Science stories

Will we run out of groundwater?
13 Nov 2025

Will we run out of groundwater?

Groundwater supplies half the world’s drinking water and irrigates a third of its crops, yet it is disappearing fast. How much can we still use before it is gone? ERC grantee Marc Bierkens is among the first to map the global overuse of groundwater and its consequences for…
Groundwater supplies half the world’s drinking water and irrigates a third of its crops, yet it is disappearing fast. How much can we still use before it is gone? ERC grantee Marc Bierkens is among the first to map the global overuse of groundwater and its consequences for…
Groundwater supplies half the world’s drinking water and irrigates a third of its crops, yet it is disappearing fast. How much can we still use before it is gone? ERC grantee Marc Bierkens is among the first to map the global overuse of groundwater and its consequences for…
Displaying 385 - 392 of 532

Investigating new practices of citizenship

Recent years have seen the emergence of new forms of political engagement, from the Arab Spring to the Occupy Movements in different countries, from online campaigning to community organising. With the support of the ERC, Prof. Engin Isin has led…
Recent years have seen the emergence of new forms of political engagement, from the Arab Spring to the Occupy Movements in different countries, from online campaigning to community…
Recent years have seen the emergence of new forms of political engagement, from the Arab Spring to the Occupy Movements in different countries, from…
Recent years have seen the emergence of new forms of political engagement, from the Arab Spring to the Occupy Movements in different countries, from online campaigning to…
Recent years have seen the emergence of new forms of political engagement, from the Arab Spring to the Occupy Movements in…

Conflicted consumers: anxiety and food decisions

Surveys such as the 2010 Eurobarometer show that people around Europe are worried about what they eat and where it comes from. But what causes this? And does it affect behaviour? An ERC project studied consumer choices about shopping, cooking and…
Surveys such as the 2010 Eurobarometer show that people around Europe are worried about what they eat and where it comes from. But what causes this? And does it affect behaviour? An…
Surveys such as the 2010 Eurobarometer show that people around Europe are worried about what they eat and where it comes from. But what causes this?…
Surveys such as the 2010 Eurobarometer show that people around Europe are worried about what they eat and where it comes from. But what causes this? And does it affect…
Surveys such as the 2010 Eurobarometer show that people around Europe are worried about what they eat and where it comes…

Into the Deep

A team of 28 scientists and engineers led by ERC grantee Dr Veerle Huvenne has just returned from a successful 5-week expedition on board the RRS James Cook. They used tailored marine equipment to provide some of the first detailed acoustic maps of…
A team of 28 scientists and engineers led by ERC grantee Dr Veerle Huvenne has just returned from a successful 5-week expedition on board the RRS James Cook. They used tailored marine…
A team of 28 scientists and engineers led by ERC grantee Dr Veerle Huvenne has just returned from a successful 5-week expedition on board the RRS…
A team of 28 scientists and engineers led by ERC grantee Dr Veerle Huvenne has just returned from a successful 5-week expedition on board the RRS James Cook. They used…
A team of 28 scientists and engineers led by ERC grantee Dr Veerle Huvenne has just returned from a successful 5-week…

The driving forces of cell division

With her ERC grant, the 5000th awarded to a leading scientist in Europe, Dr Iva Tolić wants to push forward the frontiers of knowledge on the mechanical principles of cell division. To reach her goal, after spending several years in the USA,…
With her ERC grant, the 5000th awarded to a leading scientist in Europe, Dr Iva Tolić wants to push forward the frontiers of knowledge on the mechanical principles of cell division. …
With her ERC grant, the 5000th awarded to a leading scientist in Europe, Dr Iva Tolić wants to push forward the frontiers of knowledge on the…
With her ERC grant, the 5000th awarded to a leading scientist in Europe, Dr Iva Tolić wants to push forward the frontiers of knowledge on the mechanical principles of cell…
With her ERC grant, the 5000th awarded to a leading scientist in Europe, Dr Iva Tolić wants to push forward the frontiers of…

Music’s transformation in the digital era

Music has been a vital part of human cultures for millennia, and today it continues to evolve, taking vastly different forms around the world. Proceeding from the rich diversity of human music-making, Prof. Georgina Born has been investigating its…
Music has been a vital part of human cultures for millennia, and today it continues to evolve, taking vastly different forms around the world. Proceeding from the rich diversity of…
Music has been a vital part of human cultures for millennia, and today it continues to evolve, taking vastly different forms around the world…
Music has been a vital part of human cultures for millennia, and today it continues to evolve, taking vastly different forms around the world. Proceeding from the rich…
Music has been a vital part of human cultures for millennia, and today it continues to evolve, taking vastly different forms…

Exploring the history of Central European forests

Significant changes in woodland vegetation pose a long-term threat to native flora and fauna. To understand the functioning of current ecosystems, we need detailed knowledge on management history and on the driving forces of historical forest…
Significant changes in woodland vegetation pose a long-term threat to native flora and fauna. To understand the functioning of current ecosystems, we need detailed knowledge on…
Significant changes in woodland vegetation pose a long-term threat to native flora and fauna. To understand the functioning of current ecosystems, we…
Significant changes in woodland vegetation pose a long-term threat to native flora and fauna. To understand the functioning of current ecosystems, we need detailed knowledge…
Significant changes in woodland vegetation pose a long-term threat to native flora and fauna. To understand the functioning…

Setting eyes on the dark side of the universe

More than 95% of our universe comes in the mysterious form of dark matter and dark energy that we can neither explain nor directly detect. Dr Catherine Heymans leads a team of researchers who were the first to “map” dark matter on the largest of…
More than 95% of our universe comes in the mysterious form of dark matter and dark energy that we can neither explain nor directly detect. Dr Catherine Heymans leads a team of…
More than 95% of our universe comes in the mysterious form of dark matter and dark energy that we can neither explain nor directly detect. Dr…
More than 95% of our universe comes in the mysterious form of dark matter and dark energy that we can neither explain nor directly detect. Dr Catherine Heymans leads a team…
More than 95% of our universe comes in the mysterious form of dark matter and dark energy that we can neither explain nor…

The role of civil society in democratization processes

What do the Velvet revolution, the transitions in Baltic countries in the 1990s and the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul have in common? Prof. Donatella Della Porta is leading an ambitious project to compare the most relevant democratization processes…
What do the Velvet revolution, the transitions in Baltic countries in the 1990s and the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul have in common? Prof. Donatella Della Porta is leading an…
What do the Velvet revolution, the transitions in Baltic countries in the 1990s and the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul have in common? Prof…
What do the Velvet revolution, the transitions in Baltic countries in the 1990s and the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul have in common? Prof. Donatella Della Porta is leading…
What do the Velvet revolution, the transitions in Baltic countries in the 1990s and the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul have…