Open Call 3

Open Call 3: COLLABORATE

CLOSED ON 12 February 2025



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The COLLABORATE Program

The SUSRUR project’s COLLABORATE Program is targeting SMEs in the tourism sector across five European rural and remote areas.

The call aims to support up to 50 tourism SMEs in developing skills and capacity building at management level which will enhance the SMEs overall performance towards digital and green transition. Each selected applicant is eligible for a grant of € 6 000.

During the implementation of the Collaborate Program, applicants will have access to specialised consulting services.

The Open Call #3 objective:
● To develop skills and capacity building at management level which will enhance the SMEs overall performance towards digital and green transition.

Collaborate

Activities to be supported

Access to specialised consultancy services towards a twin digital and green transition in two of the selected areas from a pool of service providers indicated by the SUSRUR consortium:

● Digital Marketing Plan
● Sustainability Action Plan
● Technology and Innovation Survey for the Circular Economy of rural tourism SMEs
● Technology and Innovation survey for the Clean Energy Transition of rural tourism SMEs
● Technology and Innovation survey for the Digitalisation of rural tourism SMEs (Digital Marketing excluded)

Estimated budget per applicant: € 6 000 (lump sum grant).

Key Dates

START DATE
15 November 2024, 17:00 CET

DEADLINE
12 February 2025, 17:00 CET

EVALUATION
(rolling basis remote evaluation by the SUSRUR Review Panel)
Between 15 November 2024 and 14 February 2025

COLLABORATE PROGRAM
Between 15 March 2025 and 14 September 2025



Eligibility Criteria

Only applicants legally based on one of the regions listed below are eligible under the call.


Eligible applicants to participate and receive funding are SMEs according to the Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC.


Financial support to third parties under the call is limited to Tourism SMEs under at least one of the NACE classes listed below.


The applicant has not been selected to participate in the previous SUSRUR programs (Open Call #1 – ACCELERATOR and Open Call #2 – INNOVATE).

Evaluation Criteria

Alignment
The application showcases a clear alignment with the rural tourism sector within the eligible region.


Impact
The application demonstrates the impact of the two selected topics under the consulting services for the business sustainable growth and development towards digital and green transition.




Map

Eligible Regions

● Asturias (Spain)
● Western Macedonia (Greece)
● Harghita (Romania)
● Utena (Lithuania)
● Steirisches Vulkanland (Austria)


NACE classes

  • H49 - Land transport and transport via pipelines
  • I55 - Accommodation
  • I56 - Food and beverage service activities
  • N79 - Travel agency, tour operator reservation service and related activities
  • R90 - Creative, arts and entertainment activities
  • R91 - Libraries, archives, museums and other cultural activities
  • R93 - Sports activities and amusement and recreation activities
  • Other if related to scope of SUSRUR project.

 

Call Documentation

Call for Proposals & Guidelines for applicants



Annex A - Model Sub-grant Agreement Template (read only)
Agreement to be signed by selected applicants.



Annex B - Application Form (read only)
Application form available on the F6S submission system.



Annex C - Declaration of Honour Template (read only)
Declaration of Honour to be signed by selected applicants.



Annex D - Declaration of SME Status Template (optional and read only)
Declaration of SME status to be signed by selected applicants if applicable.



Annex E - Bank Account Information (read only)
Bank Account Information to be filled and signed by selected applicants and signed by the bank representative.




APPLY NOW

FAQs

SUSRUR - Towards SUStainability and resilient scenarios for tourism SMEs in RUral & Remote Areas (GA no101085887) was launched in January 2023 to address the inherent challenges for Tourism SMEs from 5 rural & remote areas of Europe by promoting an open call that can help awarded applicants to develop their sustainability and innovative practices & strategies while providing tools and skills to strengthen their competitiveness in a post-COVID-19 scenario.
Yes, SUSRUR Open Call #3 adopts the SME definition established by European Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC and the SME qualification guide.
Yes, during the submission process. You have to submit a certificate of registration proving that you are engaged in an economic activity to be deemed eligible under SUSRUR Open Call #3 Collaborate.
Yes. All applicants have to indicate a valid Tax Registration Number (such as, VAT number, Taxpayer Identification Number, Unique Identification Number, Identification number, among others) as part of the application form. Plus, all applicants need to submit a Tax Registration Certificate in accordance with the standards and legislation of their regions, as follows:
  • Spain;
  • Lithuania;
  • Romania: Certificat de inregistrare fiscala in Romanian (CIF);
  • Austria: Proof of the commercial orientation of the business;
  • Greece;
Failure to provide a Tax Registration Certificate means the application will be deemed ineligible and not be evaluated.
No, only Tourism SMEs based in one of the eligible regions, as defined in the Guide for Applicants, are eligible under SUSRUR Open Call #3 Collaborate.
Yes, a F6S user profile is required to submit your application via the F6S Submission system. Plus, you must also create/use your company’s F6S profile as only SMEs enterprises can apply to the call. Please visit www.f6s.com and sign/login to apply to this funding opportunity.
SUSRUR Open Call #3 Collaborate is a lump sum cascade funding which will be distributed over two periods, according to the achievement of checkpoints at the end of each stage:
  • First payment: EUR 1 500.00 upon signature of the sub-grant agreement
  • Second payment: EUR 4 500.00 upon completion of checkpoint 1 (with 100% completion of checkpoint)
Payments will only be initiated once the work has been approved by the SUSRUR consortium. More information available in the Guide for Applicants and Model Sub-Grant Agreement Template.
Lump sums are defined up-front and fixed in the sub-grant agreement. They are paid according to defined activities, which means payments will be made upon completion of the project milestones/deliverables defined in the Guide for Applicants and Model Sub-Grant Agreement Template.
Cascade funding, also known as Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP), is a mechanism of the European Commission to distribute public funds in order to create new companies, increase their scalability, SMEs and/or mid-cap companies, in the adoption or development of digital innovation. The main objective of this financing method is to simplify administrative procedures with SMEs, thus allowing some projects financed by the EU to issue, in turn, open calls to obtain more funding, in the case of the SUSRUR project it will be in a lump sum scheme.
SUSRUR project is an European project funded by the European Commission under the European Union’s COSME Programme through the call topic SMP-COSME-2021-TOURSME-01.
Through the access to two specialised consulting services, selected applicants will have at their disposal a range of specialised services from business analysis or/and guidance to develop key competences in digital tools, marketing, sustainability, resilience and economics. Available services in the Collaborate Programme will focus on the topics listed below:
  • Digital Marketing Plan: a business strategy that outlines how the SME will use digital platforms & channels to promote its products and services to different target audiences. It must include goals & objectives, target audiences, value proposition and metrics (Key Performance Indicators, KPIs).
  • Sustainability Action Plan: a plan that sets clear, measurable and realistic short and long-term objectives to improve the SMEs sustainability aspects in connection with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It must include goals & objectives, strategies & actions and indicators (KPIs).
  • Technology and Innovation Survey for the Circular Economy of rural tourism SMEs: a report that critically examines the different technologies and innovations available for the circular economy of rural tourism SMEs and its possible applications, including the topics of water management & reduction, waste & resource management, renovation, sustainable production & consumption, packaging materials, locally supplied goods & services, etc.
  • Technology and Innovation survey for the Clean Energy Transition of rural tourism SMEs: a report that critically examines the different technologies and innovations available for the clean energy transition of rural tourism SMEs and its possible applications, including the topics of decarbonisation, renewable energy technologies, energy efficiency, among others.
  • Technology and Innovation survey for the Digitalisation of rural tourism SMEs: a report that critically examines the different technologies and innovations available for the digitalisation of rural tourism SMEs and its possible applications, including the topics of interactive and data-driven services, immersive technologies (Augmented (AR) & virtual reality (VR)), Artificial Intelligence (AI), accessibility of tourism services, among others.
By applying to SUSRUR Open Call #3 Collaborate, Tourism SMEs from eligible regions will:
  • Obtain credibility and recognition from an EU project
  • Receive EUR 6 000 lump sum funding (equity free)
  • Have access to consulting services
  • Increase their resilience capacity and gain resources and knowledge to improve their sustainability and digital skills
  • Have networking opportunities within their region and other eligible regions
If your application is accepted, you will receive via e-mail an invitation letter to start the preparation of the sub-grant agreement. Additional information can be requested by the Open Call Manager, according to templates Declaration of Honour, Bank Account Information Form and SME Status Checklist.
No, only Tourism SMEs based in one of the eligible regions that haven’t received financial support from SUSRUR consortium are eligible under SUSRUR Open Call #3 Collaborate.
No, only Tourism SMEs based in one of the eligible regions that haven’t received financial support from other projects from the call SMP-COSME-2021-TOURSME are eligible under SUSRUR Open Call #3 Collaborate.


UPDATES

  • Updated on 15.11.2024
  • Updated on 15.01.2025: deadline, Call for Proposals & Guidelines for applicants, Annex B

Useful links: 


REGIONAL SUPPORT CONTACT

  • Utena (Lithuania): Prof. Rimantė Hopenienė - rimante.hopeniene@ktu.lt
  • Western Macedonia (Greece): Dimitris Kouras - dkouras@gmail.com / Vivian Lada - vivianlada@gmail.com 
  • Asturias (Spain): Jorge Pérez - jperez@espaciotormaleo.es / Olaya Alonso - olaya.alonso@espaciotormaleo.es
  • Steirisches Vulkanland (Austria): Jörg Köstinger - joerg@koestinger.eu
  • Harghita (Romania): Zelma Székely, Zelinda Páll - adiharghitaprojects@gmail.com

Email address for further information: contact@susrur.eu