European Commission – Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS)
The European Commission's Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS) is building a standing pool of independent experts to support the evaluation, ethics screening, and financial assessment of proposals submitted under the European Defence Fund (EDF) 2021-2027 — the EU's flagship instrument for cooperative defence research and capability development, with a budget of EUR 7.9 billion. Experts are engaged on a remunerated, assignment-by-assignment basis as proposal evaluators, consensus rapporteurs, ethics reviewers, or budget assessors. The EDF covers 15 thematic categories including Space, Cyber, Information Superiority, Air and Missile Defence, CBRN, and Disruptive Technologies — making this call directly relevant to space security, dual-use technology, and defence governance professionals. The Space category is of particular relevance to the Orbital Diplomat community, encompassing EDF-funded research and development of space-based military capabilities, dual-use space technologies, satellite communications for defence, space situational awareness, and related sovereign capability development. Experts with backgrounds in space security, military space programmes, NATO or EU defence capability development, or space technology R&D are well placed to contribute. Applications for 2026 evaluations are accepted between 1 May and 31 October 2026. A valid Personal Security Clearance (PSC) at EU Confidential level or above, issued by a Member State National Security Authority, is required before expression of interest is submitted.
High level of expertise and professional experience in a military context, ideally in defence R&D, capability development, or project management in a national, European, or NATO context Relevant specialisation in one or more EDF thematic categories — particularly Space, Cyber, Information Superiority, Air and Missile Defence, CBRN, or Disruptive Technologies Registration in the EU Funding and Tenders Portal with a valid EX expert number (registration at ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/work-as-an-expert) Valid Personal Security Clearance (PSC) at EU Confidential level or above, issued by a Member State National Security Authority — must be confirmed in expression of interest email Fluency in English mandatory EU Member State nationality Expression of interest sent by email to ec-edf-experts@ec.europa.eu with CV, EX-number, and PSC confirmation