MENTAL HEALTH EUROPE - SANTE MENTALE EUROPE

Their core work

Mental Health Europe (MHE) is the largest European network organisation working in mental health, representing people with mental health problems, their families, and carers across Europe. Their core work is policy advocacy, civil society representation, and translating mental health evidence into practical recommendations for European institutions and member states. In H2020 research consortia, they serve a specific and valued role: embedding the mental health dimension into projects that might otherwise treat it as a secondary concern, whether that is the psychological benefits of urban green space or the mental health consequences of a pandemic. They are not a research institute — they are the voice that makes research outcomes relevant to real people and to EU policy.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Both H2020 projects began in 2020, so the evolution observable here is topical rather than strictly chronological. MHE's initial project engagement centred on community-level wellbeing — how physical activity, green urban spaces, and sustainable design promote mental health and resilience. Their second project shifted toward population-scale public health: statistical modelling of pandemic impacts, epidemiological surveillance, and pandemic preparedness policy. This suggests MHE is broadening its evidence base from qualitative community health advocacy toward quantitative epidemiological research partnerships, likely in response to COVID-19 reshaping the European mental health policy agenda.

MHE appears to be moving from community wellbeing and environmental health toward pandemic preparedness and epidemiological research, positioning itself as a mental health civil society partner in large-scale public health infrastructure projects.

How they like to work

MHE has never led an H2020 project — they join as a specialist partner, contributing civil society credibility, advocacy networks, and the mental health policy lens that EU-funded consortia often require to satisfy broader societal impact criteria. Their two projects involved a combined 70 unique partners across 24 countries, meaning they operate comfortably inside very large, multinational research consortia rather than small focused teams. Working with them means gaining access to a pan-European NGO network and the legitimacy that comes with a recognised civil society voice in mental health, in exchange for a relatively modest budget allocation.

Despite only two projects, MHE has connected with 70 unique consortium partners spanning 24 countries — a reflection of the large, pan-European consortia they join rather than deep bilateral relationships. Their network is broad and European in character, centred on Brussels but extending across EU member states and associated countries.

What sets them apart

MHE fills a specific and often hard-to-replace gap in research consortia: they are the recognised civil society voice for mental health at the European level, with direct connections to national member organisations, people with lived experience, and EU institutions in Brussels. Unlike a university mental health department, they bring policy influence and advocacy reach rather than laboratory or clinical research capacity. For a consortium that needs to demonstrate societal impact, patient involvement, or EU policy relevance in mental health, MHE is one of very few organisations that can credibly deliver all three from a single partnership slot.

Highlights from their portfolio

• GO GREEN ROUTES
  Largest funding award for MHE (EUR 149,945) and their most distinctive engagement — linking urban green infrastructure, physical activity, and mental wellbeing in a multidisciplinary IA project running through 2024.
• PERISCOPE
  A high-profile pan-European COVID-19 response project involving statistical modelling and epidemiology, demonstrating MHE's ability to contribute to large-scale public health emergency research beyond their traditional advocacy role.