Thematic areas

including Sub-Categories

Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology: Sustainable production and management of biological resources from land, forest, and aquatic environments

• Enabling research, including 'omics' technologies, such as genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, systems biology, bioinformatics and converging technologies for micro-organisms, plants and animals, including exploitation and sustainable use of their biodiversity.

• For land based biological resources, research will focus on: soil fertility; improved crops and production systems in all their diversity, including organic farming, quality production schemes and monitoring and assessment of GMO impacts on environment and humans; plant health; sustainable, competitive and multifunctional agriculture, and forestry; integrated rural development.

• Animal health and welfare, breeding and production, including research into vaccines and diagnostics; infectious diseases in animals, including epidemiological studies, zoonoses and their pathogenic mechanisms, and diseases linked to animal feedstuffs; other threats to the sustainability and security of food production, including climate change; safe disposal of animal waste.

• For biological resources from aquatic environments, research will support sustainability and competitiveness of fisheries, provide the scientific and technical basis of fisheries management and support the sustainable development of aquaculture, including breeding and welfare.

• Development of tools needed by policy makers and other actors in areas such as agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture and rural development (landscape, land management practices etc.); socio-economic and ethical contexts of production.

Information and Communication Technologies: Applications Research

• ICT meeting societal challenges: New systems, novel materials, structures and technologies and services in areas of public interest improving quality, efficiency, access and inclusiveness; user friendly applications, integration of new technologies and initiatives such as ambient assisted living.

- for health, improving disease prevention and health care provisions, early diagnosis, treatment and personalisation; autonomy, safety, monitoring and mobility of patients; health information space for knowledge discovery.
- to improve inclusion and equal participation and prevent digital divides; assistive technology for elderly and for disabled people; design-for-all.
- for mobility; intelligent ICT-based transportation systems and vehicles and intelligent service solutions for tourism enabling people and goods to move safely, ecologically, comfortably and efficiently.
- in support of the environment, risk management and sustainable development, to prevent or reduce vulnerability and to mitigate the consequences of natural disasters and industrial accidents and human activities related to economic development.
- for governments; efficiency, openness and accountability, for a worldclass public administration and links to citizens and businesses, supporting democracy, allowing access to information to all

• ICT for content, creativity and personal development:

- new media paradigms and new forms of content, including entertainment; creation of interactive digital content; enriched user experiences; cost-effective content delivery; digital rights management; hybrid media.
- technology-enhanced learning; adaptive and contextualised learning solutions; active learning.
- ICT-based systems to support accessibility and use over time of digital cultural and scientific resources and assets, in a multilingual and multicultural environment

• ICT supporting businesses and industry:

- new forms of dynamic networked co-operative business processes, digital eco-systems in particular for small- and medium-sized organisations; optimised, distributed work organisation and collaborative work environments such as knowledge sharing and interactive services (e.g. for tourism).
- Manufacturing including traditional industries: rapid and adaptive design, production and delivery of highly customised goods; digital and virtual production; modelling, simulation, optimisation and presentation tools; miniature and integrated ICT products

• ICT for trust and confidence:

- identity management; authentication and authorization;
- privacy enhancing technologies; rights and asset management; protection against cyber threats.

Environment (including Climate Change): Environmental Technologies

• Environmental technologies for observation, simulation, prevention, mitigation, adaptation, remediation and restoration of the natural and man-made environment: related to water, climate, air, marine, urban and rural environment, soil, waste treatment, recycling, clean production processes and sustainable products, chemicals safety, protection of cultural heritage and of and the built environment.

• Protection, conservation and enhancement of cultural heritage including human habitat, fostering integration of cultural heritage in the urban setting.

• Technology assessment, verification and testing: Methods and tools for environmental risk and lifecycle assessment of processes, technologies and products, including alternative testing strategies and in particular non-animal methods for industrial chemicals; support for sustainable chemistry, forest-based sector technology, water supply and sanitation Platforms; scientific and technological aspects of a future European environmental technologies verification and testing programme, complementing third party assessment instruments.