Agencia de Salut Publica de Barcelona

Their core work

ASPB is Barcelona's public health agency, responsible for monitoring and protecting population health across the metropolitan area. In H2020 projects, they contribute real-world urban health data, epidemiological expertise, and policy implementation experience — particularly around air quality, tobacco exposure, transport safety, and health equity. Their value lies in being an operational public authority that both generates health surveillance data and can pilot interventions in a major European city.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

ASPB's early H2020 engagement (2015-2016) centered on traditional public health concerns: health equity across Europe, transport injury prevention, and tobacco exposure control. Their later projects (2016-2017 onwards) shifted toward the intersection of urban environments, citizen participation, and climate adaptation. This progression reflects a broader trend in European public health — moving from disease-specific monitoring toward understanding how city design, climate, and citizen engagement shape health outcomes.

ASPB is moving from traditional epidemiology toward urban climate-health research, making them a strong partner for projects linking climate adaptation to population health in cities.

How they like to work

ASPB consistently participates as a partner rather than leading consortia, which is typical for a city-level public authority contributing data and implementation capacity rather than driving research design. With 70 unique partners across 20 countries from just 5 projects, they operate in large, diverse consortia and do not appear locked into a narrow circle. This makes them accessible and experienced at integrating into multi-partner European projects.

Remarkably broad network for a city agency: 70 partners across 20 countries from only 5 projects, meaning they consistently join large consortia (14 partners per project on average). No single geographic concentration — their reach spans across the EU.

What sets them apart

Unlike university research groups that study urban health theoretically, ASPB is the actual public health authority for Barcelona — a city of 1.6 million. They bring operational surveillance data, regulatory experience, and the ability to pilot interventions in a real urban setting. For any consortium needing a Southern European city partner with hands-on public health infrastructure, ASPB is a credible and experienced choice.

Highlights from their portfolio

• TackSHS
  Largest single funding (EUR 427K) and most specific scope — tackling secondhand smoke and e-cigarette emissions with exposure assessment and intervention design.
• PULSE
  Bridges participatory citizen science with urban health — positions ASPB at the intersection of smart cities and public health.
• Climate-fit.City
  Signals ASPB's expansion into climate services, connecting urban climate adaptation directly to health outcomes across European cities.