Taking stock: Reflections on Horizon 2020

Horizon 2020 was the European Union’s Framework Programme for research and innovation that ran from 2014 to 2020. With a budget of nearly €77 billion, this was, at the time, the EU’s largest ever research and innovation funding programme. An interim evaluation of Horizon 2020 was performed in 2017, which involved more than 1,000 interviews with stakeholders, a survey of applicants and the use of combined quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods. Final findings were presented by the European Commission in January 2024. Horizon 2020 was built around three key pillars: excellent science; industrial leadership; and societal challenges, with emphasis on interrelated themes of gender equality, open science and international cooperation. A key goal was investment in the skills, knowledge and infrastructure needed to advance scientific advancement and adapt to a changing economy. It supported 33 Nobel Prize winners spanning breakthroughs in medical sciences, quantum mechanics, chemical engineering and composite materials. The programme facilitated cross-border collaborations and a number of key breakthroughs, including the development of the first vaccines against COVID-19, advances in DNA dating and capturing the first image of a black hole. The programme had a keen eye on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a focus on fighting climate change. Indeed, 64.4% of Horizon 2020’s budget was invested in sustainable development. Additional foci were health research, climate action and digital technologies.