Job Overview
🚀 Open Call for Innovation: Secure Funding for Rural-Urban Digital Solutions!
Are you an organization or consortium with groundbreaking ideas for rural-urban development? Indeed, PoliRuralPlus now actively invites you to apply for its Develop Call, offering substantial financial financial support to drive applied, small-scale innovation projects. We’re eagerly seeking partners to tackle specific rural-urban challenges within our pilot regions, thereby significantly advancing the project’s technical capabilities.
About PoliRuralPlus: Driving Rural-Urban Transformation through the Develop Call
PoliRuralPlus champions sustainable rural-urban development through innovative methodologies, technologies, and strategies. Our open calls, specifically, aim to substantially expand the initiative’s impact by:
- Encouraging innovative approaches that replicate or scale across diverse regions.
- Furthermore, promoting broad collaboration among stakeholders from various sectors, including technology, agriculture, and regional planning.
- Ultimately, generating actionable insights and solutions to inform policy and practice for balanced rural-urban growth. Consequently, these efforts directly contribute to a more sustainable future.
Quick Facts on this Funding Opportunity
This is a competitive call, after all, designed to effectively bring promising digital concepts to life.
- Budget per Project: €30,000 – €100,000
- Total Projects Funded: 5 – 15
- Call Open: 26 May – 31 July 2025
- Estimated Project Duration: October 2025 – June 2026
- Applicants: A single legal entity or a consortium of up to three entities may apply for this PoliRuralPlus Develop Call.
Funding Innovation for Rural-Urban Futures
What We Seek: Objectives
We are looking for innovation projects that directly contribute to rural-urban advancement and integrate with PoliRuralPlus’s technical frameworks. Successful projects will, therefore, need to:
- Develop & Deploy Practical Digital Applications: Create place-based digital tools meticulously aligned with specific PoliRuralPlus pilot objectives.
- Moreover, translate promising concepts into action, moving from ideation to implementation by applying advanced technologies such as AI, machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), geographic information systems (GIS), or data-driven decision tools in pilot activities.
- Additionally, ensure compatibility and integration: Design solutions compatible with PoliRuralPlus digital tools (e.g., JackDaw, MapWhiteboard), thereby ensuring seamless integration and data sharing.
- Furthermore, demonstrate replicability and scalability: Show precisely how proposed solutions can adapt and apply across other EU regions or contexts.
- In addition, embrace New European Bauhaus (NEB) values: Promote sustainability, inclusion, and aesthetics in rural-urban solution development.
- Crucially, integrate all data: Incorporate all collected data into PoliRuralPlus tools, including the JackDaw platform and AI components, to enhance decision-making capabilities. Indeed, this data integration proves vital for project-wide success under this Develop Call.
Expected Results: Impact of the PoliRuralPlus Develop Call Projects
Projects funded under the Develop Call should deliver tangible outcomes. Specifically, we anticipate:
- Operational Digital Applications: Tailored to pilot-specific rural-urban challenges, deployed and rigorously tested in real or near-real conditions within one or more PoliRuralPlus pilot regions.
- Demonstrated Tech Integration: Clear evidence of advanced technologies (e.g., AI, ML, GIS, IoT, or data analytics) providing tangible added value to rural-urban development processes.
- Interoperability: Successful data integration with PoliRuralPlus digital tools (as described in Chapter 4), including the Jackdaw GeoAI Chatbot.
- Transferable Methodologies: Documentation or outlines detailing how the application can be replicated or scaled in other contexts or regions, ideally in the form of user guides, APIs, or open standards.
- Structured Data Contribution: Enhance the PoliRuralPlus data ecosystem’s AI components and decision-support functionalities.
- Evidence of Stakeholder Engagement: Show how end users (e.g., local authorities, SMEs, NGOs) effectively contributed to and benefited from the application’s development and deployment.
- Visible NEB Alignment: Illustrate alignment through thoughtful design, accessibility, and inclusive stakeholder involvement. Ultimately, these results contribute to broader rural innovation.
Pilot Areas for the Develop Call: Focus Your Innovation
Proposals must address specific objectives identified within one of our nine designated pilot regions:
- Pilot 1 – Ireland, Monaghan County
- Pilot 2 – Slovakia
- Pilot 3 – Central Greece
- Pilot 4 – Italy, Apulia
- Pilot 5 – Finland, Mallusjoki rural district
- Pilot 6 – Bavaria-Czechia Rural Innovation Network
- Pilot 7 – Spain, region of Sierra & Mancha Conquense
- Pilot 8 – Latvia, Vidzeme Planning Region
- Pilot 9 – Malta
Leverage Our Tools: PoliRuralPlus Technologies for Your Develop Call Proposal
We strongly encourage applicants to incorporate one or more PoliRuralPlus technologies into their proposed digital applications. These tools, after all, robustly support data-driven decision-making, promote stakeholder engagement, and enable the practical deployment of innovative rural-urban solutions. Consequently, integration will be a paramount evaluation factor.
Explore our tools:
- Jackdaw GeoAI Chatbot: An AI-powered chatbot integrating geospatial data to provide place-specific insights and decision support. It uses datasets from INSPIRE, OpenStreetMap (OSM), and PSI data infrastructures to analyze rural potential, infrastructure gaps, and development opportunities.
- PoliRuralPlus Hub: A centralized digital platform for accessing tools like Jackdaw, MapWhiteboard, and the Policy Advisor. It supports interoperability, data sharing, and stakeholder collaboration, thereby streamlining rural-urban development processes.
- Map Whiteboard: A GIS-based tool for real-time map visualization and collaborative editing. It supports GeoJSON data, Web Map Service (WMS) integration, and stakeholder-driven spatial planning.
- Rural Attractiveness Explorer (RAE): An analysis tool for assessing rural regions’ appeal using socio-economic and infrastructure data. Features include dynamic scenario testing and AI-enhanced recommendations for rural development.
- Policy Advisor: An AI-based assistant offering tailored policy advice, knowledge hub integration, and automated documentation to support the development of Regional Action Plans (RAPs).
- Atlas of Best Practices: An interactive repository of successful rural-urban development strategies. It includes detailed, geographically mapped examples and facilitates knowledge sharing across regions.
- E-Market for Local Food: An online marketplace promoting local food producers by enhancing visibility and market access, fostering rural-urban economic integration.
- Vulture: AI-Driven Productivity Sandbox: An AI-powered tool for intelligent information management, enabling secure data ingestion, retrieval, and analysis through AI-driven workflows.
- Multi Actor Approach Tool: A collaborative platform for stakeholder engagement and data-driven decision-making in rural-urban development projects.
Eligibility Criteria for the PoliRuralPlus Develop Call: Who Can Apply?
Applicant Types and Consortia
Any type of entity can apply for this PoliRuralPlus Develop Call funding, provided that they have the operational and financial capacity to carry out their proposed tasks effectively. Single applicants or consortia of up to three entities are eligible to apply. In the case of consortia, one partner must act as the lead applicant (hereinafter referred to as the Coordinator). The contract for provisioning of financing will be concluded solely with the Coordinator, who will be responsible for making internal arrangements within the consortium (e.g., a consortium agreement), distributing the funds, and coordinating reporting. All members of the consortium must, likewise, be eligible under the exact same conditions listed here.
Geographic Eligibility
Applicants must be legally established in an EU Member State or an Associated Country, precisely as outlined by the Horizon Europe rules.
Proposal Specifics and Limitations
The proposal should not include any subcontracting or transfer of financial contribution to third parties. Furthermore, only one proposal will be accepted for funding per applicant (including consortium members). Indeed, in the case of multiple submissions, only the last one received (timestamp of the system) will enter into the evaluation process; the rest, therefore, will automatically be declared non-eligible. Applicants must declare their eligibility and no conflict of interest in the online application. Crucially, the proposal must address specific objectives identified within one of the 9 designated pilot regions of the PoliRuralPlus project (Section 2.4 of the Guidelines). Moreover, adherence to these specific objectives is non-negotiable for this Develop Call.
Language and Data Compliance
English is the official language for PoliRuralPlus open calls. Submissions and deliverables done in any other language will not be evaluated. Any supporting documents requested at the time of proposal submission must also be in English, except for documents proving the legal status of the organization. Any project involving personal data must adhere to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to ensure robust data privacy and protection. Thus, strict compliance is expected.
Project Commitments
PoliRuralPlus beneficiaries and their affiliated entities are ineligible to apply. Applicants commit to producing obligatory deliverables as outlined in Chapter 6. Finally, the total length of Part B is 13 pages, including the cover page. Therefore, manage your content accordingly.
Obligatory Deliverables for the PoliRuralPlus Develop Call
Projects that receive funding will produce the following:
- Media & Dissemination Outputs: 2 news articles (external or institutional), 3 blog posts for PoliRuralPlus, and comprehensive social media updates for key project stages (launch, mid-point, final). Ultimately, these ensure broad visibility.
- Mid-Term Progress Report: A summary of work done and alignment with goals, a working prototype in a real/test setting, stakeholder feedback and data integration progress, a financial report and updated action plan, and demonstrable proof of project visibility. Consequently, this provides a clear progress overview.
- Final Report: A full application description, results, and publicity, challenges, lessons learned, and future recommendations, integration with PoliRuralPlus tools and data, replication and scalability potential, a summary of communication efforts, a New European Bauhaus (NEB) principles assessment (sustainability, inclusion, aesthetics), and a final financial report per partner (if applicable). Thus, this report offers a comprehensive project conclusion.
For further details, please see the Guidelines for Applicants, Section 6.
Submission Process for the Develop Call
Submit your proposal solely via the online form on the PoliRuralPlus Knowledge Hub – look for Part A: Administrative form and the “Fill in the form for submission” button.
- Upon submission, applicants will receive an immediate confirmation email, ensuring that their proposal has been successfully received.
- The proposal contains two distinct parts:
- Part A: Administrative Form: This section collects essential information about your organization and designated contacts for technical and contractual matters. Please provide accurate and complete details to facilitate smooth communication throughout the application and project implementation process. Moreover, complete all fields thoroughly.
- Part B: Technical Description: This is the narrative part that includes three sections, each corresponding to an evaluation criterion. You need to upload Part B as a PDF document, following the template provided as part of the open call documents. Part B, furthermore, comprehensively includes the proposed budget and its justification.
Important Documents for the Develop Call
For more information about the open call and evaluation process, consult these essential documents:
- Guidelines for applicants: https://www.poliruralplus.eu/docs/179/Annex_2_Guidelines_for_Applicants_DEVELOP.pdf
- The official Call for Proposal document: https://www.poliruralplus.eu/docs/178/Annex_1_Call_for_Proposals_DEVELOP.pdf
- Contract for the provision of financing: https://www.poliruralplus.eu/docs/181/Model_CONTRACT_FOR__THE_PROVISION__OF__FINANCING_DEVELOP_web.pdf
If you have any questions, please contact opencalls@poliruralplus.eu. Otherwise, proceed directly to the application through this link: https://www.poliruralplus.eu/open-calls/develop-call/