In 2020, the University of Coimbra published a research strategy in which they specifically targeted the Widening Participation and Spreading Excellence actions under Horizon Europe.

They aimed to draw on the University’s distinctive strengths in humanities and social sciences by clustering its research centres under thematic areas.

Specifically, the University of Coimbra’s leadership team wanted to align their research objectives with two clusters outlined in Horizon Europe - Pilar II, “Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness”.

To be successful, research managers at the University of Coimbra understood that they would need to forge strategic partnerships with globally renowned institutions, innovating companies and thought-leading SMEs.

Significantly, they also recognised the need to accelerate that process so that the University could generate meaningful connections with organisations that were already at the centre of the EU’s funding pathways.

To deliver on their ambition, the University of Coimbra’s research managers identified the Crowdhelix platform as a mechanism that they could leverage to generate purposeful connections.

In July 2020, one month after joining Crowdhelix’s platform, faculty at the University of Coimbra connected with like-minded researchers at the Polytechnic University of Madrid.

Working in close collaboration, researchers from both universities drew on their respective capabilities to submit a successful funding proposal that targeted the Widening Participation and Spreading Excellence actions stream. 

For the University of Coimbra, this immediate success validated its ambition to support faculty to create new opportunities and partnerships in specific clusters.

Keen to build on their initial success, by the end of 2021, 161 faculty from the University of Coimbra had registered on the Crowdhelix platform.

In all, they posted 27 further collaboration opportunities on the platform, ten of which were related to Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, underscoring the University of Coimbra’s drive to help early career researchers connect with Europe’s leading business and research institutions.

Their focus on building connections and establishing networks on the Crowdhelix platform echoed the University of Coimbra’s determination to enhance its reputation as a dynamic research institution by diversifying its sources of external funding.

Such was their vision and success, the University of Coimbra were invited to establish and lead a bespoke Heritage & Culture Helix on the Crowdhelix platform.

Specifically designed around the University of Coimbra’s research strengths, the Helix was created to act as a focal point for collaboration among leading research organisations, including those in the arts, cultural and creative sectors.

By leading the Heritage & Culture Helix, experts at the University of Coimbra could quickly position themselves at the heart of any consortia being developed in response to funding calls.

It also provides them with the opportunity to learn from their peers and share best practice through thematic webinars.

Under the University of Coimbra’s leadership, today, the Heritage & Culture Helix is home to 291 experts from 93 different organisations and is spread across 26 countries. 

Most recently, a multidisciplinary team of researchers representing three very different departments at the University of Coimbra joined an international consortium that submitted a Horizon Europe proposal.