One of the key objectives guiding the FWF‘s activities at the international level is to enhance Austria‘s international visibility as a research location.

Top-notch research is now increasingly conducted in worldwide networks where international competition and cooperation are both equally relevant. In addition to prominent figures in the world of research as well as established and internationally visible research institutions, the general conditions created by national funding agencies also form an essential basis for strengthening international integration in these networks.

In this context, the dynamic development of research areas around the world plays a crucial role. For the FWF, one obvious key objective is to enhance Europe’s status in this respect, not least in order to advance the integration of basic research funding in the European Research Area. The FWF is actively involved in these efforts and takes targeted measures to support the internationalisation of Austrian science and research.

In FWF projects, international integration is not limited to specific international programmes; it also manifests itself in the form of individual cooperation arrangements in all of the FWF‘s funding programmes. Over half of all ongoing FWF projects are being carried out in cooperation with research partners abroad.