Power, water and transport infrastructures play a vital part in European societies and economies. In Germany and France in particular, these critical infrastructures consist of a dense network with numerous links between the two countries. There are various new challenges involved in providing effective protection for critical infrastructure. Both infrastructure interconnection and the opposite trend of decentralising organisations create new risks. The “Civil security – Protection of critical infrastructure” call for proposals was intended to strengthen bilateral cooperation in civil security research. Funding was granted to interdisciplinary research projects on which German and French partners work together to devise solutions for protecting critical infrastructure. Germany’s and France’s aim was not only to strengthen national security in their own countries but also to contribute to Europe’s overall security architecture.

Be it explosive devices in public places or accidents in chemical factories – incidents in which chemical substances are released or explosive devices set off can have devastating consequences for the public and pose tremendous challenges for emergency services. The causes of such disasters are manifold – they can be triggered by terrorism, organised crime or major accidents. The “Civil security – Protection against explosion hazards and chemical accidents” call for proposals is intended to help reduce the number of incidents caused by hazardous substances with the help of preventive measures, research into new identification and detection technologies and reactive crisis management measures.

Safe passage is vital for maritime passenger transport and international merchant shipping. Germany has the world’s third largest merchant fleet and handles the majority of global freight transfers by sea. Ports and passenger/freight vessels alike are increasingly exposed to danger in the form of modern piracy and maritime terrorism. The “Maritime security” call for proposals was intended to help put mechanisms in place so that risks can be detected early, security concerns allayed and security established as a firm, preventive part of merchant shipping, safeguarding of critical offshore infrastructures and sea rescue operations.

Secure transport of people, luggage, post and freight by air is an illustration of how mobile our society is and how globalised the flow of goods has become. Being an export nation, Germany is an important hub for international commerce and traffic and a key part of the complex infrastructure of international air traffic. To further increase air traffic security and adapt it to new threats with the help of innovative solutions, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research has issued a call for proposals in the field of security in air traffic. The call is part of the Federal Government’s “Research for civil security” programme.