WaterWorks 2014

WaterWorks2014 responds to the Horizon 2020 (H2020) Societal Challenge 5 2014 Call topic Water-3 [2014]: Stepping up EU research and innovation cooperation in the water area.

WW2014, which is based on the model of pooling funding from 15 countries, is an ERA-NET Cofund that aims at further reducing the fragmentation and dispersion of EU water-related Research and Innovation by actively contributing to the overall EU objective of building the European Research Area (ERA). The ERA aims at the free circulation of researchers, scientific knowledge and technology, and will promote all research activities deemed necessary to improve the competitiveness of Europe, including its industry.
The overall aims of WaterWorks2014 include:
•   Pooling financial resources towards the definition and implementation of a Cofunded transnational and multi-disciplinary Call for research and innovation proposals;
•   Overcoming the fragmentation of European water-related research and innovation activities;
•   Supporting EU policies and initiatives in the field of water; and
•   Supporting the implementation and the development of the Water Joint Programming Initiative (Water JPI).

WW2014 will be implemented through nine tasks which have been separated in two Work Packages: Tasks have been planned according to the specifications of the ERA-NET Cofund instrument:
• WP2 Cofunded Call Management: from Definition to Kick-off; and
• WP3 Cofunded Call Management: From Kick-off to Final Evaluation.

The implementation of the Cofunded call will be facilitated by two horizontal work packages:
• WP1 Coordination and Management; and
• WP4 Impact Assessment and Dissemination.

Additional activities have been prepared in two other packages:
• WP5 Additional Activities on Strategy; and
• WP6 Additional Activities on Implementation.

WW2014 will come to an end in 2019, while the second ERA NET Cofund, published in the biannual work programme of Societal Challenge 5, WaterWorks2015 will come to an end in 2020. As a result, WaterWorks2014 and WaterWorks2015 will be crucial to accomplish the general objectives of the Water JPI.
Linking to other JPIs
•   FACCE, related through distribution, measurement, reuse and droughts (core theme 4 of the SRIA).
•   JPI Climate, related mainly through floods and droughts.
•   Urban Europe, related through distribution, measurement, reuse, water treatment and floods.
•   Oceans, related through desalination.

Linking to other Initiatives
Previous Water-related ERA-NETs: CRUE (completed in 2009), IWRM NET (completed as an ERA-NET in 2010, with the network continuing operations), and SPLASH (completed in 2011).
Related on-going ERA-NETs: BiodivERsA (related through the area of green infrastructure, and possibly future collaboration); CIRCLE2 (related through floods and droughts), and FORESTERRA (possibly future collaboration).
European Technology Platforms (ETPs): The most directly related ETP is the Water Supply and Sanitation Technology Platform (WssTP). Cooperation between the Water JPI and the WssTP is already intense. This will continue under the auspice of WaterWorks2014.
European Innovation Partnership on Water (EIP on Water): An initiative within the EU 2020 Innovation Union. Eight priority areas have been chosen for the EIP Water, four of which are particularly relevant to the scope of the WaterWorks2014 Cofunded Call: Water reuse and recycling; Water and wastewater treatment, including recovery of resources; Water-energy nexus; and Flood and drought risk management. The Water JPI is actively engaged in the Steering Group and the Task Force of the EIP on Water.