SCHWEIZERISCHER NATIONALFONDS ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSENSCHAFTLICHEN FORSCHUNG

Their core work

The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) is Switzerland's primary public research funding agency, headquartered in Bern. Within H2020, it functions as a national funding body that co-finances transnational research programs through ERA-NET Cofund mechanisms — pooling national budgets with European partners to launch joint calls across disciplines from quantum technologies to biodiversity. Its role is not to conduct research itself but to design, fund, and coordinate competitive research programs that align Swiss science with European priorities. The SNSF brings institutional credibility, funding capacity, and access to Switzerland's research ecosystem into every consortium it joins.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early H2020 period (2014–2018), the SNSF focused on biodiversity, humanities, science-society dialogue, and sustainable development — reflecting traditional strengths in environmental and social science funding. From 2019 onward, the portfolio shifted markedly toward technology-oriented ERA-NETs (quantum technologies, ICT, FET), health research programming (rare diseases, neuroscience), and governance/open science themes. This evolution shows a deliberate broadening from environmental and humanities funding toward digital technologies and health, while maintaining the biodiversity thread throughout.

The SNSF is expanding into technology-intensive ERA-NETs (quantum, ICT, FET) and health research programming while sustaining its biodiversity portfolio — expect them in future calls bridging digital technologies with societal challenges.

How they like to work

The SNSF operates almost exclusively as a participant (18 of 19 projects), which is typical for national funding agencies in ERA-NET consortia — they bring co-funding commitments rather than scientific leadership. With 247 unique partners across 45 countries, they are a high-connectivity hub, linking into nearly every major European research funding network. This makes them an exceptionally well-connected node: partnering with the SNSF means indirect access to Switzerland's research community and a vast network of European funding agencies.

With 247 unique consortium partners across 45 countries, the SNSF has one of the broadest collaboration networks among H2020 participants — reflecting its role as a national funding agency that joins pan-European ERA-NET calls by design. Their reach is truly global, extending well beyond the EU to associated countries and international partners.

What sets them apart

As a non-EU country's primary funding agency, the SNSF brings something rare to consortia: Swiss national co-funding commitments and a gateway to Switzerland's world-class research institutions (ETH Zurich, EPFL, University of Zurich, etc.). Unlike research-performing organizations, they don't compete for scientific credit — they enable it, making them a low-friction, high-value partner. Their thematic breadth across biodiversity, quantum tech, health, and humanities means they can credibly join ERA-NET calls in almost any domain.

Highlights from their portfolio

• InRoad
  The only project where SNSF served as coordinator, focused on aligning research infrastructure priorities across Europe — revealing their policy ambition beyond pure funding.
• BiodivERsA3
  Largest single EC contribution (EUR 851,030) and first in a chain of four successive biodiversity ERA-NETs, demonstrating SNSF's longest-running thematic commitment.
• QuantERA II
  Second-generation quantum technologies ERA-NET (EUR 533,762), showing SNSF's sustained investment in frontier physics and positioning for the EU Quantum Flagship ecosystem.