The implementation of LIFE  is managed through four sub-programmes: 

1. Nature and Biodiversity
2. Circular Economy and Quality of Life
3. Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation
4. Clean Energy Transition 

The subdivision helps with the achievement of the following aims: 

• facilitating the shift towards a sustainable, circular, energy-efficient, renewable energy-based, climate-neutral and resilient economy 
• protecting, restoring and improving the quality of the environment, including the air, water and soil 
• halting and reversing biodiversity loss 
• tackling the degradation of ecosystems 

Tourism is not directly part of the Programme. However, tourism projects dealing with environmentally sensitive topics could benefit from funding. In this case, the tourism proposals should be related to the themes of circular economy, energy efficiency and renewable energy measures, as well as climate neutrality. 

At Twissen we observe a growing level of awareness towards the environmental topic. However, concrete actions are still limited to a minority of actors. In this sense, the role of European funds is essential to spread and promote interventions positively impacting both environment and climate action.  

For more information on projects funded in the 2014-2020 budgetary period, see LIFE SUSTAINHUTS; Burren Tourism for Conservation; Sustainable Cruise; Integrated information campaign for the reduction of smoking-related litter on beaches 

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L'articolo LIFE: The key connection between tourism and environment proviene da Twissen.

Project funding is based on six pillars:  

The allocation of resources depends on results. That is, regular payments will be released when targets are reached.
The Scoardboard provides an update on the progress of the Programme in the various countries, while RECOVER is the task force set up to support activities.  

Whether or not the Programme has a direct impact on the tourism sector depends on the National Recovery and Resilience Plan drawn up by the country itself. The European Commission recommends intervention in four key areas, which are also functional for tourism development:  

-Innovation
-Reskill and upskill
-Modernisation
-Recharge and refuel  

At Twissen, we consider goal setting to be a key step in securing funding for the project and ensuring long-term prospects. Targets should be realistic, measurable and shared among the partners.  

Twissen

L'articolo Recovery and Resilience Facility: responding to the pandemic with tourism proviene da Twissen.

 It is a Call for Capitalisation. Projects under this umbrella are understood as operations deriving from existing cooperation potentials in the Programme area by implementing pilot actions, or by testing or implementing existing solutions and transferring existing solutions/outputs/deliverables to the IT-SL Programme area.   

The overall objective is the capitalisation of experiences and outputs achieved through the implementation of projects co-financed by the Interreg V-A Italy Slovenia Programme 2014-2020. The three objectives to be pursued to this end are:  

1. Follow-Up and enhancement of outputs/deliverables 
2. Transferability/reuse of outputs  
3. Communication/visibility of outputs/deliverables  

The Programme is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), which has an available contribution of EUR 14.3 million to be distributed among the three strategic objectives and one specific Interreg objective (ISO), i.e. a more competitive and smarter Europe:   

1. more competitive and intelligent through the promotion of innovative and smart economic transformation and regional connectivity to information and communication technologies (ICT)  
2. resilient, greener and low-carbon but in transition to a zero net carbon economy through the promotion of a clean and equitable energy transition, green and blue investments, circular economy, climate change adaptation and mitigation, risk management and prevention as well as sustainable urban mobility  
3. more social and inclusive through the implementation of the European pillar of social rights 
4. (ISO) better governance of cooperation  

Sustainable tourism is confirmed as one of the topics of greatest interest along with culture, inclusion and social innovation. The recommended size for each funded project should be between EUR 300,000 and 600,000.  

 At Twissen, we consider communication an essential part of the capitalisation of a project. Dissemination helps to disseminate and promote results and outputs resulting from project implementation. In addition, it allows new benchmarks to be set and good practices to be disseminated. 

Twissen

L'articolo The first Interreg VI Italy-Slovenia Call: what are the opportunities for tourism? proviene da Twissen.

This call for proposals will be part of the overall COVID-19 recovery strategy for a sustainable tourism ecosystem and in particular aim at equipping and empowering SMEs in their twin transition (green and digital transition) efforts in line with the Tourism Transition Pathway. 

The action aims to guide the forward-looking recovery of the tourism ecosystem by providing support, including with the intermediary of consortia of organisations of the relevant tourism industry stakeholders, to the digital and green transformation of tourism companies, particularly SMEs, and boosting innovation, resilience, sustainability and quality along the tourism value chain.  

The expected impacts are: 

1. Enhanced resilience and competitiveness of tourism SMEs through better uptake of sustainability principles innovation, digital tools and data and through improved capacity to consider, assess and follow the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of tourism services and activities;
2. New business models in tourism building on digitalisation, new technologies, sustainability, circularity, authentic and cultural experiences, and engagement of local communities;
3. Enhanced cooperation along the tourism value chain;
4. Improved transnational and cross-border cooperation, knowledge transfer and peer learning;
5. Support to recovery of the tourism ecosystem from COVID-19 crisis by developing and sharing best practices for recovery investments with long-term effects for green and digital transition.

At Twissen we observe that major incentives call for more complex projects. Therefore, the degree of specificity required in project design and planning are higher. The identification of the project partners becomes even more essential to strive for ambitious and strategic outcomes. 

Twissen

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L'articolo Latest SMP call invests 20.5 million on tourism proviene da Twissen.

In the budgeting period 2021-2027, Erasmus+ focuses on qualitative impact and actively contributes to more inclusive and cohesive, greener and digitally fit societies. The Program is built both for individuals and organisations, which allows to have a wide and varied catchment area. 

The Programme is the main supporter of the objectives of the European Education Area, the Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027, the European Union Youth Strategy and the European Union Work Plan for Sport (2021-24). 

The Covid-19 pandemic brought to the forefront the central role of education to ensure a swift recovery and to promote equal opportunities for all.  

The Programme has the following specific objectives: 

1. promote learning mobility of individuals and groups, as well as cooperation, quality, inclusion and equity, excellence, creativity and innovation at the level of organisations and policies in the field of education and training; 
2. promote non-formal and informal learning mobility and active participation among young people, as well as cooperation, quality, inclusion, creativity and innovation at the level of organisations and policies in the field of youth; 
3. promote learning mobility of sport staff, as well as cooperation, quality, inclusion, creativity and innovation at the level of sport organisations and sport policies. 

The programme has no direct tourism components. However, tourism enterprises, organisations and destinations can benefit indirectly from the specialized education of young generations and directly by participating to partnership projects such as Key Action 2.  

At Twissen we observe the importance of having skilled and informed young resources to be integrated in the Travel and Tourism sector, which, at this juncture as never before, is realizing the strategic importance of the human capital.  

For more information on projects funded in the 2014-2020 budgetary period, see The Next Tourism Generation (NTG) Skills Alliance; European Master in Tourism Management

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L'articolo 35 years of Erasmus: has it impacted tourism? proviene da Twissen.

The Just Transition Fund is one of three pillars of the Mechanism for Just Transition. The other two pillars are: InvestEU and EIB (European Investment Bank).
The Just Transition Fund alone has a budget of €17.5 billion, of which €10 billion is financed by NextGenerationEU. However, thanks to the joint action with the other two pillars, the Fund is expected to have a greater overall impact than the indicated budget.  

The tool for Member States to access funds is the TJTP (Territorial Just Transition Plan), which is a key step to identify territories in difficulty. 

The areas of intervention of the Programme are: 

• investment in SMEs
• creation of new enterprises
• R&I
• environmental restoration
• clean energy
• upskilling and retraining of workers
• job-search assistance
• conversion of existing carbon plants 

States and authorities in charge receive technical assistance and support in the implementation phase through the following platforms:

• Platform for a Just Transition
• Technical Support Facility 

The tourism sector will be funded both with fixed capital and intangible assets, which will benefit micro-enterprises, sustainable tourism and transport, digital innovation, worker training and the unemployed. 

At Twissen, we observe the need to foster continuous and flexible action to meet the challenges arising from the green transition. In these terms, the territory turns out to be a key player. Within this context, the Travel & Tourism sector often benefits from its direct and established connection with the territory itself. 

Twissen

L'articolo 17, 5 Billion for a just climate transition in the EU proviene da Twissen.

Covid-19 has had serious repercussions on both economic and social spheres. Some of the major indicators of the pandemic crisis are: the collapse of GDP, rising unemployment, especially among young people, and a decline in general welfare.
The programmes aimed at solving these problems are the ERDF and the ESF, which, in this case, become instruments for the allocation of resources under REACT-EU.
Furthermore, REACT-EU follows the logic of Cohesion Policy, where funding is distributed in proportion to the damage suffered and the relative fragility of the sector/area of interest.   

The tourism sector is therefore a priority recipient of funds. Interventions may concern the subsidising of working capital and productive investments in SMEs, with the aim of boosting economic resources directed towards green and digital transition or the training of workers. 
Moreover, 25% of the resources allocated by REACT-EU should be used to achieve the climate targets set at European level.  

At Twissen we observe that REACT-EU is characterised by high levels of pre-financing and the possibility of receiving 100% European support. The programme’s implementation measures provide for greater flexibility in order to benefit the most affected Member States and companies.    

For more information on projects funded in the 2014-2020 budgetary period, see VISITUS: Helping blind and visually impaired tourists enjoy the Croatia-Serbia border region-Projects – Regional Policy – European Commission (europa.eu)  

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L'articolo 50 Billion for recovery from REACT-EU: tourism is in the front row proviene da Twissen.

The budget for InvestEU amounts to €26.2 billion for a total estimated impact of €372 billion. In managing the funds, participants will be supported by the InvestEU Advisory Hub in the preparation, development, planning and implementation of their projects. In addition, the European Commission has set up the InvestEU Portal to stimulate the creation of a network for collaboration and sharing among participants.   

The four funding macro-areas of the Programme are:   

• Sustainable infrastructure  
• Research, innovation and digitisation  
• SMEs 
• Social investment and skills 

Source: https://europa.eu/investeu/investeu-fund/about-investeu-fund_en  

The tourism sector cuts across all the competence areas selected by InvestEU, aiming to strengthen competitiveness, sustainability and the value chain. Spillovers of each objective will be needed to reduce the environmental impact, which is still too high.  

At Twissen we consider the role of InvestEU as essential in supporting the numerous SMEs and family businesses operating in the Travel & Tourism sector. InvestEU makes this category one of its main investment axes, facilitating recovery in a more sustainable and inclusive perspective.   

 For more information on projects financed in the 2014-2020 budgetary period by EFSI, see Banca del Mezzogiorno MedioCredito Centrale case study and Banca del Mezzogiorno case study: Il Mondo di Bua (Italy), food & beverage. 

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L'articolo InvestEU: 372 billion to support small and medium enterprises proviene da Twissen.

Source: Annual work programme for the implementation of the Creative Europe Programme 

The projects selected within Creative Europe aim at strengthening cultural diversity and supporting the creative and cultural sectors in overcoming challenges.   

The 2021-2027 budgetary period will enable the sectors concerned to embark on a path of recovery characterised by greater inclusion, digitisation and environmental sustainability. The instrument most frequently referred to is transnational cooperation, whose role is thus strengthened in the new programme.  

Creative Europe is divided into three strands: Culture, Media and Cross-Sectoral. The general objectives are the preservation, development and promotion of European culture, as well as the protection of linguistic diversity and heritage. 
In addition, the Programme focuses on increasing the competitiveness and economic potential of the creative, cultural and, in particular, audiovisual sector.  

In the previous budgetary period, the tourism sector benefited from the spin-offs of some of the Programme’s flagship activities, for example: European Capitals of Culture (ECOC) and European Heritage Days. In the period 2021-2027, the relevance of ECOC for regional development is confirmed. Furthermore, the strand “Culture” supports events, while the section “Media” promotes European tourism both nationally and internationally through film festivals. Finally, the strategy of city branding through culture will increase the value of the cities themselves and attract more visitors.   

At Twissen, we believe that tourism and “culture, media as well as creative sectors” are strongly linked. The Culture strand supports sustainable tourism, indeed. EU funds are creating the conditions for the coordinated recovery of the sectors most affected by the pandemic.   

For more information on projects funded in the 2014-2020 budgetary period, see Follow the Vikings Project and Festival Finder – European Festivals Association. 

European Festivals Association. 

Twissen

L'articolo Creative Europe: the funding opportunities until 2027 proviene da Twissen.

The programme is based on three cross-cutting pillars: Excellent Science, Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness, and Innovative Europe. The key strategic orientations can be summarised as: digitisation, protection of biodiversity, environmental and economic sustainability, creating a resilient, inclusive and democratic society. 

Within the Programme, the tourism sector can be covered by the Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society cluster, part of the second pillar, with a budget of €93 million for the “Cultural Heritage” action area for 2022 only. The objectives and priorities are the strengthening of democratic governance and citizen participation, the safeguarding and promotion of cultural heritage and the management of multifaceted transformations in the social, economic, technological and cultural fields. Concretely, research activities will focus on the development of new approaches, concepts and practices for an increasingly sustainable, accessible and inclusive cultural tourism. 
The calls of interest for the 2022 for Travel & Tourism will be opened in the second half of January. 

At Twissen, we observe a potential increase in the total budget of about 20 billion compared to the previous programme. This is a positive prospect for enterprises in the Travel & Tourism sector, which are dealing with the challenge of sustainability in a modern way. 

For further information on projects financed in the 2014-2020 budgetary period, see SmartCulTour and TExTOUR. 

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L'articolo 95 billion from the EU for research and innovation: how much for tourism? proviene da Twissen.