Join Nostradamus as an external evaluator for Open Call #1 and #2!
Key information about the project
The Nostradamus project (Data Cube and Copernicus data for Food Security and European Independence), funded under the EU Horizon Europe framework, is establishing a multi-functional digital ecosystem combining Earth Observation (EO) data, Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, Data Cubes, and cloud-edge architectures. The project’s main objective is to empower farmers, agricultural advisors, cooperatives, and policymakers with trustworthy decision-support tools that optimize input utilization (fertilizers, water, crop protection) and strengthen European agricultural resilience and food security.
Through Work Package 6 (WP6), Nostradamus provides Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP) across two planned Open Calls:
- Open Call #1 (OC #1): Advanced Digital Applications for Farm Decision-Making and Agribusiness (Launch: September 29, 2026).
- Open Call #2 (OC #2): Digital Applications for Policy Creation, Evaluation, and Administrative Governance (Launch: January 2027).
To guarantee a highly rigorous, transparent, fair, and independent evaluation process, the Nostradamus consortium is establishing a joint pool of independent external expert evaluators to assess proposals submitted under both Open Calls. Joining the Nostradamus expert pool through this Call for Expression of Interest (EoI) allows experts to evaluate applications under OC #1, OC #2, or both, depending on application timing, thematic expertise, and availability.
Two Cut-Off Dates Strategy
To accommodate the close alignment of OC #1 and OC #2 and enrich the expertise pool over time, a two-stage cut-off date strategy is implemented:
Evaluator Profile & Desired Expertise
Nostradamus seeks senior independent experts from research, industry, public administration, and agricultural advisory sectors possessing strong expertise in one or more of the following thematic domains:
Selection of evaluation will consider professional background and expertise in the mentioned domains, demonstrated evaluation experience in EU/national research programs, and diversity balance (e.g. gender, geographic representation, sector background).
What are the benefits for the evaluators
Possibility to play a key role in the selection of innovative digital applications:
Assess and help select top-tier proposals from SMEs, start-ups, and research institutes across Europe. Your expertise will directly influence which multi-functional digital solutions are selected to advance sustainable agricultural practices, improve crop yield, and address food security and agricultural input independence.
Being reimbursed for their work:
Evaluators are financially compensated for their time and expert assessment effort, with a dedicated budget allocated under the Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP) evaluation framework.
Connect with innovators, research institutes, and ag-tech leaders:
Be an important part of the Nostradamus ecosystem:
Help shape the operational deployment of open-source digital tools, Data Cubes, and cloud-edge-mixed architectures, directly contributing to the strategic goals of the European Green Deal, Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and the European Strategy for Data.
If you are interested in joining the Nostradamus pool of experts, we invite you to apply.
(Please note that to submit your expression of interest you must have – or create, for free – an F6S account.)
Role & Responsibilities of External Evaluators
Applications will be evaluated by two external evaluators. All evaluations will be conducted remotely, and evaluators will be required to sign a contract prior to beginning the evaluation process.
Evaluation of applications are expected to run from January to March 2027 (respectively for OC #1 and OC #2).
Selected external experts will perform the following remote evaluation tasks:
- Onboarding & Briefing: Participate in an online evaluator briefing session to understand evaluation rules, criteria, scoring thresholds, etc.
- Individual Remote Evaluation: Read, assess, and score an assigned set of proposals (typically 6 to 8 proposals per expert) independently against pre-defined criteria (Alignment, Excellence, Impact, Implementation).
- Consensus Meetings and interviews with applicants: Participate in remote consensus meetings with a co-evaluator and interviews with the participants and the OC Monitoring Committee representatives to reconcile scores and finalize Consensus Evaluation Reports (CERs).
- Verification & Sign-off: Validate final Consensus Evaluation Summary Reports to ensure actionable feedback is delivered to applicants.
Remuneration & Contracting Terms
Evaluators selected will be reimbursed for their time and effort based on the number of applications evaluated (minimum number to be agreed), with each application corresponding to a value of €50 considering all the services required. Evaluators will sign an Expert Contract / Agreement with the Project Coordinator (ECoE) prior to beginning evaluation duties. Remuneration is covering all required steps (individual remote assessment, consensus meeting, and report sign-off).
Application Process & Submission
Interested experts must submit their Expression of Interest online via the dedicated F6S platform portal.
(Note: An F6S account is required to complete the submission. Account creation is free of charge.)
Important Notice
No guarantee: This expression of interest to participate in the Nostradamus] Open Call evaluation as an external expert is NOT binding and does NOT constitute any commitment to the Nostradamus project.
Selection and checks: The selection of experts to support Nostradamus in the evaluation of the Open Call will be taken at a later stage, since it depends on the number of received proposals, their origin, the domain that they target as well as the origin of the potential evaluators, their affiliations, their expertise and the balance between various criteria (e.g. gender, background, affiliation type, age, expertise etc.). Furthermore, Nostradamus may be required to change the experts that support in the evaluations of proposals. All experts contracted to support the evaluations will be subject to an administrative check – provision of personal information may apply.
Use of AI: AI tools may only be used for secondary purposes under the full responsibility of the expert, and will be required to document their usage. Uploading applications (proposals) to any AI tool is strictly forbidden as it violates data privacy, intellectual property, and security guarantees. The expert will be solely liable for any resulting data breach.
For questions or further information regarding the EoI process for evaluators, please contact the Nostradamus Open Call Management Team at: opencall@nostradamus.eu