INSTITUT ZA ETNOLOGIYA I FOLKLORISTIKA S ETNOGRAFSKI MUZEY PRI BULGARSKA AKADEMIYA NA NAUKITE

Their core work

The Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Studies with Ethnographic Museum is a research unit of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences specializing in cultural heritage, ethnography, and the social history of science and medicine in Europe. Their core research examines how historical and cultural forces — particularly the East-West divide in post-war Europe — shaped public health, medical practices, and the concept of the common good. Beyond research, they actively engage in science communication and public outreach, organizing European Researchers' Night events in Bulgaria to bring academic work to broader audiences through hands-on, participatory formats.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their early H2020 engagement (2018–2020) centered on science outreach — organizing European Researchers' Night events with themes around entrepreneurship, innovation, and participatory heritage. From 2020 onward, a significant shift occurred with their entry into the LEVIATHAN ERC Synergy Grant, moving them into serious historical research on post-war medicine and East-West European relations. This represents a transition from primarily dissemination-focused participation to deep, long-running (through 2027) academic research at the European level.

They are moving from science communication roles toward substantive historical research on European health and social history, anchored by a major ERC grant running until 2027.

How they like to work

Always a participant, never a coordinator — they join consortia led by others, contributing specialized cultural and historical expertise. With 26 unique partners across 5 countries from just 3 projects, they operate in moderately sized international teams. Their pattern suggests a specialist contributor that brings Bulgarian and Eastern European perspective to broader European research efforts rather than driving project design.

They have collaborated with 26 distinct partners across 5 countries, concentrated in Europe. Their network spans both science communication organizations (via Researchers' Night) and academic history-of-science research groups (via LEVIATHAN).

What sets them apart

As part of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, they bring a rare combination: ethnographic and folklore expertise coupled with serious engagement in the history of European medicine and public health. Their Eastern European perspective on post-war science and the common good is particularly valuable for projects examining how Cold War-era divisions shaped health systems and scientific practices. Few institutions can bridge Bulgarian cultural heritage studies with comparative European medical history at the ERC level.

Highlights from their portfolio

• LEVIATHAN
  ERC Synergy Grant worth €2.2M running until 2027 — by far their largest project and a mark of research excellence in European medical history.
• FRESHER
  Continuation of their Researchers' Night engagement (following REFRESH), showing sustained commitment to science inclusion and communication in Bulgaria.