UNIVERSITY OF MACEDONIA

Their core work

The University of Macedonia in Thessaloniki is a social sciences and applied informatics university that bridges governance research with digital technology development. Their work spans two distinct tracks: migration and governance policy research (asylum systems, crisis diplomacy, environmental agreements) and applied software engineering (cloud computing, energy-efficient software, smart development environments). They bring strong analytical capabilities to EU projects addressing how digital tools can improve public services and citizen inclusion.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early period (2015–2017), the university focused on STEM education (STIMEY), migration sociology (EUMIGRE), environmental policy (IEA), and consumer behavior (FoodSMART) — largely social science and policy-oriented work. From 2018 onward, a clear shift toward applied digital technology emerged: software energy optimization (SDK4ED), cloud development environments (SmartCLIDE), and digital governance tools (inGOV). The university has effectively added a strong computational and software engineering dimension to its original social sciences foundation.

Moving toward digitally-enabled governance and public service innovation, combining their social science roots with growing software engineering capabilities — expect future work at this intersection.

How they like to work

Predominantly a participant (10 of 12 projects), contributing specialized expertise to larger consortia rather than leading them. Their two coordinator roles were both in focused social science projects (EUMIGRE, IEA), suggesting they lead in their home discipline but join as technical contributors in ICT projects. With 95 unique partners across 28 countries, they maintain a broad and diverse network rather than relying on a small circle of repeat collaborators.

Extensive European network spanning 95 unique partners across 28 countries, indicating broad reach and willingness to work with diverse consortia. No single geographic cluster dominates — they connect well across both Western and Southern Europe.

What sets them apart

What sets the University of Macedonia apart is its genuine dual competence in social sciences and applied informatics — not just multidisciplinary in name, but demonstrated across 12 projects covering migration governance, software engineering, and digital public services. For consortium builders, they offer a rare ability to handle both the human/policy dimension and the technical implementation within the same team. Their Thessaloniki location also makes them a strong Greek partner for Balkan and Southeast European outreach.

Highlights from their portfolio

• SDK4ED
  Largest single grant (EUR 414,000), focused on the niche intersection of software technical debt and energy efficiency — their highest-funded and most technically specialized project.
• EUMIGRE
  One of only two projects they coordinated, studying Greek youth emigration during the crisis — directly relevant to their social science strengths and timely during the European migration debate.
• Pop-Machina
  Significant funding (EUR 368,125) for collaborative production and makerspaces, representing an unusual pivot toward circular economy and urban manufacturing.