proposed, GPS coordinates should be provided for each site. Applicants must also submit proof of secure access to the proposed site(s) (e.g. proof of ownership, a lease agreement, or written authorization from the landowner).

Yes. Personnel costs may include the time of existing staff employed by the applicant and dedicated to the approved activities. Staff do not need to be hired exclusively for the sub-project. The proposed effort must be clearly linked to the work plan and included in a realistic and well-justified lump-sum budget.

The published OC1 application documents do not provide a separate subcontracting cost category. Necessary external goods or services may be included under "Other goods, works and services" only where they are directly linked to the proposed activities, proportionate and clearly justified. Applicants should not create a separate subcontracting budget line.

No. Indirect costs and general overheads are not eligible under OC1. The budget must contain only eligible direct costs under the published cost categories.

Reasonably foreseeable costs linked to implementation uncertainties may be included under the relevant published cost category, provided that they are specific, realistic and appropriately justified. A general or unspecified contingency reserve should not be included.

Applicants are not expected to develop the Nemesis Digital Twin themselves. Selected sites should be willing and able to collaborate with the relevant Nemesis partners by supporting data collection and providing access to relevant existing or newly generated datasets. These may include soil analyses, in-situ sensor measurements, meteorological observations and other environmental data needed to calibrate, validate and improve the Digital Twin. Data use will be subject to appropriate data-sharing arrangements and, where relevant, the consent of the site owner.

The proposed site must fall within the geographic scope of the selected Living Lab as described in Section 3.4 of the Guidelines for Applicants. Applicants should not rely only on the country name: some Living Labs specify particular regions or provinces. The application should clearly demonstrate that the site meets the exact geographic and environmental requirements of the selected Living Lab. - Cyprus: Republic of Cyprus (Limassol, Nicosia, Paphos, Larnaca and Famagusta) - France: South-Eastern France (Occitanie (Gard and Hérault), Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and Vaucluse) and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (Drôme) and other neighboring “départements” within these Mediterranean areas may also be eligible) - Italy: North-Central Italy (Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna) - Spain: Eastern & South-Eastern Spain (Murcia, Valencia, Alicante and Castellón) - Tunisia / Algeria: North-western Tunisia (Jendouba and Kef) and north-eastern Algeria (Souk Ahras), within and around the Medjerda–Mellègue river basin

Yes. Participation in another project does not in itself constitute a conflict of interest or make the site ineligible. However, the same activities or costs may not receive double funding. This also applies to soil testing or other activities supported by an independent funding source: the proposal should clearly distinguish the activities, costs, plots or datasets covered by each source of funding. Any actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest involving a Nemesis beneficiary, affiliated entity, associated partner or evaluator must be disclosed.

Yes, in principle, provided that the applicant is a single legal entity, has the operational capacity to implement the proposed soil-related and site-based activities, and demonstrates secure access to the site for the full implementation period through an ownership document, lease, formal site-use agreement or signed authorisation by the site owner. Ownership is not mandatory. All eligible applicants are evaluated against the same criteria, and applying as a farm does not provide an automatic advantage.

If you need further clarification, please contact the Nemesis Open Call team via opencalls@nemesis-soil.eu. Support for applicant questions is provided in English. Applicants are also encouraged to consult the full Guidelines for applicants before preparing their proposal.