The European Commission organised a kick off meeting on 6 and 7 November for all projects related to Resource Efficiency and Waste that were successful in their bid to apply for the 2017 LIFE fund. Two representatives of the IMPEL LIFE SWEAP project attended the meeting where they presented the aims and activities of the project. We also learned about the other projects – a majority of which focus on tackling the challenges with plastic waste.
For the first time, IMPEL applied for LIFE project funding for their work on Enforcement Actions on Transfrontier Shipments of Waste. In July IMPEL signed the Grant Agreement with Commission for the SWEAP project.
LIFE funding
The LIFE programme is the EU’s funding instrument for the environment and climate action. The general objective of LIFE is to contribute to the implementation, updating and development of EU environmental and climate policy and legislation by co-financing projects with European added value. LIFE began in 1992 and to date there have been four complete phases of the programme (LIFE I: 1992-1995, LIFE II: 1996-1999, LIFE III: 2000-2006 and LIFE+: 2007-2013). During this period, LIFE has co-financed some 3954 projects across the EU, contributing approximately €3.1 billion to the protection of the environment.
The European Commission (DG Environment and DG Climate Action) manages the LIFE programme. The Commission has delegated the implementation of many components of the LIFE programme to the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME). External selection, monitoring and communication teams provide assistance to the Commission and EASME. The European Investment Bank will manage the two new financial instruments (NCFF and PF4EE).
For the 2017 applications, the European Commission has approved an investment package of € 243 million from the EU budget for projects supporting nature, the environment and quality of life in Europe’s transition to a more sustainable and low-carbon future.
EU funding under the LIFE programme for the Environment and Climate Action will mobilise additional investments leading to a total of € 430.7 million going towards 142 new projects. With numerous trans-national projects funded, LIFE will have an impact in every EU Member State.
A complete list of LIFE funded projects can be found here.
First SWEAP High-level Advisory Board meeting
