The Horizon Europe National Info Day, organised by TÜBİTAK under the “Technical Assistance for Türkiye in Horizon Europe” Project and hosted by Trakya University, which also serves as an Information Multiplier (IMs Club member), was held in Edirne on 28 July 2026 with the participation of approximately 80 research and innovation stakeholders from different regions of Türkiye.
The event opened with remarks by Trakya University Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Mustafa Tan. In his speech, Prof. Dr. Tan highlighted the strategic role of universities in the international research and innovation ecosystem and shared Trakya University’s vision of strengthening its European partnerships. He noted that the University has made significant investments in cross-border cooperation projects in recent years and stated that its ongoing and successfully completed projects constitute the clearest evidence of this approach.
During the opening session, Çağrı Yıldırım, TÜBİTAK National Coordinator for Horizon Europe, provided comprehensive information on the structure of Horizon Europe, the opportunities available to stakeholders in Türkiye, the national support mechanisms provided by TÜBİTAK, the services offered under the Technical Assistance Project, and the FP10 perspective that will shape the future of the European Research and Innovation Framework Programme. He also emphasised that strong cooperation among universities, research organisations, public institutions and the private sector is critical to the success of Horizon Europe. In particular, he underlined that international consortia centred on academia-industry cooperation would enhance Türkiye’s visibility and success within the European research and innovation ecosystem.
The session continued with a presentation by Erencan Bal, TÜBİTAK National Contact Point for EIC/EIE/EIT, who introduced the funding opportunities available under the Innovative Europe pillar, focusing particularly on the European Innovation Council (EIC), the European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE) and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). The presentation also provided a comprehensive overview of the EIT Higher Education Initiative (EIT HEI), which offers cooperation and capacity-building opportunities for higher education institutions.
In the second part of the day, Dr. Nikolaos Floratos, Senior Trainer of the Technical Assistance Project, delivered practical training sessions on project development, effective analysis of work programmes, consortium building, proposal preparation, budgeting, financial and technical project management, and project implementation. During the interactive question-and-answer sessions held throughout the day, participants had the opportunity to address their questions about Horizon Europe directly to the experts and exchange views on their project ideas. The programme was implemented in line with the agenda designed to strengthen participants’ capacities regarding Horizon Europe funding opportunities, project development and implementation processes, and national support mechanisms.
The National Info Day contributed to increasing awareness of Horizon Europe among researchers, universities, public institutions, technology transfer offices, SMEs and other research and innovation stakeholders across the Turkish Research Area, particularly in the Thrace Region. It also supported the development of new partnerships and stronger participation in the European research ecosystem.
The presentations delivered during the event are available via the link below:
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