Questions and Answers

There are many answers to this question. We have discussed them in a separate chapter in our Handbook: read it here.

We propose some of them:

1. Specific support initiatives in your local organisations. See here the initiatives organized by the Guide’s partners;
2. National contact points, which provide support on many European programs. Find out here what they are and who to contact;
3. Organizations-umbrella organizations active at the European level in many areas-useful for learning about opportunities and partners. Find out here what they are and how to contact them;
4. Liaison points between institutions and citizens: EuropeDirect, EEN, European Parliament, European Commission, ItalRap;
5. Agencies, Directorates General and Commission officials (with due care and caution). Find out how and in what ways here;
6. EU project designers and dedicated companies.

Find out here when and how they can be useful.

There are many ways to keep informed and up-to-date. Each sector has its own peculiarities and target organizations; each organization has its own networks, goals, and approaches. We have discussed this in a separate chapter in our Handbook: read it here.

1. Our Guide proposes various tools and possibilities, including in particular:a special section to find out and explore (through direct links to official sources) everything about individual Programs;
2. a Calls for Tenders page that brings together key opportunities, directly from official Funding&Tenders and OpenCoesione channels;
3. a regular offering of News updates and insights, summarized in a monthly Newsletter;
4. an Audio and Video section and an article devoted to major events and sources of “live” and video updates;
5. a Guides and Tools section, which offers other sources of information that you can follow regularly.

Good partners and good inspiration can be discovered almost anywhere, yet it is not easy to find the right ones.

Whatever your sector, keep in touch with the main networks, associations and organizations that are most active and representative in the field in which you operate.Commit to developing exchanges and contacts with related organizations active in your local organisations and in Europe.Participation in a regional, national or (why not?) European network can open the way to a huge number of opportunities.Use appropriate platforms for partner search and analysis of projects already implemented.

Read more in thefull article.

We also discussed this in special chapter in our Handbook.

The Guide to EU Projects and Funding explains and provides tools for working on the design, drafting, submission and management of projects in response to a call issued under a European program or fund.

European projects have many similarities with other types of planning carried out locally and internationally, but they follow specific rules derived from the institutional structure and policies of the European Union, and from a set of practices and practices that have accumulated and evolved over the decades. They provide for a “taxonomy” of funds and programs that evolves regularly (in particular, with each seven-year programming period), to which are associated specific regulations, reference policies, programming documents and responsible institutions. They provide for specific preparation, management and reporting procedures, as well as tools and support systems for those who intend to submit the project.

The Guide to EU Projects and Funding aims to explain, promote, and make more accessible this information, these ways of working, and these tools.

Approaching European projects requires a “European vision,” a good knowledge of the relevant sector, the ability to gather and organize information, a propensity to create links and partnerships, rigor and innovativeness… and many more. Our Guide provides the basics, access to the most important information, examples, updates, and best practices, and the tools to go deeper and get started in the world of European projects.Certain types of calls-and most importantly, an informed and knowledgeable approach to European projects-allow even the smallest organizations to seize this important opportunity.

Find out how by reading thefull article.

This is a priority issue for “insiders.” You need to keep an eye on the most interesting programs in your area of focus, use information from planning documents (e.g., annual or multiyear work programs), and take advantage of the tools made available to promote published and upcoming calls.

Some of the main tools include:

The Calls section of our Guide, CSVnet’s InfoBandi service, and our summary brochures for European Programs, Structural and Rural Funds, and Territorial Cooperation

The official sources, namely the Funding&Tenders portals, OpenCoesione, and the pages of the responsible institutions, which today make it relatively easy and straightforward to search for calls for proposals

To learn more, read the articles on how to search for European calls for proposals and how to keep up to date.

The main information is captured in the dedicated section of the Handbook.

The answer to this question lies somewhere between two different approaches.

On the one hand, it is crucial to accurately analyze the criteria provided by a notice and its purpose. On the other hand, the project must be an expression of a felt, well-structured, precise and oriented activity responding to real and meaningful needs.

Read more in thefull article.

By now, almost all direct-funding European projects are submitted electronically, particularly through the European Commission’s Funding and Tenders portal.

Read more in thefull article.

A project that has a good chance of success is first and foremost a project:– laid out simply, clearly and with a well-structured Logical Framework– consistent with the call, with the intentions of the funder, with responding to real and significant needs– solid in terms of partnerships, human and material resources, and the concreteness of the action plan– that can offer “something more,” different or better than what others already do– that convincingly meets the criteria of Relevance, Efficiency, Effectiveness, Impact and Sustainability

But it is also (which is never obvious) a project submitted by the deadline and corrected administratively and procedurally.

To learn more, read thefull article and our Handbook.

Our Guide devotes considerable space to “how to think about” EU projects and funding and attempts to provide an answer to the many questions regarding the field of EU projects and funding.

There are, however, “infrequently asked questions” that we often don’t ask ourselves in dealing with European projects, but which can make all the difference.Principles that become extremely concrete once they are dropped and visualized in the life of our projects.We offer a few, taken from the “Infrequently Asked Questions” of the OpenPM2 Guide

Read more in thefull article.

European projects are large “group works” that require continuous interaction between people, groups and organizations, both in conception and implementation. This interaction allows for broadening the scope and quality of interventions, learning from each other and innovation, but it also represents an element of additional complexity that can generate stress and grounds for potential conflict.

To make this interaction a success factor, various aspects and key issues need to be considered: to analyze and involve partners and other project-related actors in the right way, to understand their forms of interaction, and to associate roles and responsibilities with them.

There is also a need to define and enforce shared rules, formalized in a Consortium Agreement.

Find out all about this in a dedicated article and section.

One of the main challenges in managing European projects is tracking their progress, use of resources, adherence to timelines, achievement of results and objectives, and-ultimately-achieving impact.

All of this is at the heart of the link between the person who submits a European project and the managing authority that funds it, and can have considerable weight in the selection (and subsequent management) of European projects.

It first requires a good definition of the intervention logic, through a Logical Framework and an appropriate Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, with indicators, sources, ways and means of verification, baselines and targets, timelines and responsibilities.

The activity continues in the project management phase through appropriate tools and methods of data analysis, collection and processing.It takes on a strategic and “final balance” value at the time when the “impact” of the project is to be defined and measured.

Find out how it works in theappropriate section.

Reporting is one of the concepts most frequently associated with the world of European projects.

It consists of financial reporting for the project, but is closely related to all aspects of project life: planning, management, proposal and budget development, execution of activities, partner relations, and various administrative activities (employee, consultant, and vendor documentation, proof of payment, document filing, and accounting).

This is an important and necessary activity to obtain the disbursement of European funds.

Find out how it works in theappropriate section.

Establishing a good design idea is of paramount importance for the subsequent development of the project.

Requires:

• a preliminary activity of analyzing the context, the needs to which it is intended to respond, the intentions of those funding it, what has already been done in the same area, and the human and material resources available;
• A clear approach to identifying goals, outcomes and factors that could affect the outcome (logical framework);
• a perfect knowledge of the notice, the reference forms, the formal and administrative criteria for participation, and what is required in terms of time and resources;
• an exchange and association with other organizations to form a partnership that carries ideas, approaches, capabilities, resources and territorial scalability.

Learn all about this in four successive chapters on preparation, approach, project structuring, and examples and insights.

The structure of calls and proposals changes depending on the type of program (regionally, nationally or centrally managed) and the specifics of individual programs. There are normally guidelines, forms and templates (for proposal and budget), guidance and annexes of a practical (e.g., budget, evaluation and deadlines) and administrative (e.g., procedures and eligibility) nature.

The same variability applies to the contents of project proposals, which generally require elements to prove eligibility and capacity of lead and partners, a technical proposal (needs and context, approach, action plan and project team) and a budget.

Find out the details in theappropriate section.

Project writing requires:

• A careful reading of the notice, to check its correspondence with objectives, guidelines, type of activities and eligibility criteria
• A good analysis of the context, problems to be addressed, and existing actors and initiatives
• A clear formulation of goals and outcomes, a timeline, and consolidation of the partnership
• An overview and moments of joint review, on aspects of innovativeness and effectiveness, relevance and feasibility
• willingness and ability to write clearly, simply and effectively, to go deeper and to improve.

Discover a more comprehensive discussion in theappropriate section.

Every year, major “European days” and “European weeks” are organized to meet officials in charge of developing European policies and programs, organizations from all countries, possible partners, testimonials, and bearers of successful ideas. We have collected the dates of the main events in one “calendar” – there really is something for everyone.

To these events, specific “infodays” organized periodically by the various institutions at the time of launching specific programs, work plans and important calls should be added.

The main sources for keeping up to date are:

• The European Commission’s events page (the events and workshops organized day by day);
• The European Commission’s streaming service (access to “live” recordings of major events);
• The dedicated pages of European programs, executive agencies and national contact points (for infodays).

Find out all the details here. More information also in our Handbook.

Participating in a European project is a strategic opportunity, but it also brings challenges. It is critical:

• Assess whether you have adequate time, personnel and skills to write and manage the project, involving both the technical and administrative areas of your organization;
• Have a long-term, growth vision associated with the European project, verifying that it is consistent with its activities and strategic goals;
• Evaluate whether the call is suitable for their level of experience, if so, using support structures and tools offered to encourage the involvement of “newcomers.”
• Carefully check all eligibility criteria, requirements, and operating and funding arrangements provided in the announcement.

Read more in the full article.

Cross-cutting aspects are a set of core themes, linked to EU policy priorities that interact with all aspects of the project, and which aim to ensure that every action financed with European funds contributes to common values and challenges. They are not just “statements of intent,” but meet specific requirements that we find in European programs and calls for proposals. The main cross-cutting aspects we find in European design are:

• Inclusion and diversity
• Environmental sustainability and the green transition
• Digital transition and innovation
• Civic and democratic participation

They are declined in different (but all in all homogeneous) ways in the different European funds and programs, becoming in some cases the protagonists. They can be considered catalysts of impact, increasing the chances of funding and enhancing the potential of each project.

Find out how in the dedicated article

An EU project designer is distinguished from other professionals by his or her knowledge of the funding sources and project management procedures specific to the European Union and its related institutions.However, EU project designers are not a “one-size-fits-all” category, and work on EU projects is by nature varied and involves different “nuances” (and skills).

Find out all the details here.