Ettevalmistustoetuse taotlus DIGI-ENLARGE

5873115 428625 0 0 -3810 9724390 TALLINNA TEHNIKAÜLIKOOL Ehitajate tee 5 19086 Tallinn Rg-kood 74000323 Tel 620 2002 E-post [email protected] www.taltech.ee 0 0 TALLINNA TEHNIKAÜLIKOOL Ehitajate tee 5 19086 Tallinn Rg-kood 74000323 Tel 620 2002 E-post [email protected] www.taltech.ee -3810 428625 0 0 Sihtasutus Eesti Teadusagentuur Soola 8 1 0 . 0 4 .202 6 nr 11-10/48- 1 4 51004 Tartu Ettevalmistustoetuse taotlemine Käesolevaga taotleb Tallinna Tehnikaülikool ( reg nr 74000323, ak EE201010052037382001 ) ettevalmistustoetust projektile : Digital Transformation for Building Democratic Resilience – DIGI-ENLARGE ( 101286675 , HORIZON-CL2-2025-01 ), vastutav täitja Riina Palu, tarkvatateaduste instituut. Lugupidamisega (allkirjastatud digitaalselt) Marika Lunden Teadusosakond Lisa: hindamisleh t left 284480 Riina Vilgats 620 3536 [email protected] 0 0 Riina Vilgats 620 3536 [email protected] Associated with document Ref. Ares(2026)1066328 - 30/01/2026 Proposal Evaluation Form EUROPEAN COMMISSION Evaluation Summary Horizon Europe (HORIZON) Report Call: HORIZON-CL2-2025-01 Type of action: HORIZON-RIA Proposal number: 101286675 Proposal acronym: DIGI-ENLARGE Duration (months): 36 Proposal title: Digital Transformation for Building Democratic Resilience Activity: HORIZON-CL2-2025-01-DEMOCRACY-03 N. Proposer name Country Total % Grant % eligible Requested costs 1 TALLINNA TEHNIKAÜLIKOOL EE 765,000 21.91% 765,000 21.91% 2 QENDRA SHKENCE DHE INOVACION PER ZHVILLIM AL 236,875 6.78% 236,875 6.78% 3 MEDIA AND CIVIL SOCIETY DEVELOPMENT BA 236,875 6.78% 236,875 6.78% FOUNDATION MEDIACENTAR 4 UNIWERSYTET WROCLAWSKI PL 356,250 10.20% 356,250 10.20% 5 FAKULTETA ZA INFORMACIJSKE STUDIJE V NOVEM SI 236,875 6.78% 236,875 6.78% MESTU 6 JAVNA USTANOVA UNIVERZITET CRNE GORE ME 236,875 6.78% 236,875 6.78% PODGORICA 7 Agentia de Guvernare Electronica MD 236,875 6.78% 236,875 6.78% 8 Ciudadanos letones LV 356,250 10.20% 356,250 10.20% 9 YAROSLAV MUDRYI NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY UA 236,875 6.78% 236,875 6.78% 10 SHOTA RUSTAVELI STATE UNIVERSITY GE 236,875 6.78% 236,875 6.78% 11 GALATASARAY UNIVERSITY TR 356,250 10.20% 356,250 10.20% Total: 3,491,875 3,491,875 Abstract: The DIGI-ENLARGE project investigates the dynamic interplay between digital transformation and democratization in the context of EU enlargement, with a particular focus on how digitalization can strengthen democratic resilience, policy convergence, and institutional reforms in the EU's neighborhood and candidate countries. As digital governance becomes increasingly central to the EU’s political and societal fabric, this project aims to explore how digital tools, infrastructures, regulatory frameworks, and normative standards can actively support democratization processes, especially in sectors that were previously less affected by digital advancements during past enlargement waves. DIGI-ENLARGE draws lessons from prior accessions while introducing and piloting innovative civic digital tools designed to engage citizens in candidate countries, boost public trust in democratic institutions, and promote core EU values. The project addresses critical themes at the crossroads of digitalization and democracy, including digital democracy, civic education, migration management, media freedom, gender equality, and the digital economy, all analyzed in light of the evolving EU acquis and the European Democracy Action Plan. The initiative brings together a diverse consortium of partners from EU Member States and candidate countries, encompassing Jean Monnet Chairs, NGOs, public authorities, academic institutions, and technology developers. DIGI-ENLARGE integrates scenario planning, participatory platforms, digital civic education modules, and comparative policy analysis to craft forward-looking strategies for future enlargements. In doing so, it supports the EU’s strategic objective of fostering a digitally enabled, inclusive, and democratic European neighborhood, laying the groundwork for more resilient and values-aligned integration processes. Evaluation Summary Report 101286675/DIGI-ENLARGE-30/01/2026-08:34:23 1/4  Associated with document Ref. Ares(2026)1066328 - 30/01/2026 Evaluation Result Total score: 12.50 (Threshold: 10 ) Criterion 1 - Excellence Score: 4.00 (Threshold: 3 / 5.00 , Weight: - ) The following aspects will be taken into account, to the extent that the proposed work corresponds to the description in the work programme: - Clarity and pertinence of the project’s objectives, and the extent to which the proposed work is ambitious and goes beyond the state of the art. This project aims to strengthen democratic resilience and has a clear focus on EU candidate countries. It is well aligned to the Call and EU policies. The objectives of linking enlargement with digital transformation, of developing an innovative civic engagement tool by leveraging digital technologies, and building capacity to underpin policy recommendations are clearly set out and relevant to the Call. The use of SMART criteria including clear targets, timescales and KPIs will ensure that these objectives are measurable. The use of different tools and strategies and the overall structure of the project indicates that these objectives are realistic. The proposal draws on previous experiences of EU enlargement and is grounded in academic research. It provides a good view of the current state of the art. It is clearly ambitious both in its scale and its approach to civil engagement. There is some evidence of innovation in the approach to the design of the cross-border digital participation tool, and the way in which the gap between existing research and that which is proposed will be addressed, although this is lacking some detail. For example, there is no reference to relevant political science literature, which is a shortcoming. New tools and approaches to civic education are planned, and there is a logical path from the research strands to the e-tool development and policy impact. A few minor shortcomings are nevertheless evident. The link between comparative research on past enlargements and digital challenges in enlargement today is unclear. The content of the digital civic education and media literacy modules is also not detailed enough. Overall, however, the proposal has the potential to achieve improved engagement of citizens in enlargement countries and thereby to influence policy. - Soundness of the proposed methodology, including the underlying concepts, models, assumptions, inter-disciplinary approaches, appropriate consideration of the gender dimension in research and innovation content, and the quality of open science practices, including sharing and management of research outputs and engagement of citizens, civil society and end users where appropriate. The methodology adopted is built on three pillars, comparative research, digital participation tools, and policy innovation and this creates a clear pathway from research to application. Conceptually, the proposal appropriately aligns with existing scholarly and policy discussions in EU countries rather than develop its own framework, and the research assumptions are generally clear, albeit somewhat complicated in their formulation. There is good evidence that the methodology will bring together different disciplines, for example social sciences, the humanities and education, and that the methodology adopts a multi-method approach, using comparative studies, policy mapping, citizen surveys, design workshops, and piloting. These are all well- aligned to the objectives and logically connected. However, there are also some minor shortcomings in the methodology through the relative lack of detail over sub- questions, themes, and definitions. In terms of the implementation of the project, it is not clear, for example, which aspects of democratisation will be targeted. There is strong evidence that the gender dimension has been effectively incorporated into the proposal, as demonstrated by, as demonstrated by its inclusion as a category in research and data analysis, in the implementation activities, and the planned gender-sensitive design principles. Open science practices are clearly incorporated and include the sharing of research outputs, curation of data by FAIR principles, and the use of open-source code for the digital participation platform. There is clear evidence that data management has been taken into account with reference to both copyright issues, personal data and relevant national legislation. Criterion 2 - Impact Score: 4.00 (Threshold: 3 / 5.00 , Weight: - ) The following aspects will be taken into account, to the extent that the proposed work corresponds to the description in the work programme: - Credibility of the pathways to achieve the expected outcomes and impacts specified in the work programme, and the likely scale and significance of the contributions from the project. The project's expected outcomes are fully aligned with the expected impact of the Call, and the potential impact of the research on scientific, social, and policy levels is well articulated. Although the project describes its anticipated outcomes in the medium and long term, the distinction between the two is not clear. They overlap in several areas, and lack of some detail on how short- and medium-term achievements will translate into sustained, long-term change. This is a minor shortcoming, although the connecting with existing EU programs such as CERV is a relative strength. The proposal clearly identifies a number of potential barriers, such as the issues of GDPR compliance, applying the digital platform to national contexts, issues related to the regulatory environment, and political engagement. However, the potential challenge of ensuring the recruitment of different age groups and socio- economic backgrounds is less well addressed, which is a shortcoming. The scale of the project is significant as demonstrated by the detailed KPIs, targeting significant numbers of citizens, secondary school students and teachers and policymakers in the Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership countries and individuals. Overall the scale is ambitious, yet realistic, and has the potential to have a significant impact. A minor shortcoming is the focus on quantitative data in the KPIs, with less detail on the anticipated qualitative impact. 101286675/DIGI-ENLARGE-30/01/2026-08:34:23 2/4  Associated with document Ref. Ares(2026)1066328 - 30/01/2026 - Suitability and quality of the measures to maximise expected outcomes and impacts, as set out in the dissemination and exploitation plan, including communication activities. The communication strategy is particularly strong, with clearly defined messaging and a variety of formats that are appropriate for the diverse audiences, for example LinkedIn to reach policy makers and TikTok to engage young people. Similarly there is good use of explainer videos, infographics and a range of targeted events to maximise engagement and the multilingual dimension shows good EU-wide inclusivity. The dissemination strategy is also well developed, with clear targeting of well defined audiences. It exploits existing dissemination channels as well as developing new initiatives. The dissemination target groups are well defined, covering the scientific community, EU and national policymakers, civil-society organisations, educators, the media and the general public, with a focus on citizens in candidate countries. Plans for policy workshops, clustering events, and dialogues with ministries/policy-makers are particularly appropriate. However, a shortcoming is the lack of detail on how the dissemination strategy specifically targets EU enlargement and enlargement policy. A minor shortcoming is that the dissemination strategy lacks detail regarding the roles of consortium partners. The exploitation strategy is well developed. It details how project outputs, such as the modular software for the digital participation tool will be integrated into existing platforms, tools, and operations of stakeholders and how policymakers will be provided with toolkits containing ready to use policy initiatives. The strategies for Intellectual Property Rights and knowledge management are appropriately addressed, with a suitable balance between open access, FAIR data management, and the proper use of data. This approach ensures wide access while facilitating the necessary protection of scientific results, digital tools, educational resources and policy outputs and exploitation strategies. Criterion 3 - Quality and efficiency of the implementation Score: 4.50 (Threshold: 3 / 5.00 , Weight: - ) The following aspects will be taken into account, to the extent that the proposed work corresponds to the description in the work programme: - Quality and effectiveness of the work plan, assessment of risks, and appropriateness of the effort assigned to work packages, and the resources overall. The overall work plan, structured around five work packages, is logically designed, fairly interconnected, with concrete outputs that are clearly related to the project's objectives. Deliverables, such as reports, datasets, prototype, pilot reports, curricula, toolkit and milestones are measurable, enabling progress to be monitored. Some work-packages are overlapping, for example the e-democracy hub and the civic education/media literacy modules. However, the sequencing, including overlaps, is justified as the research (WP2) feeds into the stages (WPs 3 and 4), which create outputs that inform dissemination (WP5). Management and coordination foresees risk monitoring and mitigation. A shortcoming in WPs 3 and 4, in the piloting of new modules, is the lack of a clear recruitment strategy, particularly as the proposal aims to focus on diversity and inclusivity. The proposal recognizes multiple risks in project implementation - political, technical, organizational, behavioral, ethical and management - with clear risk mitigation strategies providing methods such as inclusion-by-design principles, triangulation and active clustering with other projects in the field. The proposal mitigates the risk of some citizens' inability to participate in online platforms, but does not address the risk of unwillingness or disinterest of some citizens, particularly among vulnerable and hard-to-reach groups, which is a minor shortcoming. Cost estimations are justified, and the allocation of the lump sum is adequate to support the planned activities, although there are a few minor shortcomings: Overall the distribution of person months across the partnerships is credible, although the allocations to some WPs are not always enough clearly justified. WP 3 and 4 produce the most scalable results and require the greatest investment in terms of ICT or software development, technical know-how and upkeep, as well as outreach activities, whereas WP 2 requires less input. However, the budget dedicates the largest proportion of the lump sum to WP2. There is also a proposal to use external IT subcontracting as a contingency plan in the event of technical delays in WP3, However, there are no subcontracting costs calculated. - Capacity and role of each participant, and the extent to which the consortium as a whole brings together the necessary expertise. This consortium include a well-balanced participation of relatively new EU member states and both old and new candidate countries. The consortium is made up of a good mix of partners representing research institutes, HEIs, Civil Society organisations, a digital-governance specialist and state agencies. They bring a good level of inter-disciplinary expertise in enlargement, digital transformation, e-governance, digital democracy, media literacy, pedagogy and law. They demonstrate a strong potential for complementing one another and an effective collaboration. Their roles are clearly and logically defined and the allocation of tasks exploits their expertise, including Open Science practices. A minor shortcoming is a lack of evident experience in gender aspects of R&I, but there is no reason to doubt the overall operational capacity of the applicants and they clearly have the infrastructure to deliver. Scope of the application Status: Yes Comments (in case the proposal is out of scope) Not provided Exceptional funding A third country participant/international organisation not listed in the General Annex to the Main Work Programme may exceptionally receive funding if their participation is essential for carrying out the project (for instance due to outstanding expertise, access to unique know-how, access to research infrastructure, access to particular geographical environments, possibility to involve key partners in emerging markets, access to data, etc.). (For more information, see the HE programme guide ) Please list the concerned applicants and requested grant amount and explain the reasons why. Based on the information provided, the following participants should receive exceptional funding: Not provided 101286675/DIGI-ENLARGE-30/01/2026-08:34:23 3/4  Associated with document Ref. Ares(2026)1066328 - 30/01/2026 Based on the information provided, the following participants should NOT receive exceptional funding: Not provided Use of human embryonic stem cells (hESC) Status: No If YES, please state whether the use of hESC is, or is not, in your opinion, necessary to achieve the scientific objectives of the proposal and the reasons why. Alternatively, please state if it cannot be assessed whether the use of hESC is necessary or not, because of a lack of information. Not provided Use of human embryos Status: No If YES, please explain how the human embryos will be used in the project. Not provided Activities excluded from funding Status: No If YES, please explain. Not provided Exclusive focus on civil applications Status: Yes If NO, please explain. Not provided 101286675/DIGI-ENLARGE-30/01/2026-08:34:23 4/4  Digitally sealed by the European Commission Date: 2026.01.30 08:39:42 CET This electronic receipt is a digitally signed version of the document submitted by your organisation. Both the content of the document and a set of metadata have been digitally sealed. This digital signature mechanism, using a public-private key pair mechanism, uniquely binds this eReceipt to the modules of the Funding & Tenders Portal of the European Commission, to the transaction for which it was generated and ensures its full integrity. Therefore a complete digitally signed trail of the transaction is available both for your organisation and for the issuer of the eReceipt. 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