InGRID-2 · Project

European Data Tools That Model How Social Policies Affect Populations Before Rollout

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Imagine you're a government trying to figure out whether raising minimum wage will actually reduce poverty — or just shift the problem elsewhere. You'd want a simulator, like a flight simulator but for social policy. InGRID-2 built exactly that: a shared European toolbox that lets researchers and analysts plug in real data about incomes, jobs, and living conditions across EU countries, then run "what if" scenarios before any policy is actually changed. They connected scattered databases from 13 countries and built microsimulation software so you can test policy ideas on virtual populations first.

By the numbers

consortium partners contributing data and expertise

EU countries with integrated and harmonized social data

total project deliverables produced

universities in the consortium providing research infrastructure

The business problem

What needed solving

Companies and governments making decisions about social policy, workforce strategy, or market entry across Europe lack consistent, comparable data on poverty, working conditions, and living standards. Each country collects data differently, making cross-border analysis expensive and unreliable. Without simulation tools, policy changes and business decisions affecting large populations are essentially guesswork.

The solution

What was built

The project built a research portal as a gateway to integrated European social science data, the LIAM2 dynamic microsimulation tool (with a dedicated resource platform as deliverable D14), harmonized cross-country databases on poverty, living conditions, and labour policies, indicator-building tools, and policy databases — totaling 90 deliverables across the 19-partner consortium.

Audience

Who needs this

Public policy consulting firms advising EU governments on social reformInsurance and reinsurance companies modeling social vulnerability across European marketsESG rating agencies needing standardized European social indicatorsWorkforce analytics platforms comparing labour conditions across EU countriesInternational development organizations tracking inclusive growth metrics

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Public sector consulting

mid-size

Target: Policy advisory firms serving national governments or EU institutions

If you are a consulting firm advising governments on social policy reform — this project developed the LIAM2 dynamic microsimulation tool and integrated cross-country datasets covering poverty, living conditions, and labour markets across 13 EU countries. Instead of relying on static reports, your analysts could model the population-level effects of proposed policy changes before they are enacted, giving your clients evidence-based recommendations with quantified impact projections.

Insurance and social risk analytics

enterprise

Target: Insurance companies or actuarial firms modeling social vulnerability

If you are an insurance or actuarial firm trying to understand how employment trends and living conditions affect risk profiles across European markets — this project harmonized and integrated micro-data on working conditions, vulnerability, and labour policies from 13 countries with 19 institutional partners contributing. These standardized datasets and indicator-building tools could feed your risk models with consistent cross-border social data that is otherwise extremely difficult to assemble.

HR technology and workforce analytics

SME

Target: Workforce analytics platforms tracking labour market conditions

If you are a workforce analytics company that needs reliable comparative data on working conditions and labour policies across Europe — this project built integrated databases and classification tools covering labour vulnerability indicators across 13 EU countries. With 90 deliverables including harmonized datasets and policy databases, the outputs could enrich your platform with standardized European labour market intelligence that goes beyond what commercial data providers typically offer.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to access or license the tools and data?

InGRID-2 was a publicly funded Research and Innovation Action, so its core outputs — including the LIAM2 microsimulation platform and research portal — are designed for open access by the research community. Commercial licensing terms are not specified in available project data. Companies should contact KU Leuven to discuss access for commercial applications.

Can these tools work at industrial scale with real business data?

The LIAM2 dynamic microsimulation tool was designed for population-level policy modeling using harmonized European micro-data. It handles complex datasets from 13 countries, suggesting it can process large-scale data. However, it was built for research use — adapting it for commercial products would likely require engineering work.

What is the IP and licensing situation?

As a publicly funded EU research infrastructure project, most outputs are intended for open scientific access. The LIAM2 microsimulation tool is open-source software. Specific licensing terms for commercial use of datasets and tools should be clarified directly with the coordinator at KU Leuven.

How current is the data, and will it keep being updated?

The project ran from 2017 to 2021 and is now closed. Based on available project data, the research portal at inclusivegrowth.eu was intended to be the gateway to ongoing infrastructure. Whether datasets and tools continue to be maintained post-project would need to be verified with the consortium.

Can these tools be integrated into our existing analytics systems?

The LIAM2 microsimulation tool has a dedicated resource platform (deliverable D14), suggesting documentation and APIs for integration exist. The project focused on building interoperable research infrastructure with harmonized classification tools and indicator-building capabilities. Technical integration specifics should be discussed with the development team.

Is there regulatory value in using EU-harmonized social data?

For companies operating across EU markets, having access to harmonized social policy data and indicators built to EU standards could support regulatory compliance reporting and ESG assessments. The project covers poverty, living conditions, and working conditions — all increasingly relevant to corporate social responsibility requirements.

Consortium

Who built it

The InGRID-2 consortium is heavily academic: 11 universities and 6 research organizations out of 19 partners, with just 1 industry participant and 2 SMEs (5% industry ratio). This spread across 13 countries gives the data excellent geographic coverage but signals that commercial application was not a primary goal. KU Leuven in Belgium coordinated the effort. For a business looking to use these outputs, the lack of industry partners means there is no built-in commercialization pathway — you would be among the first to adapt this research infrastructure for business use, which is both a risk and a first-mover opportunity.

KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVENCoordinator · BE
UNIVERSITEIT ANTWERPENparticipant · BE
THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTERparticipant · UK
CENTRE FOR EUROPEAN POLICY STUDIESparticipant · BE
LISER - LUXEMBOURG INSTITUTE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC RESEARCHparticipant · LU
UNIVERSITY OF ESSEXparticipant · UK
TARKI TARSADALOMKUTATASI INTEZET ZRTparticipant · HU
UNIVERSITA DI PISAparticipant · IT
UNIVERSITAT TRIERparticipant · DE
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTONparticipant · UK
CENTRO DE ESTUDIOS DEMOGRAFICOSparticipant · ES
CONSERVATOIRE NATIONAL DES ARTS ET METIERSparticipant · FR
DEUTSCHES INSTITUT FUR WIRTSCHAFTSFORSCHUNG DIW (INSTITUT FUR KONJUNKTURFORSCHUNG) EVparticipant · DE
CENTRALNY INSTYTUT OCHRONY PRACY - PANSTWOWY INSTYTUT BADAWCZYparticipant · PL
PANTEIO PANEPISTIMIO KOINONIKON KAIPOLITIKON EPISTIMONparticipant · EL
UNIVERSITEIT VAN AMSTERDAMparticipant · NL
STOCKHOLMS UNIVERSITETparticipant · SE

How to reach the team

KU Leuven (Belgium) — contact via university research department or project website

Order a report on this consortium See KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

SciTransfer can help you evaluate whether InGRID-2 tools and data fit your business needs, and arrange a conversation with the research team.

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