ERA-LEARN is a support platform for the R&I partnership community, funded as a support action (CSA) by Horizon Europe. The current phase is a 4-year initiative (2023-2027), following up on several previous phases of ERA-LEARN since 2009.

ERA-LEARN reaches out to all stakeholders including policy level, network managers, and researchers.

ERA-LEARN operates a unique database of partnership initiatives, calls and funded projects. The ERA-LEARN portal provides guidance and practical information on Partnerships together with manuals, tools, reports and good practice examples on governance models and legal issues, the implementation of joint calls, and additional activities carried out by the Partnerships.

Objectives of ERA-LEARN (2023-2027)

Services

  • Support the Strategic Coordinating Process:

    • Synergies, coherence and openness: Help build appropriate synergies and complementarities to further incorporate partnerships within a broader portfolio

      • with other partnerships within and across thematic areas and HORIZON EUROPE clusters and along value chains, e.g. with “how-to” guidance
      • with other relevant instruments at national and European level (HE instruments, Missions, MFF programmes and MS instruments)
      • across the various DGs, executive agencies and EU institutions involved in the management of partnerships at EU level.
      • across all relevant stakeholders (industries, policy makers and funding agencies) in order to maximise alignment and increase participation
      • across and beyond ERA to support widening participation and sharing excellence
  • Support the implementation of the partnerships through mutual learning:
    • identify mutual learning needs and provide/disseminate good practise for specific common challenges such as e.g. internationalisation of partnership initiatives, reaching out to industry and innovation;
    • support partnerships with information on future developments in view of the next EU Framework Programme including the policy expectations;
    • develop tools and guidelines for all stages of partnership preparation, development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation
  • Emerging themes and strategic foresight:
    • Promote and integrate a forward-looking approach in the analysis and discussions about partnerships and anticipate the role of partnerships in contributing to current and future EU policy goals and missions.

Data

  • Evidence, analysis
    • Drive and support the building of a lean and streamlined mechanism for harmonised data collection and elaboration.
    • Provide evidence and analyses on the key criteria included in the legal basis for the development and strategic orientation (incl. impact analysis) of partnerships.
    • Ensure evidence building is in coordination with other related strands of services and activities of the EC, such as ERA progress reports, ERA HUB and create links to those as seems appropriate in consultation with the Partnership Knowledge Hub (PKH) and the EC.

Engagement, communication & outreach

  • Facilitate interaction
    • Maintain ERA-LEARN as the central communication and information hub/web-based platform to provide data, guidance, etc., which is serving all target groups of stakeholders; Broaden communication and outreach on ERA-LEARN products
    • Establish a multi-way dialogue among the Commission services and partnerships and other participating countries and other stakeholders to support feedback loops

    The ERA-LEARN consortium is supported by an Advisory Board. Every 6 months, the Board comes together to discuss past and newly planned ERA-LEARN activities and support the project by giving valuable advice and new ideas.