How to get involved?

This chapter outlines the mechanisms available to Norwegian actors who want to get involved in European data spaces — both in the ongoing projects and through forums, communities and direct input. EEA status is not an obstacle; Norwegian actors already take part in several of the initiatives.

Ways in

There is no single common registration mechanism for data spaces. Which route applies depends on the maturity and funding type of each initiative. Broadly speaking, there are the following entry points:

The different entry points are not mutually exclusive. A natural strategy may be to start with a low threshold (community/forum), and then consider heavier engagement (pilot, data provision) where it is strategically justified.

Open opportunities now

The DIGITAL programme is in its last two years, and several calls give Norwegian actors a concrete way into data spaces where Norway is currently weakly represented or not represented at all. The third round of calls opened on 21 April 2026 with an application deadline of 1 October 2026, and a fourth and final round is planned for the first to second quarter of 2027. The window for getting in through DIGITAL funding is therefore closing. The secretariat for the Digital Europe Programme in Norway is at Digdir (the Norwegian Digitalisation Agency) ([email protected]) and offers guidance.

Some particularly relevant calls for data spaces where Norway is currently not visible:

• Data Space for Skills (2027). Intended to support continuous onboarding and further expansion of the data space, and to strengthen its role as the main mechanism for collaboration on data-driven innovation in education and skills in the EU. The wording “continuous onboarding” is worth noting — this is not a closed consortium, but a data space that actively takes on new participants. Eligible applicants are broadly defined: academia, research institutes, public and private actors, IT developers, non-profit organisations and SMEs. Budget €3.5M, Simple Grant with 50% funding.
• Data Space for Tourism (2027). Intended to further develop and maintain the infrastructure of the tourism data space, establish collaboration with other data spaces and strengthen synergies in data sharing for the tourism sector. Eligible applicants include public and private actors, SMEs, non-profit organisations, academia and research institutes. Budget €6.8M, Simple Grant with 50% funding.
• EHDS capacity building (2026). Intended to support the uptake of the European exchange format (EEHRxF) and the reuse of health data under EHDS. At least 85% of the €14.4M budget is to be passed on as “cascading funding” to third parties — a low-threshold entry point for Norwegian health actors who do not want to apply as lead partner themselves.

A general caveat about DIGITAL funding: most calls have a 50% funding rate and therefore require substantial co-financing. This has been identified as a barrier to Norwegian participation — in contrast to Horizon funding, which has triggered more activity, including in research and energy.

Concrete registration mechanisms

PPDS – Public Procurement Data Space. Participation is voluntary and takes place at national level. EU countries can connect their national databases to PPDS to gain access to the data and analytics tools, and use is free of charge. The Commission supports implementation through the expert group on eProcurement (the EXEP working group) and dedicated PPDS workshops with the countries. There is also a multi-country project (“Leveraging the EU PPDS”, implemented by the OECD via the Technical Support Instrument) that has helped countries such as Cyprus, Italy, Latvia, Portugal and Slovakia connect their national systems. For a national actor, this is more about connecting national procurement data than about “membership”.

DS4SSCC – Stakeholder Forum. Low threshold and open. The Stakeholder Forum is a collaboration platform with more than 400 members from across Europe, and plays a key role in shaping and implementing data spaces at local, regional, national and EU level. You join by contacting the coordinators ([email protected]). When the deployment action has open calls for new pilot sites, these are announced via this forum — which is how GEO4Water itself got in.

DSSC – Community of Practice. The very hub of the cross-cutting work. DSSC runs a Community of Practice that brings together existing and emerging data space initiatives and potential implementers of the building blocks to create and adopt the Data Spaces Blueprint. There is also a Strategic Stakeholder Group that acts as a “think-and-do tank”. You can take part in the community without being a consortium partner, and DSSC explicitly states that it wants input on the blueprint — feedback can be sent directly via their website (dssc.eu). This is probably the simplest and most direct way to exert influence across all data spaces.

SEMIC / Interoperable Europe. For the semantic interoperability layer. The SEMIC Support Centre is a community for public (and private) actors who want to co-create, share best practice and contribute to the practical implementation of interoperability across the EU, in line with the Interoperable Europe Act. It is aimed particularly at policy officers and technical experts working on data sharing and reuse. SEMIC also organises thematic workshops (including on personal data spaces) where contributors become co-authors of the results.

IDSA / Gaia-X / DSBA hubs. For the governance- and technology-oriented frameworks. Here, participation takes place through membership in the organisation rather than in an individual project. The four associations (Gaia-X, BDVA, FIWARE, IDSA) run a network of nearly 90 national/regional “hubs” in 34 countries. There are already Norwegian communities around Gaia-X Hub Norway and FIWARE iHub Norway, which may be a natural Norwegian entry point.

Take part in an EDIC. The most committed level of engagement — where one co-owns and co-governs pan-European digital infrastructure, rather than just connecting to it. A European Digital Infrastructure Consortium (EDIC) is a legal framework that allows Member States to join forces to establish and operate Multi-Country Projects in digital infrastructure. Certain data spaces and associated infrastructure can be implemented and managed through an EDIC, and the European Commission points to EDICs as relevant participants in upcoming Multi-Country Project calls. There are also dedicated support measures for EDICs, including an “EDIC Support Hub” under the DIGITAL programme.

Unlike the other entry points, an EDIC is a broader instrument than data spaces alone — it is used for many forms of digital infrastructure, and data spaces are only one of them. Participation takes place at state level and requires political backing, making it a heavier process than joining a stakeholder forum or responding to an open call. For actors considering long-term, strategic positioning in European data infrastructure, an EDIC is nevertheless the most substantial door. Digdir has its own overview of EDICs and Norwegian participation: digdir.no/…/european-digital-infrastructure-consortium-edic.

Participation outside the ongoing projects

It is worth emphasising that you do not need to join as a formal consortium partner to help shape developments. Several channels offer real influence with a low threshold:

• Communities of Practice and stakeholder forums (DSSC, DS4SSCC, SEMIC) provide insight, networks and the opportunity to influence the blueprint and building blocks.
• Direct input to DSSC on the blueprint and building blocks — DSSC explicitly invites feedback, and this is a concrete way to influence the common frameworks that all data spaces build on.
• Membership in the horizontal associations (IDSA, Gaia-X, EOSC Association) and participation in the national hubs.
• Standardisation and expert groups such as EXEP (eProcurement) and SEMIC workshops, where you contribute technical expertise without a project commitment.