- Innovation and training: the cornerstones of Finnova’s fight against wildfires
- Over €44 million managed in European projects to combat fires
Brussels, 21 August 2025. The current situation of forest fires in Europe is devastating, particularly in southern countries. Greece has already lost around 45,000 hectares, while Portugal has seen approximately 300,000 hectares burned so far in 2025, making it the EU Member State with the largest share of its territory affected.
In Spain, August 2025 is proving especially catastrophic. It is estimated that more than 400,000 hectares have already been consumed by the flames, marking the worst wildfire wave in the past three decades. According to data from the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), Spain and Portugal together account for nearly 60% of the total area burned this year across the entire European Union.
The Iberian Peninsula is currently facing so-called sixth-generation fires, or “megafires,” which are extremely dangerous and often deadly due to a combination of factors. Experts warn that these events are intensified by the “30-30-30 rule,” which describes critical weather conditions: temperatures of 30 °C or higher, relative humidity below 30%, and winds of at least 30 km/h.
Latin America is also suffering from wildfire crises. In 2024, Bolivia declared a state of emergency after fires affected 9.8 million hectares, according to official figures. Fundación Tierra estimated the damage at 12.6 million hectares—the highest ever recorded in the country’s history. In Argentina, the 2024–2025 wildfire season affected over 200,000 hectares across different regions, though prevention initiatives and community resilience programs are growing. In Chile, around 1,100 hectares have already been burned by wildfires so far in 2025.
According to the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the University of Maryland, 390 million hectares were lost globally. Compared with 2024, and considering data available only until June 2025, more than 100 million hectares have already burned in just six months—an alarming situation for our planet.
Finnova’s Commitment
For years, the Finnova Foundation has been working on European projects focused on wildfire prevention, innovation, and professional training. An example of this commitment is the wide range of projects in which the foundation has taken part as a partner.
Most recently, Finnova secured approval for the SUSTLAND project (KA210-VET – Erasmus+), developed in collaboration with the Spanish Association of Landscape Architects (ES), IFLA Europe (BE), and the Portuguese Association of Landscape Architects (PT). With €60,000 in funding, the project aims to strengthen the recognition of Landscape Architecture as a profession in Europe, embedding sustainability and governance into continuous professional training. It is directly linked to preventing fourth-generation fires—those occurring at the wildland-urban interface, where natural areas coexist with housing and infrastructure. These fires, seen in Spain and other European countries, represent a major risk to populations. The project therefore promotes land-use planning, sustainable landscaping, and environmental governance as key solutions, while fostering the training of professionals capable of designing resilient landscapes, diversifying land use, and restoring degraded areas, thereby reducing territorial vulnerability.
Key European Projects Against Wildfires
In addition to SUSTLAND, Finnova has participated in several major EU projects tackling wildfire prevention and management:
- CILIFO (Interreg POCTEP): Established the Iberian Centre for Research and Forest Firefighting, with over €24 million in funding (75% co-financed by the EU). It is the largest project ever funded under the Interreg programme, supporting research, prevention, firefighting, training of fire brigades, innovation, and green job creation.
- CILIFO-Accelerathon (2020): A five-month program launched under CILIFO and led by Finnova, based on the Startup Europe Accelerathon methodology. It sought innovative solutions from spin-offs, start-ups, SMEs, and entrepreneurs to address fire prevention and firefighting challenges in the Alentejo-Algarve-Andalusia Euroregion.
- FIREPOCTEP (Interreg POCTEP): With €5.6 million in funding, this project focuses on preventing and managing wildfires in cross-border areas through training and institutional cooperation. Its successor, FIREPOCTEP+, has a €3.3 million budget and aims to strengthen climate resilience through bioeconomy, prevention, and technology transfer.
- SETOFF (Erasmus+): Funded by the EU (80%) with nearly €300,000, this project develops innovative training methodologies and emergency simulations for firefighters and civil protection units.
- RES4CITY (Horizon Europe): With €2.5 million in funding, it promotes renewable energy, sustainable cities, and skills related to climate resilience.
Altogether, Finnova has managed over €44 million in investments directed towards wildfire prevention and management projects.
Broader European Programmes
The LIFE Programme (2021–2027), the EU’s main financial instrument for the environment and climate action, has a total budget of €5.43 billion. Its goal is to support innovative projects on sustainability, prevention, and adaptation to environmental and climate risks such as wildfires.
Additionally, Interreg SUDOE (2021–2027) promotes cross-border cooperation among Spain, Portugal, and France, focusing on climate change adaptation, sustainable forest management, biodiversity, and disaster prevention. A new call for emergency-focused projects will soon open, offering up to 75% co-financing and a maximum grant of €3 million per project.
Finally, NextGenerationEU (NGEU), the EU’s recovery plan for 2021–2026 with a budget of €750 billion, also supports wildfire-related measures. For example, Portugal has allocated €89 million from its Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) to acquire aerial and ground resources for rural fire response, while Spain has earmarked €32 million for reforestation efforts under its Sustainable Forest Management line.
About the Finnova Foundation
The Finnova Foundation is the European foundation for the financing of innovation, based in Brussels. It is dedicated to promoting innovation, entrepreneurship, and EU funding as key tools to address major social, environmental, and economic challenges. Finnova supports public and private entities in accessing EU programmes such as Horizon Europe, LIFE, Interreg, Erasmus+, and AL-Invest Verde, facilitating the creation of consortia, project development, and the transfer of best practices.
With extensive experience in project communication, start-up acceleration, and EU funding training through open innovation methodologies, Finnova acts as a bridge between innovative ideas and European funding opportunities. For more information, visit www.finnova.eu and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter/X, and Instagram to stay up to date on our activities and open calls.