Events to look out for
European Space Week –3-9 November 2017, Tallinn (EE). Space Week will foster interactions between the space and digital communities and will provide visibility to the rapidly changing space sector, its applications and the European Union’s Space Programmes Copernicus and Galileo.
EU policies for better business
Agriculture: the Commission approves new geographical indication from Poland. The European Commission has approved the addition of one new product from Poland to the quality register of Protected Geographical Indications: ‘Kiełbasa biała parzona wielkopolska'.
The future of EU finances: High Level Group presents proposals to simplify access to EU funds. The Group suggests that EU rules should be limited to strategic investment priorities and principles for spending. EU funds would be delivered via existing national administrative mechanisms and the European Commission's audit work would be limited.
Atlantic Ocean: EU boosts research cooperation with Brazil and South Africa. Through a new research agreement, the European Union, Brazil and South Africa have committed to work together to better understand marine ecosystems, their resources and impact on climate.
Get involved
EU consults on a secondary market for non-performing loans. The European Commission launched a public consultation with a view to exploring possible initiatives to facilitate the development of secondary markets for non-performing loans in the EU.
Social Challenges: help us transform challenges into business ideas. Selected ideas will receive up to EUR 30k in grants and six months of mentoring.
Call for proposals: Improving access by innovative SMEs to alternative forms of finance. This call for proposals aims to improve SMEs' access to alternative forms of finance such as peer-to-peer lending, venture debt and convertible loans, equity finance provided by crowdfunding or business angels, and factoring and trade finance. The call is open until 7 September 2017.