Fostering and supporting collaborative research in IBD across Europe is one of the priorities for ECCO. Accordingly, ECCO has developed a large number of initiatives over the years, including classic research grants, travel grants and fellowships as well as dedicated grants for dietitians and nurses—partners in the IBD multidisciplinary team who usually have limited opportunities to access research grants. ECCO Fellowships, Grants and Awards are available to encourage early career IBD specialists from all disciplines on their professional journey and to promote innovative scientific research in IBD in Europe.
Overall, in 2026, ECCO distributed more than EUR 2.5 million through these grants, which represents a colossal investment for a scientific society. Documenting and highlighting what has been achieved with these grants is vital to stimulate new annual applications and to inform the IBD Community of the progress made in the field thanks to the investment by ECCO.
In the present issue of ECCO News, you will discover more than 40 scientific works that have been supported by ECCO and learn how they may contribute in moving the field forward. In particular, you will find final reports on more than 20 research grants awarded over the last five years. These grants, currently worth EUR 80,000 each, are classic research grants and were the first to be awarded by ECCO.
More recently ECCO realised that some important breakthrough projects deserve and will need a larger amount of money. ECCO therefore created the Pioneer Award, which will be worth EUR 300,000 and will promote visionary, innovative and interdisciplinary research projects in the field of IBD. You will discover what has been achieved with one of these very recent grants.
The multidisciplinary team plays a critical role in the management of IBD and is strongly promoted by ECCO. Yet as already mentioned, some members of multidisciplinary teams, in particular dietitians and nurses, have far fewer opportunities to apply for research grants to develop their field and their personal expertise. For this reason, ECCO has developed dedicated grants for important research designed to strengthen these domains. In the present issue you will discover the outcomes of four N-ECCO Research Grants and two D-ECCO Research Grants.
Finally, young investigators and clinicians find it invaluable to gather experience at highly experienced centres across Europe. ECCO Fellowships are dedicated to early career scientists who are not yet 40 years old or are still in training. They promote innovative scientific research and knowledge exchange in IBD in Europe and are open to all disciplines. ECCO Travel Awards are available to the same population and enable visits to European IBD centres to learn scientific techniques and undertake clinical observership. In the present issue of ECCO News, you will discover what has been accomplished with four ECCO Fellowships and 14 ECCO Travel Awards.
Overall, these ECCO Grants and Awards, and the achievements of their recipients, strongly highlight the dynamic approach and positive energy of ECCO. They illustrate how ECCO is contributing in building a broad European and international community with a high level of clinical and scientific expertise that will be placed at the service of our IBD patients.
