THE LIFE PROGRAMME

In 1992, as a result of two important community directives - namely the "Birds Directive" 79/409/EEC, and the "Habitats Directive" 92/43/EEC - a community financial instrument called "LIFE" (acronym of the french phrase "L'Instrument Financier pour l'Environnement") was established through the EEC Regulation n. 1973. 

The general objective of LIFE is to contribute to the implementation, updating and development of EU environmental and climate policy and legislation by co-financing projects with European added value.

LIFE began in 1992 and to date there have been four complete phases of the programme (LIFE I: 1992-1995, LIFE II: 1996-1999, LIFE III: 2000-2006 and LIFE+: 2007-2013). During this period, LIFE has co-financed some 3954 projects across the EU, contributing approximately €3.1 billion to the protection of the environment.