Four universities launch Alpine health PhD programme

Four universities from Austria and Italy have launched an interdisciplinary PhD programme to develop solutions for human, animal and environmental health in the Alpine region, ORF reported.

The programme, called OHASIS, brings together the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, the Medical University of Innsbruck, the Free University of Bozen and the University of Innsbruck. The name stands for One Health for the Alpine Region: Solutions and Innovation in Science.

Researchers and PhD students will examine zoonoses, the spread of infectious diseases, antibiotic and fungal resistance, food microbiomics, mountain agronomy, agroecology and public veterinary services.

The first nine PhD positions will begin in November. The students will also conduct research and attend seminars partly at the Rotholz campus in the Schwaz district.

A feasibility assessment has also been presented for the planned Alpine One Health Competence and Innovation Centre, known as KIZ Alpin. The centre is expected to be established at the Rotholz campus by 2030. Once complete, the PhD programme is intended to operate entirely there.

The University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna is working to relocate its existing Innsbruck branch to Rotholz. The assessment by the Federal Real Estate Company confirmed the location’s potential and the possibility of establishing the centre there.

The Rotholz campus already hosts the HBLFA Tirol, a higher federal teaching and research institute for agriculture, food, food technology and biotechnology, as well as the Rotholz Agricultural College. Its existing infrastructure, public transport connections and proximity to the Inntal motorway were cited as advantages for expanding the campus.

Science Minister Eva-Maria Holzleitner, who has taken patronage of the cooperation programme, said the project showed what could be achieved when institutions worked together across university and national borders.