Horizon Europe CL2 DEMOCRACY-02: women's, LGBTIQ and minority rights under autocracy and conflict (2027 call)
Verified by the editorial team 1 October 2026
Updated Added a «Questions and answers» section clarifying eligibility and terms
Summary
EUR 3.5-4 million per consortium project (topic budget EUR 12 million, 3 projects expected) for research on how autocracy, war and geopolitical shifts hit the rights of women, LGBTIQ people and minorities, and on resilience strategies for civil society. Submission opens on 13 May 2027; the deadline is 23 September 2027.
About the call
A research and innovation topic of Horizon Europe Cluster 2 in the 2027 work programme. Expected outcomes: policymakers, public administrations, human rights organisations and civil society gain stronger mechanisms to protect groups in a vulnerable situation; researchers gain robust methodologies to document the impact of democratic backsliding and conflict on these groups' rights; civil society organisations and grassroots movements gain better resilience and advocacy strategies.
The research should examine the intersection of age, gender, sexual orientation, minority status or migratory background in contexts of democratic erosion, authoritarian governance and geopolitical crises. It may focus on one or several groups - women, LGBTIQ people, ethnic and religious minorities, people with disabilities, children.
Ukraine's experience of war and occupation is directly relevant here, and human rights and women's organisations can be full consortium partners: Ukraine is associated to Horizon Europe. The call is not yet open.
Who can apply
- A consortium of at least 3 independent legal entities from 3 different EU or associated countries, at least one from the EU
- Ukrainian human rights, women's and LGBTIQ organisations, universities and think tanks as partners (Ukraine is associated to Horizon Europe)
- Research institutions and data collection bodies within a consortium
What the funds are for
- Documenting the impact of autocracy, conflict and democratic backsliding on the rights of vulnerable groups
- Methodologies for collecting and analysing data on rights violations
- Best practices to counter repression and expand civic space
- Resilience and advocacy strategies for CSOs and grassroots movements
Documents required
Forms and templates are on the call page
How to apply
- 1Create an EU Login and register the organisation (obtain a PIC)
- 2Before submission opens, find a consortium with partners from the EU and associated countries
- 3Prepare Part A, Part B and the detailed lump sum budget table for topic DEMOCRACY-02
- 4Submit via the Funding & Tenders Portal from 13.05.2027 to 23.09.2027, 17:00 Brussels time
Timeline
Questions and answers
- Can human rights CSOs be partners in DEMOCRACY-02?
- Yes. Ukrainian human rights, women's and LGBTIQ organisations can be full consortium partners because Ukraine is associated to Horizon Europe.
- What is the DEMOCRACY-02 topic budget?
- EUR 12 million for the topic, with 3 projects of EUR 3.5-4 million each expected.
Change history
- Updated: Added a «Questions and answers» section clarifying eligibility and terms
- Added: Added to the catalogue from the 1 October GetGrant export; the per-project amount corrected against the Funding & Tenders Portal - EUR 3.5-4 million
Donor contacts
Website: rea.ec.europa.eu
