THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Their core work

The Australian National University is a leading research-intensive university in Canberra that contributes deep expertise in climate and energy economics, linguistics and population genetics of the Asia-Pacific region, earth sciences, and optical/radio astronomy. Within H2020, ANU primarily serves as a non-European partner providing specialist research capabilities — particularly in climate modelling, archaeological and genetic studies of human migration in Southeast Asia and Oceania, and advanced photonics. Their role is typically that of an international knowledge partner brought into European consortia for their world-class researchers in niche fields.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early H2020 period (2014–2018), ANU's involvement centred on big data infrastructures (EarthServer-2), climate and energy economics (GEMCLIME), health research (COMPARE, EGRET), and photonics mobility (MULTIPLY). From 2019 onward, their profile shifted markedly toward humanities, archaeology, and human population studies — projects like OCSEAN, PANTROPOCENE, and TAHL reflect a growing emphasis on Asia-Pacific linguistics, migration genetics, and heritage landscapes. The astronomy infrastructure line (OPTICON to ORP) remained consistent throughout, while climate economics continued with GEOCEP as a successor to GEMCLIME.

ANU is increasingly positioned as Europe's go-to non-EU partner for interdisciplinary research on human history, migration, and environmental change in the Asia-Pacific and tropical regions.

How they like to work

ANU never coordinates H2020 projects — all 31 participations are as partner or third party, consistent with their non-EU status making them ineligible to coordinate. They overwhelmingly join MSCA networks (RISE, Individual Fellowships), which are designed for international research mobility and staff exchange. With 316 unique consortium partners across 46 countries, they function as a high-connectivity international node, not a repeat-partner institution — they bring global reach rather than deep bilateral ties.

ANU has collaborated with 316 distinct partners across 46 countries, making it one of the most globally connected non-EU participants in H2020. Their network spans every continent, with particularly strong ties to European universities through MSCA mobility programmes.

What sets them apart

As Australia's top-ranked university, ANU brings genuinely global perspective to European consortia — especially for research requiring Asia-Pacific field sites, datasets, or regional expertise that no EU institution can replicate. Their dual strength in hard sciences (astronomy, geochemistry, photovoltaics) and humanities (linguistics, archaeology, population genetics) makes them unusually versatile for interdisciplinary projects. For consortium builders, ANU is the premier choice when a project needs a credible non-European partner with deep research capacity and extensive experience navigating EU funding frameworks.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ORP
  Largest EC funding received (EUR 312,450) — a major astronomy infrastructure pilot combining optical and radio telescope networks across Europe and beyond.
• OCSEAN
  Ambitious interdisciplinary study combining linguistics, archaeology, and medical genetics to trace human navigation and migration across Oceania and Southeast Asia.
• GEOCEP
  Successor to GEMCLIME, demonstrating sustained long-term commitment to climate and energy policy modelling — a rare continuity signal for potential partners.