Cluster of Excellence

Microbiomes Drive Planetary Health

The FWF-funded Cluster of Excellence (CoE) brings together the expertise of CeMESS researchers from all four divisions in a joint, ambitious research project: The CoE Microbiomes Drive Planetary Health aims to understand how microbes underpin planetary health and to unlock their potential to improve it. In total 30 principal investigators – including 18 CeMESS researchers – from seven renowned Austrian research institutions are pooling their expertise in this CoE.

Here, CeMESS cooperates with the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT), the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), the Medical University of Graz, the Austrian Academy of Sciences with the Research Center for Molecular Medicine (CeMM), the TU Vienna and the Johannes Kepler University Linz. In their interdisciplinary endeavor, the researchers will establish an Austrian School of Microbiome Science by breaking down the boundaries between environmental and medical microbiome research in Austria.

Interview with Michael Wagner

This short promotional video features an interview with Michael Wagner, director of the Cluster of Excellence and Vice-Head of CeMESS. Wagner explains the mission of the Cluster and the significance of microbiomes to planetary health.

Presentation, Dies Academicus 2023

In this 15-minute presentation, Michael Wagner breaks down the importance of microbiomes to the health of our planet, highlighting the state of knowledge so far, and the gaps and opportunities that the Cluster of Excellence seeks to address. This talk was presented on March 13, 2023 as part of the University of Vienna's Dies Academic program.