Current talk about Horizon 2020 funding schemes is that they will be standardised and simplified, with one single set of rules for participation and financial reimbursement across all funding schemes.

Horizon 2020 Structure

Horizon 2020 will be made up of three pillars. Currently, the working names of these 3 Pillars are: 

• ‘excellence in the science base’
• ‘societal challenges’
• ‘industrial leadership and competitive frameworks’

Pillar 1: ‘excellence in the science base’

This Pillar contains bottom-up instruments that address excellence driven projects as well as basic research and actions for research careers and mobility. European Research Council (ERC) and the Marie Curie Actions will be kept, although a reduction in the number of different Marie Curie Actions are likely.

Pillar 2: ‘societal challenges ’

This Pillar will be a top-down, policy oriented pillar. It will probably address large, cooperative projects. Little has been defined to date; the EC is currently organizing expert and stakeholder workshops to define the content of this pillar.

Pillar 3: ‘industrial leadership and competitive frameworks’ ’

This Pillar addresses "innovation goals" and will contain funding opportunities for industry and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to facilitate the transition from research into marketable products and services. The sections of the current CIP which are directly relevant to research and innovation activities will be integrated into the Horizon 2020 and placed within this pillar.

This pillar will also include new financial mechanisms to support innovation activities and the competitiveness of industry such as (pre-commercial) public procurement, instruments to facilitate access to venture capital and an enhanced window for SME within the Risk Sharing Financing Facility (RSFF).

Horizon 2020 Web portal

In case you have not bookmarked it yet, the official Horizon 2020 Web portal can be found here. The Portal contains links to the Green paper, Written Positions, and all the latest official information.
 
Horizon 2020 thematic workshops

So far, thirteen specific workshops on the societal challenges and other component parts of Horizon 2020 have been held:

• Future and Emerging Technologies
• Innovation and Horizon 2020
• Marie Curie
• Food Security, Sustainable Agriculture and the Bio-economy
• Research infrastructures
• Access to risk finance
• The health, demographic change and wellbeing challenge
• Innovation in Small and Medium Enterprises
• Towards more inclusive, innovative and secure societies challenge
• Secure, clean and efficient energy challenge
• Smart, green and integrated transport challenege
• Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies
• Resource efficiency and climate action challenge

Summary reports of these workshops and some of the presentations used can be downloaded from here. The website on Horizon 2020 thematic workshops is regularly updated.

Source: Horizon 2020