Application period
Call opening: 15th September 2026 (indicative) and projects are due to commence in the first half of 2028.
Save the dates
- 15.09.2026 Official launch of the FOREST Joint Call 2026
- 17.09.2026 Information webinar: A webinar for interested applicants will take place on 17 September 2026 (10:00 CET). Participants will receive an overview of the call and a brief introduction to the submission and evaluation system.
- 30.09.2026 In-person partnering workshop: The EUFORE Final Conference 2026 (29–30 September 2026, Brussels) will feature a dedicated matchmaking session to connect potential partners, foster collaboration, and support consortium building for future projects.
- 06.10.2026 Networking webinar: On 6 October 2026 (10:00 CET), the FOREST partnership will host a networking webinar to facilitate partner matchmaking and support the formation and development of consortia.
Please note that the information above is provisional and subject to change. Please follow: https://forestvalue.org/forest-partnership/ (temporary) for updates.
Call description
FOREST – European Partnership for Forests, forestry, and the forest-based sector: Research and innovation for a Sustainable Transition.
The European Partnership FOREST announces the 1st call for Joint European research and innovation projects. The first Joint Call of the European partnership FOREST brings together 38 Research Funding Organisations (RFOs) from 28 countries. The total indicative call budget including EU co -contribution is over EUR 40 million.
The European Partnership "Forests, forestry, and the forest-based sector: Research and innovation for a Sustainable Transition (FOREST)" aims to mobilise research and innovation to accelerate the transition to a sustainable use of forest resources and a circular, timber-based, bioeconomy. The purpose is to support further transformation towards biodiverse, climate-adaptive, multifunctional and sustainable forest management, innovating within the bioeconomy and helping achieve an increasingly productive, resource-efficient and resilient sector.
The following topics are included:
- TOPIC 1 – Climate-Resilient Forest Systems
- TOPIC 2 – Adaptive and Multifunctional Forest Management Systems
- TOPIC 3 – Timber and Innovative Wood-Based Products
- TOPIC 4 – Forest Value Chains, Markets and Governance
The precise topics are still to be defined.
Finnish consortium partners
From Finland, Business Finland, the Research Council of Finland and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry have preliminarily indicated that they will participate in the call.
Finnish companies and research organisations may apply for Business Finland funding to participate in the joint projects. Business Finland can fund projects under all topics of the call. In addition to the criteria and conditions of the international call, the applicants and projects to be funded must meet Business Finland’s funding criteria and conditions.
Finnish companies may participate in consortia either alone or together with other Finnish partners.
If one or more Finnish research organisations participate in the consortium, Co Innovation project criteria will apply. In this call, one Finnish research organisation and one Finnish company with parallel projects, together with two other Finnish companies that fund the research project of the Finnish research organisation, are sufficient to form a Co Innovation consortium. The entire consortium must meet the international criteria of the call.
Companies participating in the call must have the capacity for continuous profitable operations and must not have any tax debts. In addition, the company must demonstrate sufficient financial resources and capabilities to participate in the call with its own project. The funded projects must create conditions for strengthening and renewing the companies’ competitiveness and for generating significant new export business. The projects must generate clear added value from collaboration.
Business Finland funding
In the 2026 call, Business Finland has tentatively reserved EUR 1,5 million to fund the participation of Finnish partners in the joint projects. Business Finland will follow the evaluation results of the call when selecting projects to be funded.
Funding will be granted as a grant. The funding level for companies will be assessed and determined during the application process based on the share of industrial research costs in the project and the size of the company.
The following Business Finland funding services will be used:
- Research and development funding: for individual participating companies
- Co-Innovation funding: for joint consortia of research organisations and companies
