ETHNIKO IDRYMA EREVNON

Their core work

The National Hellenic Research Foundation (EIE/NHRF) is Greece's principal multidisciplinary research centre, operating as the country's hub for National Contact Point (NCP) services across nearly every Horizon 2020 pillar — energy, ICT, health, society, research infrastructures, and MSCA. Beyond its NCP coordination role, EIE conducts original research in structural biology and drug discovery, and contributes to European open access and open science infrastructure. It also supports Greek SME innovation through Enterprise Europe Network services, helping companies access EU innovation instruments.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

From 2014 to 2018, EIE focused heavily on building and professionalizing NCP networks across H2020 pillars — training, networking, brokerage events, and capacity building were the dominant activities. From 2017 onward, a clear shift emerged toward open science infrastructure (OpenAIRE-Advance, HIRMEOS), structural biology and drug discovery (EuroNeurotrophin, INSTRUCT-ULTRA), and deeper research content. The NCP work continued but became less dominant as the foundation expanded into substantive research and open scholarship roles.

EIE is transitioning from a primarily coordination-oriented role toward becoming a research-active partner in structural biology, drug discovery, and open science infrastructure — making them increasingly relevant for research-intensive consortia.

How they like to work

EIE overwhelmingly operates as a consortium participant (31 of 37 projects), joining large multinational networks rather than leading them. With 247 unique partners across 47 countries, they function as a well-connected hub in the European research support ecosystem. Their 26 Coordination and Support Actions (CSAs) indicate they are sought after for their administrative reach and NCP expertise rather than as a deep technical contributor, though their coordinator roles in EuroNeurotrophin and DIVAS show growing research leadership.

An exceptionally broad network spanning 247 unique partners across 47 countries, built primarily through pan-European NCP networks that connect them to research support organizations in virtually every EU member state. Their network is wide rather than deep — many partnerships through large CSA consortia rather than repeated collaboration with a small group.

What sets them apart

EIE occupies a rare dual position: it is both Greece's central NCP hub (with connections to nearly every H2020 thematic area) and an active research institution in structural biology and open science. For consortium builders, this means EIE can simultaneously contribute research expertise and provide deep knowledge of EU funding mechanisms, proposal strategies, and cross-border networking. Few organizations combine this breadth of EU programme knowledge with genuine laboratory-level research capability.

Highlights from their portfolio

• EuroNeurotrophin
  Largest-budget project (EUR 484,774) and a coordinator role — an MSCA training network for neurotrophin drug discovery, showing EIE's serious research ambitions beyond coordination.
• MERIL-2
  EUR 335,500 to map the entire European research infrastructure landscape — positions EIE as a key knowledge holder about who does what across European research facilities.
• OpenAIRE2020
  Part of the flagship European open access infrastructure, giving EIE direct involvement in shaping how research outputs are shared and monitored across Europe.