The WIDERA Hop-on Facility Information Webinar, organised under the Türkiye in Horizon Europe Technical Assistance Project, brought together more than 400 researchers, innovators and research support professionals from across Türkiye. The event provided a comprehensive overview of the opportunities offered by the Hop-on Facility call under the WIDERA Work Programme, with a particular focus on the application process, participation requirements and strategies for successful participation.
The webinar opened with welcoming remarks by Merve AYDEMİR AYDIN, National Contact Point for WIDERA at TÜBİTAK. In her opening address, she underlined the strategic importance of the Hop-on Facility as a mechanism enabling organisations from Widening countries, including Türkiye, to join ongoing Horizon Europe Pillar II and EIC Pathfinder projects as new consortium partners.
The keynote presentation was delivered by Ian Gauci Borda, who presented the Hop-on Facility from the perspective of the European Commission. His presentation covered the objectives of the call, eligibility criteria, proposal preparation, approaches to identifying and engaging with existing consortia, and the key factors contributing to successful applications. Participants also gained valuable insights into the European Commission's evaluation approach and practical recommendations on how organisations can maximise the opportunities offered by the call.
Beyond the thematic presentations, the event also featured a dedicated success story session delivered by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Onur Taylan from ODTÜ GÜNAM, who shared first-hand experience from a successful Hop-on project. The session highlighted institutional experiences, lessons learned throughout the project development process, and practical recommendations for organisations planning to join international consortia through the Hop-on Facility.
The webinar concluded with an interactive live Q&A session, during which more than 60 questions were addressed by the speakers. The high level of engagement and active participation once again demonstrated the growing awareness of the WIDERA Programme and the Hop-on Facility, as well as the strong interest of Türkiye's research and innovation community in expanding international collaboration under Horizon Europe.
Through this event, the Türkiye in Horizon Europe Technical Assistance Project aimed to strengthen the capacity of research and innovation organisations in Türkiye to participate more actively in the European research and innovation ecosystem, foster new international partnerships, and support organisations in making the best possible use of the opportunities offered by the Hop-on Facility.
The webinar recording, together with the presentation slides and training materials used during the event, is available on the Türkiye in Horizon Europe Technical Assistance Project Digital Resources page:
https://turkiyeinhorizoneurope.org/Main/DigitalResources
Important Links:
To apply for the Hop-on call: EU Funding & Tenders Portal
List of projects eligible for the Hop-on call: EU Funding & Tenders Portal
To watch the European Commission's Info Day, including the Hop-on call: Events | The research and innovation community platformTo access the Hop-on Call FAQ document prepared under the WIDERA.NET project: 00FAQs_Hop-On_8_1.pdf