GUADELOUPE REGION

Their core work

Guadeloupe Region is the regional government authority of Guadeloupe, a French overseas territory in the Caribbean. In the H2020 context, it acts as a public policy body supporting biodiversity conservation, climate adaptation, and research capacity building in EU outermost regions. Their contribution centers on bringing the perspective and needs of overseas territories into European research networks — particularly around tropical biodiversity, nature-based solutions, and strengthening local R&I ecosystems. They serve as a bridge between EU-level research programming and the specific environmental and societal challenges of Caribbean island territories.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early period (2015-2018), Guadeloupe Region focused on biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management, contributing an overseas territory perspective to pan-European research coordination (BiodivERsA3). From 2019 onward, their involvement broadened to include R&I system building and governance — the FORWARD project explicitly aims to strengthen research capacity in outermost regions — while maintaining the biodiversity thread through BiodivClim, now with a stronger climate change dimension. The shift suggests a move from being a passive beneficiary of EU research networks to actively shaping how outermost regions participate in European research.

Moving from topic-specific participation toward building structural research capacity in outermost regions, making them a stronger partner for future climate and biodiversity projects in tropical/Caribbean contexts.

How they like to work

Guadeloupe Region participates exclusively as a partner, never as coordinator — consistent with a regional public authority joining established research networks rather than leading them. With 69 unique partners across 29 countries from just 3 projects, they operate in very large consortia (ERA-NET cofunds typically involve dozens of national funding agencies). This means they bring broad network access but likely play a regionally focused role within these large collaborations.

Despite only 3 projects, Guadeloupe Region connects to 69 partners across 29 countries — a reflection of participating in large ERA-NET cofund actions that span most of Europe. Their network is exceptionally wide geographically but driven by the consortium structure rather than deep bilateral relationships.

What sets them apart

Guadeloupe Region occupies a rare niche: a Caribbean island public authority inside the EU research system. For any project needing tropical biodiversity data, overseas territory policy perspectives, or a test site for climate adaptation in island ecosystems, they are one of very few options within the H2020 framework. Their value is not technical research capacity but rather territorial access, local governance authority, and the ability to connect EU research with Caribbean realities.

Highlights from their portfolio

• FORWARD
  Largest funding (EUR 222K) — directly focused on building research excellence in EU outermost regions, signaling the region's ambition to become a stronger R&I actor.
• BiodivClim
  Connects biodiversity with climate change adaptation, bridging two major EU policy priorities with relevance to tropical island ecosystems.