European research funding: a steady growth for the University of Bologna in Italy and Europe
If we look at the number of funding secured by the University of Bologna, we can see how it improved its performance on each pillar of Horizon 2020, the European framework programme for Research and Technological Development.
The University of Bologna is among the top universities in Europe and Italy for its ability to attract substantial research funds within the Horizon 2020 framework (H2020).
If we look at the three pillars of H2020 (“Societal Challenges”, “Industrial Leadership” and “Excellent Science”), in 2020 the University of Bologna climbed six positions, getting to number 10 in Europe for the total number of funded projects (75). Regarding the amount of funding, Unibo jumped ten positions, getting to number 21 in Europe with approximately 35 million euros funding.
Let us now look at each pillar in detail. Within the "Societal Challenges" pillar, the University of Bologna is first in Italy and seventh in Europe for the amount of funding received (and for the number of funded projects). "Societal Challenges" is the H2020 central pillar and provides funding to scientific research and innovation in top-priority fields within the European society: health, food, energy, transports, climate, social inclusion, and security.
Compared to 2019, in 2020 Unibo confirmed its first place in Italy and jumped one position forward in Europe (from eighth to seventh), and two positions if we consider the number of funded projects (from fifth to third). If we consider the "Societal Challenges" pillar from the beginning of Horizon 2020 in 2014 until now, the University of Bologna reaches position number one in Italy. In Europe, on the other hand, Unibo is number 12 for the total amount of funding and number three for the number of funded projects since the H2020 launch.
Unibo achieved great results also in the pillar "Industrial Leadership". This pillar fosters competitivity across industry sectors and aims at creating more jobs and supporting European growth. In 2020, the University of Bologna secured position number 12 in Europe for the amount of funding it received (position 15 in 2019) and went from third to second in Italy.
The pillar "Excellent Science" confirms the path of growth seen in the other H2020 pillars. "Excellent Science" provides funding to support researchers in their careers as well as in producing knowledge. In this pillar, the University of Bologna climbed 29 positions in Europe and went from 83rd to 54th and from sixth to second in Italy.
The university has made substantial investments in research in recent years. These results show the effectiveness of such investments and validate the high quality of Unibo's researchers and their research efforts, which spread across different pillars and crucially deal with global challenges, from climate change to energy, and from food to social inclusion.